Quarterly notes show the two sides of luxury. Kering and Gucci continue to slide: the group closes the April-June period with -15% in revenues, the flagship brand with -25%. Hermès experiences a completely different conjuncture. In the same period, sales performance (+9% at constant exchange rates) is even better than the former (+7.2%). The Leather Good category accelerates, growing 14.8%, up from +10% in the first three months of the year.
Kering and Gucci
Kering in the second quarter posted sales of €3.7 billion (-15%), doing worse than the -13% assumed by the Visible Alpha consensus estimate cited by UBS (source: Reuters). At the brand level, Gucci posted sales of 1.46 billion, -25% on a comparable basis. Yves Saint Laurent meanwhile posted -10%, while Bottega Veneta +1% and the “other brands” division -16%, “with mixed performance across brands.” The aggregate for the first six months of 2025 says Kering’s revenues were 7.6 billion, -15% on a comparable basis. Gucci -25%, Yves Saint Laurent -10%, Bottega Veneta +2% and “other brands” -14%.
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Armelle Poulou, Kering’s chief financial officer, said the impact of duties is “perfectly manageable”, and that “there could be a second wave of price adjustments in the fall”. During the presentation of its half-year results, the company highlighted its efforts to cut expenses and curb debt. Kering expects to close 80 stores (down from the 50 announced at the beginning of the year), while headcounts are down 4% since the beginning of the year: Gucci’s is down 22% from its 2022 peak. The group has no plans to sell underperforming brands. Kering’s net debt was 9.5 billion euros as of June, down from 10.5 billion at the end of 2024, thanks to property sales. Artemis, the Pinault family company that controls Kering, told Reuters it has no liquidity problems, and that the €7.1 billion debt recorded in May 2025 was a “temporary spike”.
Hermès flies
Hermès’ second quarter sales reached 3.9 billion, up 9% at constant exchange rates. This was slightly below analysts’ expectations (+10%), according to the Visible Alpha consensus cited by UBS (source: Reuters). Considering the first half of the year, revenue amounted to 8 billion, +8% at constant exchange rates compared to the same period in 2024. All regions show growth. Current operating income was 3.3 billion (or 41.4% of sales), up 6%. The company said it raised prices by 7% globally this year and an additional 5% in the U.S. to offset the duty effect. Hermès CEO Axel Dumas said these increases are probably also enough to cancel out the 15% duty agreed between the US and EU. Hermès today employs 25,700 people, 500 more than at the end of 2024.
Photo from the socials of Gucci and Hermès
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