Lust for luxury lifestyle lifts Louis Vuitton to record sales

THE group behind Moet & Chandon champagne, Louis Vuitton and Dior said it was ‘cautiously confident’ for 2020 as it hailed record sales of £45bn in 2019.

LVMH, the world’s biggest luxury goods conglomerate, said sales rose by a tenth last year and net profits were up 13pc to £6.1bn.

Fashion and leather goods were particularly popular, growing by 17pc, while wines and spirits, including Hennessy, and its cosmetics brands also performed well. But annual sales growth slowed in the fourth quarter to 8pc.

LVMH also faces a hit to sales as the Government in China, its biggest and fastest-growing market, restricts movement in an attempt to halt the spread of the coronavirus. It said: ‘In an uncertain geopolitical context, LVMH is wellequipped to continue its growth momentum across all business groups.’

The group has around 70 luxury brands including champagne Dom Perignon, Glenmorangie whisky, Belvedere vodka, Marc Jacobs and TAG Heuer watchmakers.

Louis Vuitton, whose bags are modelled by Emma Stone ( pictured), remains its most important brand, bringing in more than 40pc of operating profit, according to analysts.

The firm’s widespread portfolio has allowed it to weather the global trade war and political unrest in Hong Kong, where many Chinese shoppers go to buy high-end goods.

Last year LVMH also doubled its jewellery business with its £12bn takeover of US brand Tiffany and Co. Shares in the group, which is listed on the Parisian Euronext stock market, have risen 60pc in the last year to nearly € 412 (£350) last night. The monumental rise increased the value of the 47pc stake held by chairman and chief executive Bernard Arnault, already one of the world’s richest men, by close to £74bn last year.

Its current share price values the business at £172.5bn.

LVMH said it will propose a dividend of €6.80 per share, an increase of 13pc, at the annual general meeting in April.