Piquadro's sales up 6.6% in 2014

By

Dominique Muret

Published
Apr 14, 2015

Piquadro had a satisfying 2014 financial year despite the current economic situation. The Italian high-tech bags and accessories brand, mainly focused on the business and travel segment, closed its 2014-15 financial year, ended 31 March 2015, with €67.2 m in revenue, up 6.6%, it announced with the publication of its preliminary financial results. Positive results thanks to the progress of its two sales networks, retail and wholesale, despite the financial crisis in Russia.

Sales went up in the retail channel compared to the 2013-14 FY (+2.9% on a comparable scope). This data also includes e-commerce, where sales jumped 42.6% last year (+55% for the last quarter).
 
Wholesale remains the main sales channel for the brand, accounting for 64% of total revenue. For this channel, there was a similar growth in sales of 6.6%, led by the good performances in Italy (+12%). However, they dove 16.7% in Europe, due to the drop in demand in Russia and the Ukraine, and this despite a 7% increase in sales in Germany and 9.7% in Spain.

From a geographic point of view, Italy is still by far the leader for Piquadro, generating 75.7% of its total revenue. Sales in the domestic market went up 11.8% in 2014, whereas in Europe they went down 7.6% to 11.7 million euros due to the collapse in Russia and the Ukraine. Not taking into account these two markets, there would've been a growth of 17%, points out the company.
 
In addition, the reorganisation of the distribution of the brand in the Asian markets, with the closure of 14 wholly-owned stores in Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, led to a 4.9% drop in sales in the region outside of Europe. The group did indeed change its strategy in Asia, changing from direct distribution to a distributor via an agreement with a Chinese partner.
 
"Despite the current uncertain and volatile context, the brand's strength in Italy has allowed for double-digit growth, which confirms our position of leadership," said Marco Palmieri, CEO of Piquadro, without also concealing a certain optimism for "the prospects for international growth."