Valentino tops €1 billion revenue mark in 2016, expects more growth in 2017
Yet another bumper year for Valentino, as its revenue topped the symbolic €1 billion mark in 2016. The Roman luxury label has enjoyed excellent financial health since it began flying the Qatari flag, and it is navigating an increasingly complex market shrewdly, thanks to its crystal clear, ultra high-end positioning.
When private equity firm Mayhoola, belonging to the Qatari royal family, acquired the Italian fashion label in 2012 (having also bought Balmain last year), Valentino's annual revenue was €370 million. For the 2016 fiscal year, the luxury label has reported sales worth €1.11 billion, up 12.4% compared to 2015, when its growth had been a staggering 47%.
Valentino's EBIT was €206 million, up 14.4% on a yearly basis, and yielding a margin of approximately 18% of total sales, while EBIT grew from €114 million in 2015 to €133 million a year later (+16.6%).
As for a potential stock exchange listing, Valentino stated in a press release that "there is nothing planned for 2017, and the project will be re-evaluated based on the most favourable market conditions."
In 2016 the fashion label witnessed a key change as designer Pierpaolo Piccioli took on the label's solo creative leadership, after Maria Grazia Chiuri left for Dior, having worked in tandem with Piccioli at Valentino for nine years.
"Thanks to Pierpaolo Piccioli's robust creative leadership, evident in the constant regeneration of our collections while respecting the label's design ethos, and to an unremitting managerial focus on development strategies, we are expecting yet more growth in 2017," stated General Manager Stefano Sassi in the press release.
The label's chief market remain the USA, generating nearly 20% of its sales, but this year the plan is to focus on the Japanese market too, with the opening of a new store in Tokyo. Having opened a flagship store in the Japanese capital's edgy Omotesando district, Valentino is planning to inaugurate a new store soon, in the more sophisticated Ginza district, while another special project is reportedly due to be launched in Tokyo still.
Digital solutions and e-tailing will also be high on Valentino's list in 2017, both via the label's own e-store and those of its multibrand partners. A greater emphasis will also be placed on the integration between the online and brick-and-mortar businesses.
The luxury label currently operates 175 monobrand stores worldwide, and retail sales account for over half (55%) of its revenue. The plan is to open another twenty or so stores this year, some of them dedicated to menswear, a segment which is growing strongly and now generates nearly €200 million in revenue, some 15% of the label's total.
However, accessories are still the mainstay for Valentino, as they account for 50% of the label's total revenue.
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