Italian luxury fashion brand Prada’s first-half sales growth plummeted to a third of last year’s due to sluggish demand for luxury goods in China. The growth slowed from 36% for the same period last year. But Prada’s revenue rose 12% to $2.3 billion in the six months through July.
The luxury goods industry is gradually rebounding after a stuttering start to the year. Prada, which aims to grow without making acquisitions, said in June that it is confident of high single-digit percentage growth for sales in stores open more than 12 months this fiscal year as it opens as many as 80 stores. Prada had 491 directly-operated shops at the end of July.
“We shall continue to base our long-term growth strategy on the balanced international expansion of our retail network,” says Prada CEO Patrizio Bertelli.