Canada Goose Holdings forecast annual sales above Street estimates on Thursday, as a sharp rebound in key luxury market China is making up for a demand slowdown in the United States, sending its shares up 5 per cent.
A reversal in China’s strict Covid-19 policy has brought consumers back to stores, encouraging wealthy shoppers to snap up everything from Coach handbags to Cartier jewellery and Birkin bags.
That has buttressed sales at a time when affluent US shoppers have paused a post-pandemic splurge on high-end goods, with companies including LVMH and Gucci-owner Kering reporting sagging sales in the market.
Canada Goose’s Asia Pacific revenue jumped 65.4 per cent to US$84.5 million in the quarter, which, coupled with robust demand in Europe and Canada, helped the luxury winterwear maker beat expectations in its fourth-quarter results.
With US revenue declining 4.5 per cent in the reported quarter, Chief Financial Officer Jonathan Sinclair said the company was “not being super ambitious for this year” in the region.
Canada Goose, popular for its bright-red parkas and pricey puffer jackets, has about 18 retail stores in Mainland China – the highest number of outlets it has in any country.
“We will go back to seeing China become more of a region of growth,” said Jessica Ramírez, senior analyst at Jane Hali & Associates, adding Chinese consumers getting back to travelling would further boost sales in other regions.
The company is also planning to more than double its store count worldwide over the next five years, from 51 permanent stores currently.
Toronto, Ontario-based Canada Goose said it expects fiscal 2024 revenue between $1.05 billion and $1.10 billion, while analysts were expecting $985.5 million, according to Refinitiv data.
However, it forecast annual per-share profit in the range of $0.89 to $1.1, compared with estimates of $1.08 per share.
- Reporting by Deborah Sophia in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri, of Reuters.
