Richemont Europe blames French ‘social unrest’ for sales slowdown

Swiss retail group, Richemont Europe, has blamed French “yellow vest” protests for a slowdown in its sales.

The group, which owns Cartier, Dunhill and Net-A-Porter, said it had seen a 5% rise in total sales for the quarter ending 31 December. Despite the sales figure being in line with analysts expectations, it represented a slowdown from the 8% growth it saw in the half-year period to the end of September.

Richemont Europe said that the anti-government protests had “negatively impacted tourism and led to store closures for six consecutive Saturdays”. The groups saw significantly more success in its Asian business, where it saw a 10% increase in growth driven by a rise in Chinese spending.

A statement by the group read: “Sales grew in all regions, with the exception of the Middle East and Europe. Sales in Europe were affected by social unrest in France which negatively impacted tourism and led to store closures for six consecutive Saturdays.”