(Reuters) – EssilorLuxottica reported a rise in third-quarter revenue on Friday as the world’s largest eyewear maker saw a rebound in sales in the Asia-Pacific region and modest growth in North America.
The French-Italian company, which makes Oakley and Ray-Ban sunglasses, reported revenue of 6.39 billion euros ($6.24 billion) in the three months to September 30, up 8.2% from the year. at the current exchange rate.
Asia-Pacific was the group’s fastest growing region with revenue rising 22.7 percent in the quarter at constant exchange rates to €761 million.
Retail business in particular rebounded strongly in the region, EssilorLuxottica said, after a negative second-quarter performance hit by COVID-19 lockdowns in mainland China.
Sales in North America, the company’s biggest market, rose 3.4 percent to 3.01 billion euros at constant exchange rates, boosted by the direct-to-consumer division, the group said.
“It’s a strong and reassuring release,” Stifel analyst Cedric Lecasble told Reuters, noting a “resilient” performance in North America and a “good surprise” in other regions, particularly Europe amid macroeconomic downturn and Asia.
While EssilorLuxottica’s large consumer base in the United States and Europe exposes it to macro pressures in those regions, it is more insulated from inflation than its peers in the discount eyewear business thanks to its luxury licenses, said Luca Solca, Bernstein analyst.
EssilorLuxottica manufactures glasses for brands such as Chanel and Prada, among others.
Despite concerns that the luxury industry’s post-pandemic boom may be cooling, bagmaker Birkin Hermes said on Thursday there were no signs of a slowdown so far as US shoppers took advantage of the strength of the The dollar in Europe and China rallied sharply, echoing earlier comments from Louis Vuitton owner LVMH.
Shares of EssilorLuxottica fell 1.8 percent by 0743 GMT, slightly underperforming France’s blue-chip CAC 40 index, which fell 1.2 percent.
($1 = 1.0235 euros)
(Additional reporting by Mimosa Spencer; editing by Milla Nissi and Elaine Hardcastle)
