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Ralph Lauren has welcomed “better than expected” trading in Q2, as revenues grew by 5% to $1.6bn (£1.36bn) over the period despite macro-economic pressures.
The luxury fashion brand delivered “strong” revenue growth in both its Core business, up mid-teens to last year, and high-potential categories, including Women’s, Outerwear and Home, which were up high-teens against last year.
It also delivered positive constant currency revenue growth across every region and channel in the quarter, including high-teens growth in wholesale and low-double-digit growth in retail.
By region, North America revenue increased by 3% to $727m (£619m) though in retail, comparable store sales were flat. Europe revenue in the second quarter was flat to last year at $494m (£420m), with comparable store sales up by 3%. Despite ongoing Covid restrictions in Asia, this region performed the strongest in the period, with revenue up by 17% to $316m (£269m), while store sales were up by 25%.
Looking ahead, the group has maintained its guidance for FY23, with net revenue expected to increase by 8%, while its adjusted operating margin is set to be at the low end of the prior range of 14% to 14.5%.
Ralph Lauren, chairman and chief creative officer, said: “Our brand has always been rooted in optimism, inspiring dreams and a sense of possibility. For more than five decades, people all over the world have connected to these ideas in powerful ways — trusting Ralph Lauren time and again to deliver quality, timelessness and authenticity.”
Patrice Louvet, president and CEO, added: “At our investor day in September, we outlined our next phase of growth for our company, our Next Great Chapter: Accelerate plan, focused on ongoing brand elevation, category expansion and scaling our key city ecosystems around the world.
“Our multiple engines of growth helped drive solid second quarter results with outperformance on both the top- and bottom-line as we continue to navigate a highly dynamic global operating environment with agility and a relentless focus on building our brand momentum.”
