‘Record’ 2016 for LVMH

French luxury group, Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy, experienced a 5% increase in revenue over the course of 2016 with profits hitting €7 billion.

The group as a whole recorded revenue of €37.6bn in 2016, up 5%, while organic revenue as a whole went up 6%.

LVMH said that the US and European markets remained “on a good track” and that Asia, though not Japan, “continued its good momentum”.

Profits from “recurring operations” in all divisions amounted to €7bn

The performance of the group’s wine and spirits division in all markets was remarked on as positive.

Revenue from wines and spirits rose from €4.6bn in 2015 to €4.8bn, a reported increase of 5% and an organic growth of 7%.

Profits from wines and spirits meanwhile rose 10% between 2015 and 2016, up from €1.3bn to €1.5bn.

LVMH noted that its wines and spirits arm did well in the US and that there was a “rebound” in shipments to China. Prestige cuvée Champagne and premium spirits were reported as doing particularly well.

The group said in a statement: “With volumes up 3%, solid growth continues for champagne and prestige cuvees performed particularly well.  Hennessy cognac enjoyed an excellent year with 10% volume growth.

“The American market is growing well and China saw better momentum after a tough 2015 due to destocking by distributors. Other spirits, Glenmorangie and Belvedere, continued their growth.”

Looking ahead to 2017, the group said that, “despite a climate of geopolitical and currency uncertainties, LVMH is well-equipped to continue its growth momentum across all business groups in 2017. The Group will maintain a strategy focused on developing its brands by continuing to build on strong innovation and a constant quest for quality in their products and their distribution.”

Bernard Arnault, chairman and CEO of LVMH, said: “LVMH achieved an excellent performance in 2016 within a context of geopolitical and economic instability. Continued innovation, entrepreneurial spirit and the quest for excellence: all Maisons continue to assert these core values while maintaining rigorous execution of their strategies on the ground. In an environment which remains uncertain, we can count on the appeal of our brands and the agility of our teams to strengthen, once again in 2017, our leadership in the universe of high quality products.”