Things are getting tough for the big luxury brands. Loyal Chinese customers, in the wake of the country’s economic slowdown, are taking a step back in their purchases. In this context the LVMH group (controls 75 brands such as Louis Vuitton, Dior, Tiffany & Co, Moët & Chandon, etc.) announced that its sales in the Asian market, which includes China but not Japan, fell 14% in the April-June quarter, worsening from the 6% decline it had recorded in the first quarter of the year.

According to the BBC, the Paris-based French group is not alone. The same situation is experienced by many of its competitors who are also seeing their sales decline in the world’s second largest economy.

And this is due to the fact that Chinese consumers are cutting back on expensive purchaseswhile the government closes accounts of influencers who present luxury items on social media.

LVMH, which is the world’s largest luxury goods group, also said its overall turnover slowed 1% in the quarter. Nevertheless, the president and CEO of the group, Bernard Arnault remains cautiously optimistic.

“The figures for the first half of the year reflect the remarkable resilience of the group in an environment of economic and geopolitical uncertainty.”

“Although we remain vigilant in the current situation, the Group heads into the second half of the year with confidence” he told investors.

It is noted that the share of the group is down 20% compared to last year.

In the same… cauldron Burberry, Swatch, Richmont, Hugo Boss

In addition to the LVMH group, a similar image was also presented by British brand Burberry according to which its sales in China declined over 20% compared to the previous year.

And Swatch Group -which controls the brands Blancpain, Longines and Omega – pointed out that weak demand from China pushed sales 14.4% lower in the first half of 2024.

THE Richemont, bearing the Cartier mark, saw its sales in China, Hong Kong and Macau drop 27% in the quarter ended June 30.

At the same time the German fashion giant, Hugo Boss, cut its sales estimates for the year due to concerns about weak demand from markets such as China and the UK.

Recent data from China shows that its economy is still trying to recover from the recession created by the pandemic, as retail sales figures for both June and the second quarter of the year came in below estimates.