L’Occitane delivers 18.9 percent sales growth

L’Occitane sales in the nine months period reached 1,915.3 million euros, representing 18.9 percent growth at reported rates and 24.8 percent at constant rates.

The company said that the growth was mainly driven by the continued outperformance of Sol de Janeiro, the positive performance of Elemis and the steady growth of L’Occitane en Provence in China.

In the third quarter, net sales amounted to 843.4 million euros, up 19.5 percent at reported rates and 24.6 percent at constant rates.

Commenting on the financial performance, André Hoffmann, vice-chairman & CEO of L’Occitane, said in a statement: “We delivered a decent holiday season, which enabled us to maintain our growth momentum and relative outperformance in the premium beauty market in China and other key markets.”

Review of L’Occitane’s nine month results

In terms of performance by brands, L’Occitane en Provence’s growth slowed slightly to 2.6 percent at constant rates in the nine month period driven by double-digit sales growth in China and strong holiday performances in the US and the UK, partially offset by a single-digit sales decline in EMEA and a low-teens percent sales decline in the travel retail channel. Excluding Russia, from which the group divested in June 2022, the brand posted sales growth of 3.3 percent at constant rates.

Elemis, the company added, returned to double-digit growth of 12 percent at constant rates. In the third quarter, the brand’s sales in the UK and the US grew 23.2 percent and 19.4 percent respectively at constant rates and excluding the maritime channel, the US domestic business grew 24.9 percent during the quarter.

Sol de Janeiro brand maintained its sales momentum with 199.1 percent growth at constant rates in the nine month period. The brand saw triple-digit growth across all geographies.

Other brands together delivered growth of 10.9 percent at constant rates. Erborian and L’Occitane au Brésil particularly reported growth of 32.8 percent and 36.8 percent, respectively during the period under review, while Melvita grew by a mid-teens percent in the third quarter and remained flat in the nine month period. LimeLife declined by 21.9 percent during the period.

L’Occitane sales increase across geographies

In terms of regional performance, the Americas grew 67.1 percent at constant rates in the nine months, mainly driven by Sol de Janeiro in the US. APAC grew 6.7 percent at constant rates contributed by the strong 21.9 percent growth at constant rates in China, driven by L’Occitane en Provence and the continued development of Elemis.

EMEA grew 4.3 percent due to the positive results of Erborian and Sol de Janeiro, as well as Elemis in the UK. Excluding Russia, EMEA grew by 6.9 percent at constant rates.

In terms of channel performance, wholesale & others led the growth with 45.4 percent at constant rates. Online channels posted growth of 28.2 percent driven by Sol de Janeiro, Elemis and the recent launch of L’Occitane en Provence on Douyin in China. Retail sales maintained a steady growth of 4 percent at constant rates, contributed mostly by China.