After the close of local time on March 14th, the Italian luxury group Brunello Cucinelli released its financial data for the full year of 2023: revenue increased by 23.9% year-on-year to 1.1394 billion euros (an increase of 26% at constant exchange rates); EBIT (earnings before interest and taxes) increased by 39.4% year-on-year to 187.4 million euros, and net profit increased by 42.0% year-on-year to 123.8 million euros.
Regarding this, Brunello Cucinelli stated that the company had ended a “beautiful 2023” and was very satisfied with the performance. In addition, the company’s balance sheet and level of financial debt are very solid, maintaining a very considerable level of investment, “which is a prerequisite for keeping the company modernized and ensuring the uniqueness of the brand… Positioned in the high-end market, the constant growing demand for high-quality products, and the offering of products with a strong spirit of craftsmanship, are some of the factors we believe played a decisive role in 2023 (in terms of performance).”
For 2024, Brunello Cucinelli company stated that it has achieved excellent performance in the first few months of this year, fully in line with its expectation of about 10% revenue growth for the entire year of 2024. Sales in both single-brand boutiques and multi-brand spaces have started very positively, with the spring/summer 2024 collection selling out, “and the sales campaign for the new autumn/winter 2024 collection also achieved very good results, with orders for the new autumn/winter 2024 collection being very satisfying: the men’s fashion show was first presented at the Pitti Immagine in Florence, receiving high praise from professional media. Subsequently, the women’s fashion show held during Milan Fashion Week in February also received positive reviews.”
Based on the excellent performance in the first few months of this year, the order volume for the autumn/winter 2024 collection, and the opening plan of boutiques, Brunello Cucinelli looks forward to the company’s full-year revenue increasing by about 10% in 2024 and will continue to welcome healthy and balanced profits. The company also expects a similar sustainable growth for 2025, with a steady increase in revenue of about 10% expected for 2025 as well.
On the second day after the earnings report (March 15th), Brunello Cucinelli’s opening price on the Milan Stock Exchange was 107.5 euros per share. By noon local time on March 15th, Brunello Cucinelli’s stock price was 110.3 euros, down 5.57% from the previous day’s closing price of 116.8 euros per share, but Brunello Cucinelli’s stock price has risen by 49.7% over the past 12 months, with the latest market value of about 7.5 billion euros.
Brunello Cucinelli company also emphasized the great value of craftsmanship and manual work in the financial report, stating, “We strongly believe that achieving the great results and receiving the prestigious awards we did in 2023 are the concrete expression of a way of doing business, in line with the principles of humanistic capitalism and human sustainability, seeking healthy growth and a fair balance between profit and giving back, respecting the moral and economic dignity of all our employees.
This business philosophy is reflected in exclusively Made in Italy production, with the use of the most prestigious raw materials and a high rate of manual skills: over 50% of operations are carried out by hand, with needle and thread, by our expert artisans.
As part of a production based on the territory and artisan traditions, manual work plays an essential strategic role, as a unique and essential source of knowledge for the creation of products of exceptional quality.
It therefore seems to be of vital importance to give the right relevance and gratitude to the world of “manual work” that, like all others, requires the utmost protection of people’s moral and economic dignity, as well as care and beautification of production spaces.
We therefore remain committed to ensuring that the workplace becomes a locus of the human spirit, where the creativity, well-being and sense of accomplishment of our wonderful employees can be elevated.”
Earlier, at the autumn/winter 2024 women’s wear show in February this year, the brand’s namesake founder, Brunello Cucinelli, defined luxury as “gentle luxury,” which “is a friend who welcomes you with a sincere smile, it is someone who reaches out to you, it is creativity and genius that do not cross the line, it means finding beauty in simplicity. It is welcoming to all, it pursues fairness and is always appreciated, as it knows the value of respecting others. This is why gentle luxury has a universal value.”
In the financial report, Brunello Cucinelli company stated that this is also the brand’s understanding of luxury, focusing on an understated, low-key style, with no logos, which is also interpreted as another form of “quiet luxury.” The company added that its “definition” and “identification” of “gentle luxury” are derived from a desire for continuous innovation, “which can be seen in the small details, a prerequisite for truly luxurious products… The clothing produced by our skilled craftsmen and respected workers is the result of continuous innovation, research, and the application of expertise to traditional crafts, to improve quality, create beautiful and lasting things… that can be passed on to future generations.”
Looking at the market:
In 2023, all markets contributed positively to Brunello Cucinelli’s overall performance: the Americas (+21%), Europe (+17%), and Asia (+40%) performed exceptionally well, with a very balanced distribution of revenue shares (Europe 38%, Americas 35%, Asia 27%).
Brunello Cucinelli company stated, “We plan for all markets to contribute positively to expected growth in the coming years, with gradual alignment of the weighting between different geographical areas. In particular, we believe that China represents a great opportunity for us, confirming the significant growth trend reported in recent years. At the same time, we want to support this potential by taking the right amount of time and going at the right pace, fully in line with a philosophy of healthy and balanced growth, a prerequisite to maintain the brand’s exclusivity.”
| Source: Brunello Cucinelli official website and official financial reports
| Image Credit: Brunello Cucinelli official website and official financial reports
| Editor: Wang Jiaqi
