Louis Vuitton 2008 Annual Report Download - page 32

LVMH010_2008_GB:Mise en page 1 24/03/09 11:12 Page 33
Givenchy Kenzo
Fashion Leather Goods
growth, while the children's line Little
Marc entered the market. The perfume
Daisy introduced in 2007 continued to
be a success worldwide. Marc Jacobs
continued its expansion, bringing its
global network to 187 stores, including
franchises.
For Celine, 2008 was a year of transition,
marked by the arrival at year-end of a new
management team and the appointment
as Artistic Director of Phoebe Philo, one of
the most talented stylists in the fashion
world.
Kenzo continued the improvement in
its profitability. The company steadily
continued the global deployment of its
new store concept. The opening of a
flagship store on Avenue GeorgeV in Pa-
ris, very close to the Champs-Élysées,
was one of the high points of the year, as
was the extension of the responsibilities
of Antonio Marras who is now Artistic
Director for the entire Kenzo universe.
Antonio Marras will present his first col-
lection of ready-to-wear men’s wear in
January 2009. Kenzo also developed part-
nerships in order to expand its universe,
particularly in the world of home furni-
shings.
Givenchy confirmed the pertinence of
its repositioning and its commercial suc-
cess. Women's ready-to-wear recorded
strong growth in Europe and the United
States. The success of the Nightingale
line launched in 2006 continued to fuel
the growth in accessories. After being
named artistic director for men's ready-
to-wear, Riccardo Tisci now supervises all
Givenchy's creative activities. His first
men's collection was enormously suc-
cessful, both in the press and with cus-
tomers. In February, Givenchy opened a
flagship store on Rue du Faubourg Saint-
Honoré in Paris with a new concept that
is being progressively rolled out in France
and abroad. The brand also expanded its
presence in the Chinese market.
Thomas Pink continued to expand its
retail network in all the regions in which
the brand is present and entered Mexico.
At the same time, revenue from its online
boutique grew substantially. The brand
benefited from excellent growth in its
Informal shirt line and from the success
of the White Shirt Bar launched at its Jer-
myn Street store in London and the
Madison Avenue store in New York.
Pucci continued to generate a solid
performance driven by ready-to-wear
revenue, growth in accessories, and the
major success of the new line of eye-
wear designed in partnership. In 2008,
Peter Dundas, one of the most promi-
sing designers of his generation, was
appointed Artistic Director. The brand
continued to expand its retail network
selectively and launched an online sales
boutique.
Berluti continued to expand, opening
five stores, owned and franchise, which
raised its points of sale worldwide to
34 at year end 2008. The creations by
Olga Berluti, a new footwear collection,
L’empreinte du Loup, and the Cervo leather
goods line, were launched during 2008.
O u t lo o k
In 20 0 9 , Lo u is
Vu it t o n w ill im p lem en t a
d yn am ic p ro gram to d eve-
lo p an d in tro d u ce n ew
p ro d u ct s. In Jan u ary, a
collect io n in t rib u t e t o
St ep h en Sp ro u se, t h e first
art ist t o co lla b o rat e w it h
M arc Jaco b s, a p p ea red in
st o res. Th is co llectio n ,
w h ich sh o u ld be a lan d -
m ark, is exp ressed in
leat h er go o d s w ith t h e
M o n o gram Graffit i an d
M o n o gram Ro ses lin es fo r
several o f th e b ra n d ’s
ico n ic m o d els. As a cro ss-
p ro d u ct co llectio n , it is
reflect ed in fo o t w ear, rea d y-
t o -w ear an d vario u s acces-
so ries.
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