Tiffany Restores Growth in Strong Holiday Season

RAPAPORT... Tiffany & Co.'s sales jumped 8% during the holidayseason amid a sharp improvement in US demand and a recovery in Asian markets,the luxury jeweler reported Wednesday. Group sales grew to $1.05 billion during November andDecember, with comparable-store sales - those at branches open for at least ayear - rising 5%. Growth was registered across all regions and productcategories, both in-store and online, Tiffany noted. The Americas saw a 7%sales jump to $516 million, with comparable-store sales up 6%, mainly due tohigher spending by local customers. In Asia Pacific, salesleapt 16% to $232 million, with comparable-store sales increasing 7%, driven by improvements in mainland China, Hong Kong and Korea.European sales surged 14% to $136 million. The growth was strongest in high, fine, solitaire andfashion jewelry, while sales of engagement rings and wedding bands showed gentlerincreases, the New York-based retailer reported. The results mark a turnaround for Tiffany, which suffered a4% decline in holiday sales in the Americas a year ago as a result of weakerconsumer spending and protests outside Trump Tower, which is next to thejeweler's flagship New York store. Since then, the company has hired a new CEO and launched amarketing campaign featuring Lady Gaga in a bid to make the brand moreattractive to millennials. It also opened an in-store caf?(C) to enable visitorsto have breakfast at Tiffany's, set up pop-up jewelry stores in busy New Yorklocations, and introduced an attention-grabbing home-and-accessories line. That accessories collection - which includes everyday itemssuch as rulers and tin cans costing thousands of dollars - drew excitement fromshoppers, as did fine jewelry and watches, noted Alessandro Bogliolo, who tookover as CEO in October. "This recent return to growth in worldwide comparable-storesales, fueled by a substantial improvement in the Americas and AsiaPacific, is consistent with our commitment to generate solid and sustainablegrowth in sales, operating margin and earnings that is at least comparable toour industry peers over the long term," Bogliolo added. However, recent declines in comparable-store sales - whichfell 2% in the nine months ending October 31 - will still be difficult toreverse in the long term unless the company improves its products andcustomers' shopping experience, the executive cautioned. "Nonetheless, our holiday-period results confirm that theTiffany & Co. brand is strong, and we are excited about our numerouslong-term global opportunities to capitalize on that strength," he added. Tiffany raised its sales outlook for the fiscal yearending January 31, predicting growth of about 4% at constant exchange rates. InNovember, it had forecast a percentage increase for the year in the low singledigits.