Christian Louboutin UK blames Brexit uncertainty for sales drop

By

Barbara Santamaria

Published
Jul 5, 2019

The British arm of luxury shoe business Christian Louboutin remains confident in its ability to grow in the long term despite reporting a 4.8% decrease in revenues in the year to 31 August 2018.

Revenue fell to £50.1 million from £52.6 million a year earlier as the ongoing uncertainty regarding Brexit and the UK’s future relationship with the European Union impacted the brand’s like-for-like sales.

Christian Louboutin operates three standalone boutiques in the UK, and it has a presence at Selfridges in London, Birmingham and Manchester, as well as Harrods and Harvey Nichols.

During the year, the upmarket designer label, known for its red-soled stilettos, invested £1.2 million across existing and new locations, including the new boutique at Selfridges Birmingham. 

And despite the slowdown in like-for-like sales, gross profit rose 3.7% to £20.73 million, reflecting the strong performance of the brand’s latest collections, it said.

Additionally, pre-tax profits rose by 9% to £1.2 million and shareholders received a £3 million dividend as a result.