Louis Vuitton fears it is too common

Fears luxury goods brands could be falling out of fashion were rekindled as Paris-based luxury goods group LVMH missed forecasts and reported third quarter sales growth of just 2 per cent.

The owner of Louis Vuitton, Christian Dior and Moët Hennessy, reported sales for the quarter at €7.02bn - below analyst consensus forecast of €7.24bn. It said sales for the nine month period were up 4 per cent on a comparable basis to €20.7bn. Its flagship Louis Vuitton brand, which will lose its creative director Marc Jacobs, has showed signs of becoming ubiquitous and it will launch higher-priced lines to combat this. It said it “continues to implement its strategy of very high product quality and distribution excellence.”

Analysts at Berenberg said Michael Burke, chairman and chief executive of Louis Vuitton, “has already made internal changes such as former director of accessories design at Proenza Schouler Darren Spaziani is tasked to spearhead the design of a new “very high-end” leather goods Louis Vuitton sub-category.”

In a statement the group, which is controlled by Bernard Arnault, added: “Despite the uncertain economic environment in Europe, LVMH remains confident for 2013. It will continue its proactive strategy centered on innovation and targeted geographic expansion in the most promising markets.”