Finance In Brief
This article was originally published in The Rose Sheet
Executive Summary
Estee Lauder: New products helped drive a 7% increase in net sales to $1.69 bil. for Lauder's 2007 third quarter (ended March 31), firm reports May 3. Hair care rose 20.9% to $97.1 mil. on Aveda professional color products and the recently launched Be Curly line, as well as new salon openings for Bumble and bumble, company says. Skin care revenue jumped 9.5% to $668.9 mil. on new items from Estée Lauder and Clinique, but were partially offset by lowered sales of core brands. Makeup rose 6.9% to $678.4 mil. on Lauder's makeup artist brands and new Estée Lauder items, while fragrances decreased 2.5% to $240.1 mil. due to a difficult comparison to 2006 and lower sales of existing Tommy Hilfiger, Tom Ford and Sean John fragrances in the Americas. However, higher sales of DKNY Red Delicious in Europe partially offset the decline, firm adds. Sales in the Americas decreased 1.5% to $856.9 mil., while Lauder's travel retail business drove sales in Europe, the Middle East and Africa up 19.3% to $598.4 mil. Asia/Pacific grew 13.8% to $235.2 mil...