By Geoffrey Smith
Investing.com -- Shares in Brunello Cucinelli (BIT:BCU) soared to a new all-time high on Wednesday after the Italian fashion house raised its sales guidance for 2022 after a "wonderful" October and November.
The company said it now expects sales to rise some 28% from 2021's level of €712 million, with growth of 12% next year and another 10% in 2024. As such, Cucinelli said it's "reasonable to assume" that it will hit its medium-term sales target of €1B a year (€1=$1.0509) already in 2023.
Brunello Cucinelli's upbeat tone is at odds with much of the doom and gloom surrounding consumer-facing stocks, which has intensified in recent weeks as the pressure on disposable incomes from high inflation has become all too clear.
Cucinelli, who acts as executive chairman and creative director for the company, said in a year-end update that its performance was due to an imbalance of demand over supply across the luxury segment this year, "which undoubtedly rewarded companies, like ours, with a solid production organization and a short supply chain."
He added that the rebound in sales had vindicated the company's decision not to lay off any workers during the pandemic.
If the company meets its new targets, it will essentially have reached a 10-year goal of doubling sales in half the allotted time.
Cucinelli singled out men's fashion as an area with particularly good opportunities in the near future. The company also expects to build on an exclusive 10-year cooperation deal with eyewear maker EssilorLuxottica (EPA:ESLX) signed three weeks ago, which will allow it to produce Cucinelli-branded eyewear.
By 07:45 ET (12:45 GMT), Brunello Cucinelli stock was up 7.5% at €67.70, making it the best-performing luxury stock in Europe. The benchmark FTSE MIB index was down 0.1%.