The Prada luxury fashion group announced record profits for 2011 of €431.9 million ($573.4 mil.), mainly due to surging sales in Asia. That represents a 72.2% jump over 2010.
Prada’s gross revenues jumped 41.7 per cent to €759.3 million ($1,008.1 mil.) and its turnover rose 24.9 per cent to €2.55 billion euros ($3.39 bil.).
“Our group enjoyed its best ever year, an important phase that saw the successful listing of Prada shares on the Hong Kong stock exchange,” said Prada CEO Patrizio Bertelli in a statement.
Prada announced a dividend of 0.05 euros per share.
Prada was founded in 1913 by the Prada brothers as a small shop in Milan selling only leather goods shop, much of it imported from England. For the next 65 years it remained a small, conservative and obscure purveyor of handbags, backpacks and totes. As recently as 1978 it was reporting under a half million dollars a year in sales.
It wasn’t until 1989, with the launch of its women’s ready-to-wear fashion line, that Prada began to catch the interest of fashion-conscious consumers. They were intrigued by the brand’s minimalistic lines and dropped waistlines. In the mid-1990s Prada’s streamlined, body-conscious cuts with a heavy emphasis on black caught on among affluent young Asian professionals.
By 2011 Asian consumers accounted for about 50% of Prada’s sales. In a Hong Kong IPO in June of 2011 the company managed to raise an impressive $2.14 billion, making it one of the major players in the international luxury fashion and accessories segment. China alone now accounts for about a quarter of Prada sales and is its leading market.
