Louis Vuitton Ireland's pre-tax profits down 19pc last year, as revenues dropped by €5m
Saoirse showed off her baby bump last week
Pre-tax profits at the Irish arm of Louis Vuitton, one of the world's most valuable luxury brands, lost some of their sparkle last year as they decreased by 19pc to €8.85m.
New accounts show that pre-tax profits decreased as revenues at Louis Vuitton Ireland Ltd declined by 14pc from a record €36.49m in 2023 to €31.36m last year.
The brand has only one dedicated store here, housed in Brown Thomas on Dublin's Grafton Street, It also generates revenues from online sales.
Sales declined at the Grafton Street outlet by 11pc from €31.54m to €28.16m, while online sales decreased by 35pc from €4.95m to €3.2m.
The directors stated that '2024 was a year of continued economic volatility, where the macroeconomic conditions – like the high rates of inflation and interest – remain a challenge in the retail sector'.
They added: 'In this context, we stay cautious about the ongoing difficulties impacting the industry and the wider economy.'
Despite this, Louis Vuitton 'is showing resilience, with a loyal customer base and a strong branding image supported by marketing activities within Ireland and the wider group', the directors said.
'With a steady trade in our retail store, we see a robust cash flow position for 2025.'
The business sells a range of leather goods, accessories, watches, jewellery, fragrances, shoes and clothing, but is renowned for its expensive bags. Its Steamer 65 bag is currently available online to Irish customers at €12,000, while a Louis Vuitton golf bag will set you back €22,000.
A diamond ring – LV Diamonds Pave Solitaire, LV Monogram Star cut – is priced from €27,700.
The company last year paid out a dividend of €9.53m.
The directors are proposing a dividend of €7.479m be paid this year.
The brand is a favourite of celebrities and pop stars.
It is part of the multi-billion, stock market-listed and France-headquartered LVMH luxury brands company.
The profit takes account of a concession commission of €2.86m and non-cash depreciation costs of €437,000.
The company last year recorded post-tax profits of €7.47m after incurring a corporation tax charge of €1.37m.
Numbers employed last year decreased from 24 to 22, with staff costs dipping from €1.36m to €1.17m. The company had shareholder funds of €8.6m.
Luxury brands generally are having a tougher time of it, with US president Donald Trump's tariff regime, reduced consumption in China and too much product on the market all being blamed.
There has been a loss of up to 50 million customers, according to an annual luxury study by the consulting firm Bain Company and the Italian Altagamma.
The survey found that luxury clientele amounted to approximately 350 million in 2024, down from 400 million in 2022.
Spending was estimated at $1.7tn (€1.46tn) last year, down 1pc.
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