Today we are torn between two conflicting reports on the future of the luxury goods industry.
If we believe a Financial Times article, the glass is half full and the headline reads: ‘Luxury Goods Industry On Track For Recovery.’ And within this article, a Bain & Co. consultant is optimistic, saying, “Markets are stabilising. We are seeing less discounting and markdowns and more signs of increasing consumer confidence. Growth will be timid in 2010 but it’s movement in the right direction.”
But on the other hand, the glass is definitely half empty over at the Wall Street Journal, where the headline reads, ‘Luxury-Goods Sales Still Soft, Recovery Unlikely Before 2011.’ Referencing the same consulting firm as the Financial Times, Bain & Co., this article predicts the luxury goods industry “won't fully recover from the downturn until 2011 or 2012. This year's decline in sales of luxury goods, including apparel, jewellery and fashion accessories, will be steep, off 8% to about $227 billion.”
So which article do we believe? We definitely prefer the Financial Times report; their talk of “cautious optimism” and “fast-growing luxury goods sales in China will return the industry to growth next year” is music to our ears.
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