Pandora’s revenue increased in the first quarter, even as more than one-third of its stores remain shut due to Covid-19 restrictions.The company’s sales rose 13% on an organic basis to DKK 4.5 billion ($719.3 million) versus the same quarter in 2020, the jeweler said last week. Like-for-like.
Titan Jewelry Sales Continue Recovery
RAPAPORT. Revenue at Titan Company increased in the fourth fiscal quarter as consumer sentiment continued to improve following the wedding season.
Jewelry sales rose 70% year on year for the three months ending March 31, as consumers took advantage of lower gold prices to purchase wedding jewelry for events that had been deferred. Titan also benefited from a favorable base comparison with the same period last year, which was affected by store closures amid the coronavirus pandemic, it said Wednesday.
“The company continued to witness strong business momentum as the Covid-19 impact on consumer sentiment seemed to fade in the early part of the quarter,” the company noted. “After recording the best ever revenue in the third quarter, which was a festive season, the company again recorded very strong revenues in the fourth quarter. The jewelry division has emerged very strongly from the crisis and witnessed strong growth in the quarter.”
Apparel Group Buys Lifestyle Brand for $3.6M RAPAPORT. Xcel Brands, which owns several apparel labels, has acquired Logo by Lori Goldstein, a lifestyle brand encompassing clothing and jewelry.
Goldstein, an American stylist and designer, launched Logo in 2009. The brand has since clocked up retail sales of more than $1.5 billion, Xcel said Monday. The investment will help enhance the brand’s product merchandising and design, according to the new owner.
The selling price is $3.6 million, according to an Xcel filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). This could rise by $12.5 million, depending on royalty payments.
New York-based Xcel specializes in acquiring and developing apparel retail brands. Its portfolio includes Isaac Mizrahi, Judith Ripka, Halston, C. Wonder and Longaberger.
De Beers Rough Sales Stabilize
RAPAPORT. De Beers brought in $440 million at its March rough sale, with the miner giving an optimistic outlook for the sector while cautioning about the pandemic’s continued effects.
“Following a good holiday season and that trend continuing during the first quarter of 2021, we have again seen solid demand for rough diamonds as we begin a traditionally quieter period of the year for the diamond industry,” De Beers CEO Bruce Cleaver said Wednesday. “Sales were in line with expectations, and both market sentiment and overall industry conditions remain positive.”
The figure for March encompassing the third sight of the year, as well as auctions compares with zero sales for the equivalent period in 2020, when De Beers canceled its trading session because of the coronavirus. However, proceeds were the lowest this year following sales of $663 million in January and $550 million in February.
First Nation Group at Loggerheads with De Beers
RAPAPORT. An Indigenous group in Canada is protesting plans by De Beers to build a new landfill at its Victor mine site, claiming the territory is of cultural significance.
The Attawapiskat are opposed to the landfill, which would be used for mine-demolition waste during the closure and rehabilitation of the site, fearing it will devastate the James Bay wetlands area, the group said Tuesday. That site has been of “critical, spiritual and subsistence importance to the Kattawapiskak Cree people for thousands of years,” it explained.
The First Nation group is also concerned the landfill could turn into another incident similar to the destruction of the Juukan Gorge caves in Australia by Rio Tinto last year. That area was a sacred Indigenous site to the Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura people, and was thousands of years old. The mining giant blasted it to make room for the expansion of one of its deposits.