Prada Continues to Thrive

Other brands may be hurting given the current economic climate, but not Prada. The Italian luxury brand reported a 36.5% increase in sales to $1.9 billion for the six months ending on July 31st. All of Prada's geographic markets experienced growth; the Asia-Pacific area continues to drive Prada’s growth, followed by Japan, Europe and the U.S.

You may recall that Prada listed on the Hong Kong exchange last June, making $2.1b in its IPO (more about that here). Part of Prada's motivation in going public: to generate capital for expansion in the east. Prada, which also owns lower-end label, Miu Miu, opened 75 additional stores in 2011 and are set to open an average of 80 new stores in 2012 and 2013 respectively. These new stores consist of both Prada and Miu Miu stores. According to WWD, in 2012, 50 percent of openings are planned in “fast-growing markets” such as China, other Asian countries, the Middle East, Brazil and Morocco.