Inter Parfums Details Guess Fragrance Expansion Plan

Inter Parfums Inc. is working to re-establish the Guess fragrance business.
The company, which took over the license from Coty Inc. earlier this year, said it is in the process of procuring and starting to sell finished goods. Inter Parfums' efforts center around Guess' 1981 and 1981 Indigo fragrances, which both come in men's and women's, and include a significant push for the holiday season.
Inter Parfums has scheduled "major" shipments for September and October, executives said on the company's earnings call Wednesday, and is gearing up for advertising and promotion efforts around the 1981 fragrances.
"Our worldwide distributor network is quite enthusiastic about Guess because they view it as a great American brand with huge brand recognition outside of the U.S.," said Jean Madar, Inter Parfums chief executive officer and chairman. The business expects the fragrance do do well in Eastern and Western Europe, as well as in Asia. Russia is expected to be a particularly important market for Guess, as the brand is opening stores there, executives noted. For the fragrance, the goal is to be in the top 10 in the Russian market in two years.
In the second quarter, Guess posted a 51 percent increase in sales.
Broadly, Inter Parfums Inc.'s sales rose in both its U.S. and European segments for the second quarter. Net sales were up 15.7 percent to $149.4 million, while net income increased 61.6 percent to $10.9 million. Earnings per diluted share were up 59.1 percent, to 35 cents. Sales for European operations rose 8.3 percent to $115.6 million, and sales for the U.S. segment were up 50.8 percent to $33.8 million.
Inter Parfum's largest brands — Jimmy Choo, Coach and Lanvin — made up most of the growth, gaining 8.2 percent, 98.5 percent and 7.1 percent, respectively. Coach's growth was driven in part by the launch of Coach Floral, which propelled Coach into the top three brands in the business, according to Madar. The company also launched Jimmy Choo Man Blue. Montblanc had a 9.8 percent dip in sales for the quarter, offset by a 33 percent gain in the first quarter. Karl Lagerfeld, which recently changed its pricing strategy, posted a comparable sales upturn, the company said, because of Les Parfums Matières, a fragrance duo. Anna Sui fragrance sales did well in the quarter, due to solid performance in Asia.
In the coming months, Inter Parfums will launch Jimmy Choo Fever in the U.S. market in September, as well as Coach Platinum and Rochas Moustache, which are both men's scents. Flight of Fancy Spirit from Anna Sui and Century, a new Dunhill pillar, will also launch. Abercrombie & Fitch is rolling out First Instinct Blue for women, and Hollister is launching a festival duo called Festival Vibes.
Inter Parfums is projecting 2018 net sales of $665 million with $1.59 in net income per diluted share.
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