Hermès sales soar as it leap-frogs Italian rival Gucci to bag lucrative US market

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Silk scarves and Birkin bag-maker Hermès has leap-frogged Italian rival Gucci with a 10 per cent jump in revenue for 2014.

The slowdown in China and currency volatility has hit many of the large luxury brands but Hermès reported a 9 per cent jump in net profit to £633million, boosted by demand in America.

Sales rose 10 per cent to £3billion with American revenue up 15 per cent. 

Japanese sales grew 13 per cent and China and the rest of Asia also managed 13 per cent growth which Hermès described as a 'good performance in a context marked by recent events in Hong Kong and the general slowdown in China's market'. 

However, there were some concerns about margins, which slipped to 31.5 per cent of sales from 32.4 per cent a year earlier, because of its hedging against currency movements in Japan.

The group, famous for its bags that sell for thousands and command a celebrity following including Kim Kardashian and Victoria Beckham, continues to restrict the number of its bags it sells, causing waiting lists. 

But it has started to increase production with new factories and plans two more workshops which are under construction.