Marc Puig Makes Bets Amid ‘Tectonic’ Shifts

Marc Puig Makes Bets Amid 'Tectonic' Shifts Jennifer Weil PARIS — Marc Puig is driving his family's business toward the 2 billion euro sales mark this year, and it looks likely Puig will reach it. Revenues at the 103-year-old Spanish fragrance and fashion company rose 9 percent in 2016 to 1.79 billion euros, or $1.98 billion at average exchange, in the context of a relatively flat perfume business worldwide and despite tough times in emerging markets, especially Latin America, where Puig generated 44 percent of its sales. Net income for the company advanced 23 percent to 155 million euros, or $171.6 million. "We decided in 2015 to make a big investment behind our brands and sacrifice profits, because we wanted to get the payback over time and have a more sustainable business," the 55-year-old chairman and chief executive officer explained. "What we said was that by the end of the three-year period, we would reach a level of profitability that was what we had prior to this plan. So I think now we are getting the fruits of the initiatives." Puig, which uses a unique hybrid model comprised of owned fashion and fragrance brands such as Carolina Herrera, Nina Ricci, Paco Rabanne and Jean Paul Gaultier, and licensed perfume labels, including Prada, Valentino and Follow WWD on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook. Read More... Fashion 3