Feb 07 2007
My wife just came back from Paris and as expected she bought some of the much sought-after local commodities from the land of Napoleon Bonaparte – Louis Vuitton (CAC40: LVMH) or popularly known as “LV”. No, the reason I’m writing this is not to brag but to share what actually happened inside the LV boutique. The name LV already associated with luxury and prestige, so much so that every corner of the globe tried to imitate LV’s products. And if you ever try to visit France carrying a LV imitation, get yourself ready to spend some time behind bars.
W
ith only 60 prestigious brands, LV commands 14 billion euros in total revenue for financial year 2005. It has over 59,000 employees worldwide and a retail network of more than 1,700 stores. Louis Vuitton recently paid dividend of 0.30 Euro back in Dec-2006.
ith only 60 prestigious brands, LV commands 14 billion euros in total revenue for financial year 2005. It has over 59,000 employees worldwide and a retail network of more than 1,700 stores. Louis Vuitton recently paid dividend of 0.30 Euro back in Dec-2006.Okay, back to the boutique story. When you first step into LV boutique in Paris, you’ll be surprised to notice the number of tourists who swarm the shop buying like there’s no tomorrow. It was such a good business as if it’s on 90% sales when in fact LV never had any discount-sales before. People just buy it for the sake of the brand, and the quality of course (it’s water-proof but unfortunately not fire-proof, sigh). But there’re other reasons why people rush to Paris to buy Louis Vuitton’s products.
LV products, just like your dreamt Rolex watches and Mont Blanc pens, will appreciate in value over time. So when you’re in bad time, you can rely on your LV to convert some hard-cash for you at second-hand shops (ever visited one in Hong Kong?), not sure if pawnshop will accept it though.
Another reason why you should buy LV 
from Paris (en route your travel path) is because you can get it cheaper in Paris than in other countries. As comparison, a Monogram Canvas (Toile Monogram) Speedy 30 in Paris will costs 415 Euro which will translate into RM 1,884 based on 1 Euro to 4.54 Ringgit. If you go to YTL Corporation Berhad’s (KLSE: YTL, stock-code 4677) Starhill Louis Vuitton boutique (the only one LV boutique in Malaysia), the price is RM 2,400. It’s a saving of more than RM 500. And if you buy more imagine the total savings you can gain.
from Paris (en route your travel path) is because you can get it cheaper in Paris than in other countries. As comparison, a Monogram Canvas (Toile Monogram) Speedy 30 in Paris will costs 415 Euro which will translate into RM 1,884 based on 1 Euro to 4.54 Ringgit. If you go to YTL Corporation Berhad’s (KLSE: YTL, stock-code 4677) Starhill Louis Vuitton boutique (the only one LV boutique in Malaysia), the price is RM 2,400. It’s a saving of more than RM 500. And if you buy more imagine the total savings you can gain.Let’s go back to LV Paris. Don’t be surprise if you noticed majority of the tourists who crazily grab LV products are from China. Louis Vuitton seems to have recognized this group of new wealthy customer-base judging from the fact that the boutique actually recruited a couple of Chinese-speaking sales reps specifically to take care of these tourists.
According to China Embassy Website, China has 236,000 millionaires (at least US$ 1 million in financial assets) based on 2004 World Wealth Report issued by Merrill Lynch (NYSE: MER, stock). With a 12 percent year-on-year growth, the number would be very much higher by today. With the ever-growing rich society, the hunger for luxury items would definitely benefits not only Louis Vuitton but other players such as Polo Ralph Lauren Corp. (NYSE: RL, stock), Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE: EL, stock) and others. And this is one of the many reasons why you should invest in their stocks (alternatively option trading, of course).
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February 7th, 2007 by financetwitter
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