(Reuters) – India’s Shoppers Stop Ltd posted a rise in quarterly profit on Tuesday, after two straight quarters of loss, driven by strong demand for premium products such as watches and perfumes during the festive season.
The department store chain said consolidated net profit rose nearly 41% to 522.3 million rupees ($6.03 million) for the third quarter ended Dec. 31 from 368.5 million rupees a year ago.
The company also posted a profit fall in the first three quarters of fiscal 2024.
Spending on beauty and lifestyle products surged during India’s festive season between October and December, which typically accounts for the bulk of retailers’ annual sales.
Premiumization is holding its ground amid sticky inflation across various consumer segments, the company said in a presentation to investors.
Shoppers Stop, which retails luxury brands such as Armani Beauty and Michael Kors, reported an 11% rise in revenue from operations to 13.79 billion rupees ($159.33 million).
Premium categories contributed to 64% of overall revenue in the third quarter, up 9% year-on-year, said the company, with watches, handbags and fragrance categories outperforming.
Shares of the company closed about 2.5% higher ahead of results.
Larger rivals Tata Group-owned Trent, Arvind Fashions, and Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail will report their results in February.
(Reporting by Ashna Teresa Britto and Ananta Agarwal; Editing by Janane Venkatraman)
