Interparfums Inc (IPAR) 2023 Q3 法說會逐字稿

Greetings, and welcome to the Inter Parfums Inc. Third Quarter 2023 Conference Call and Webcast. (Operator Instructions) As a reminder, this conference is being recorded. At this time, I'd like to turn the call over to Vice President at the Equity Group and Inter Parfums' Investor Relations representative, Karin Daly.

您好，歡迎參加 Inter Parfums Inc. 2023 年第三季電話會議和網路廣播。 （操作員指示）謹此提醒，本次會議正在錄製中。現在，我想將電話轉給 Equity Group 副總裁兼 Inter Parfums 投資者關係代表 Karin Daly。

Thank you, Daryl. Joining us on the call today will be Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Jean Madar. On behalf of the company, I would like to note that this conference call may contain forward-looking statements, which involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results to be materially different from projected results. These factors may be found in the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission under the headings Forward-Looking Statements and Risk Factors in their most recent annual report on Form 10-K or subsequent quarterly filings on Form 10-Q.

謝謝你，達裡爾。董事長兼執行長 Jean Madar 今天將加入我們的電話會議。我謹代表本公司指出，本次電話會議可能包含前瞻性陳述，其中涉及已知和未知的風險、不確定性以及其他可能導致實際結果與預測結果有重大差異的因素。這些因素可以在該公司向美國證券交易委員會提交的最新 10-K 表年度報告或隨後的 10-Q 表季度報告中前瞻性陳述和風險因素標題下的文件中找到。

Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which they are made, and Inter Parfums undertakes no obligation to update the information discussed. As a reminder, Inter Parfums' consolidated results reflect their 2 business segments, European-based operations and United States-based operations. Certain prestige fragrance products are produced and marketed by European-based operations through their 72%-owned French subsidiary, Interparfums SA.

前瞻性陳述僅代表發布當日的情況，Inter Parfums 不承擔更新所討論資訊的義務。需要提醒的是，Inter Parfums 的合併表現反映了其兩個業務部門：歐洲業務和美國業務。某些高級香水產品由歐洲公司透過其持股 72% 的法國子公司 Interparfums SA 生產和銷售。

It's now my pleasure to turn the call over to Jean Madar. Jean, you may begin.

現在我很高興將電話轉給讓·馬達爾。吉恩，你可以開始了。

Thank you, Karin. Good morning, everyone, and welcome to our third quarter conference call. Sadly, Michel's mother passed away yesterday and understandably, he is unable to join us this morning. So I will try my best to cover his financial remarks. Of course, we can arrange follow-up calls upon his return as needed. And of course, I will be able to also, as I'm in New York, to answer questions if you have after the call.

謝謝你，卡琳。大家早上好，歡迎參加我們的第三季電話會議。遺憾的是，米歇爾的母親昨天去世了，可以理解的是，他今天早上無法加入我們。所以我會盡力報道他的財務言論。當然，我們可以根據需要安排他回來後的後續電話。當然，由於我在紐約，如果您在電話會議後提出問題，我也可以回答您的問題。

So the strength of the global fragrance market is still compelling but no longer growing at double-digit rates from the last 2-plus years. Fortunately, and by design, our year-to-date sales growth of 27% clearly indicates our ability to outperform the industry and gain market share. The success of our newer brands has been a growth catalyst for us, along with the excellent sell-through of our legacy brands, which we have enriched with innovative extensions rather than major new product launches.

因此，全球香水市場的實力仍然引人注目，但不再以過去兩年多的兩位數速度成長。幸運的是，按照設計，我們今年迄今 27% 的銷售額成長清楚地表明我們有能力超越行業並獲得市場份額。我們新品牌的成功以及我們傳統品牌的出色銷售一直是我們的成長催化劑，我們透過創新擴展而不是重大新產品發布來豐富這些品牌。

Our production and distribution partners are operating efficiently and effectively to ensure that the omnichannel pipeline of fragrance sellers throughout the world are well stocked with our merchandise. These drivers produced record third quarter net sales, up 31% to $368 million, which set a new record for quarterly net sales in our 35-plus years as a public company. For the quarter, foreign exchange rates favorably impacted our net sales by 4%, and new brands represented 7% of the growth, leading to strong organic growth of 20% compared to the prior year period.

我們的生產和分銷合作夥伴正在高效且有效地運營，以確保世界各地香水銷售商的全通路通路都有充足的商品庫存。這些推動因素帶來了創紀錄的第三季淨銷售額，成長 31% 至 3.68 億美元，創下了我們作為上市公司 35 多年來的季度淨銷售額新紀錄。本季度，匯率對我們的淨銷售額產生了 4% 的有利影響，新品牌佔成長的 7%，導致與去年同期相比強勁的有機成長 20%。

Diving into detail of our business market for the third quarter, North America, our largest market, grew sales 29%, followed by Western Europe, our second largest region, with 24% growth. We also have seen a steep increase in sales in our smaller markets, particularly in Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Latin America, Eastern Europe at 73%, Middle East at 48% and Latin America at 42% growth in the quarter. This is primarily related to a smaller base of sales, coupled with ongoing recovery growth as economy began to normalize.

深入了解第三季我們的業務市場細節，我們最大的市場北美銷售額成長了 29%，其次是我們第二大市場西歐，成長了 24%。我們也看到較小市場的銷售額急劇成長，特別是東歐、中東和拉丁美洲，本季東歐成長 73%，中東成長 48%，拉丁美洲成長 42%。這主要與銷售基數較小以及隨著經濟開始正常化而持續復甦成長有關。

Asia Pacific, our third largest market, saw growth of 20% in the latest 3-month period, driven by sales in Australia and New Zealand. As mentioned in the earnings release yesterday, we continue to see a good sellout in China, namely for Coach, Montblanc and Ferragamo, enabling us to manage down our stocking trade levels, which we expect will provide a favorable tailwind in 2024. For the balance of 2023, we continue to anticipate only modest sales growth in China. Please be reminded that China currently represents only a very small portion of our business. And as always, we stand ready to take on this immense market opportunity when the time is right.

在澳洲和紐西蘭銷售的推動下，我們的第三大市場亞太地區在最近 3 個月內成長了 20%。正如昨天的財報中所提到的，我們繼續看到 Coach、Montblanc 和 Ferragamo 在中國的銷售情況良好，這使我們能夠控制庫存貿易水平，我們預計這將在 2024 年提供有利的推動力。到2023 年，我們仍然預期中國的銷售額只會溫和成長。請注意，中國目前僅占我們業務的一小部分。一如既往，我們隨時準備在時機成熟時抓住這一巨大的市場機會。

With respect to our European-based operations, net sales increased 18% during the quarter, primarily driven by our top-performing brands, which are Coach and Montblanc, with sales increasing 32% and 20%, respectively compared to the prior year period. Coach fragrance were in high demand during the quarter across nearly all the brand's fragrances, and we enriched the feminine fragrance with Coach Green and Coach Love. Montblanc Fragrance saw solid performance of Montblanc Legend and Explorer franchises, with an additional boost from the extension launched earlier this year, Montblanc Legend Platinum.

就我們歐洲業務而言，本季淨銷售額成長了 18%，這主要是由我們表現最好的品牌 Coach 和 Montblanc 推動的，與去年同期相比，銷售額分別成長了 32% 和 20%。本季度，Coach 香水幾乎在該品牌的所有香水中都受到很高的需求，我們用 Coach Green 和 Coach Love 豐富了這款女性香水。萬寶龍香水見證了萬寶龍傳奇系列和探險家系列的穩健表現，今年稍早推出的延伸系列萬寶龍傳奇鉑金系列也進一步推動了這項業務的發展。

Our owned brands also continued to generate strong sales. Rochas fragrance sales grew 21% during the quarter, surpassing $30 million year-to-date in 2023, with strength in the Eau de Rochas line and momentum from Rochas Girl Life. Lanvin, the other owned brand, in the absence of any major launches, grew sales by 6% during the quarter.

我們的自有品牌也持續產生強勁的銷售。憑藉 Eau de Rochas 系列的強勁表現和 Rochas Girl Life 的強勁勢頭，Rochas 香水銷售額在本季度增長了 21%，到 2023 年迄今已超過 3000 萬美元。另一個自有品牌 Lanvin 在沒有推出任何重大產品的情況下，本季銷售額成長了 6%。

Moving into our U.S.-based operations. Net sales grew 64% in the quarter on top of a 45% growth achieved in the same period last year. Donna Karan, DKNY fragrance sales increased 200% compared to the third quarter of 2022, having joined our portfolio in July of last year. This fashion house duo has become our second largest U.S.-based brand in only 1 year under our expertise. In August, we introduced our first brand extension for DKNY called Be Delicious Orchard St, a vibrant scent, which capture the energy of New York City Lower East Side, and the early returns are very promising. We are on track to launch a new blockbuster fragrance for DKNY next summer.

進入我們在美國的業務。本季淨銷售額在去年同期成長 45% 的基礎上成長了 64%。 Donna Karan，DKNY 香水銷售額與 2022 年第三季相比成長了 200%，她於去年 7 月加入我們的產品組合。憑藉我們的專業知識，這對時裝屋組合僅用了一年時間就成為我們在美國的第二大品牌。八月份，我們為 DKNY 推出了第一個品牌延伸產品，名為 Be Delicious Orchard St，這是一種充滿活力的香味，捕捉了紐約市下東區的活力，早期回報非常有希望。我們預計在明年夏天為 DKNY 推出一款新的暢銷香水。

GUESS fragrance sales increased 59% during the quarter, primarily driven by the continued demand of all fragrance lines, with significant growth builds upon the 45% sales increase in last year's third quarter. Growing demand for GUESS fragrances has been sparked by the rising popularity of GUESS fashion across the globe, particularly within the U.S., within Asia Pacific and also Europe.

GUESS 香水銷售額在本季度增長了 59%，主要是受所有香水系列的持續需求推動，在去年第三季度 45% 的銷售額增長的基礎上實現了顯著增長。 GUESS 時尚在全球日益流行，特別是在美國、亞太地區和歐洲，引發了對 GUESS 香水的需求不斷增長。

As we reported a few weeks ago, we recently launched the GUESS Originals trio of gender-inclusive fragrances and are now rolling out GUESS Bella Vita Paradiso. We have been working tirelessly on innovation for GUESS to ensure we capture the successful momentum of the brand. We have a rich pipeline of fragrances planned for 2024, including a new pillar of launch for GUESS, in addition to GUESS [Amore, Elements, Wamuten So] and Sexy Skin metallic.

正如我們幾週前報導的那樣，我們最近推出了 GUESS Originals 三款性別包容性香水，現在又推出了 GUESS Bella Vita Paradiso。我們一直不懈地致力於 GUESS 的創新，以確保我們抓住品牌的成功動力。我們計劃在 2024 年推出豐富的香水系列，除了 GUESS [Amore、Elements、Wamuten So] 和性感皮膚金屬色之外，還包括為 GUESS 推出的新支柱香水。

Even in the absence of a new product launch, first quarter Ferragamo fragrance sales were very strong, increasing 55% compared to the same period last year due to the legacy scents, coupled with sister scents, Signorina and (inaudible) collections that debuted earlier this year. Beyond the brand's Italian borders, Ferragamo fragrances are strong seller in the Americas. New products are in the pipeline for Ferragamo in 2024. By the way, in 2 years since we commenced operations in Florence, Italy, we now have about 60 management and staff members and are expanding our brand footprint with Cavalli, but also, our Italian affiliate will be distributing all our brands in Italy.

即使沒有推出新產品，第一季菲拉格慕香水的銷量也非常強勁，與去年同期相比增長了55%，這得益於傳統香水以及姐妹香水、Signorina 和今年早些時候推出的（聽不清楚）系列。年。除了義大利以外，菲拉格慕香水在美洲也很暢銷。菲拉格慕(Ferragamo) 將於2024 年推出新產品。順便說一句，自我們在意大利佛羅倫薩開始運營以來的兩年內，我們現在擁有約60 名管理人員和員工，並正在通過Cavalli 擴大我們的品牌足跡，同時也擴大我們的義大利品牌足跡。附屬公司將在義大利分銷我們所有的品牌。

As mentioned in the first quarter sales release, we initiated Phase 1 of the Abercrombie & Fitch Fierce distribution rollout. While we began with only introductory distribution in select markets of this iconic fragrance during the first quarter, we are on track to commence the majority of the Phase 1 distribution rollout in Europe before year-end and launch Phase 2 in Asia Pacific and Latin America during 2024.

正如第一季銷售發布中所提到的，我們啟動了 Abercrombie & Fitch Fierce 分銷推廣的第一階段。雖然我們一開始只是在第一季在選定的市場上對這款標誌性香水進行介紹性分銷，但我們預計在年底前在歐洲開始第一階段的大部分分銷工作，並在年底前在亞太和拉丁美洲 推出第二階段的工作。2024 年。

And lastly, touching on Roberto Cavalli and Lacoste, our 2 most recent license agreements. For Roberto Cavalli, we are set to begin shipping fragrance product in January 2024, and we plan to launch our first extension of Cavalli in the summer 2024. Of note, we did not buy the prior licensee's leftover inventory. Instead, we curated the collection and produced entirely new fresh goods.

最後，談談 Roberto Cavalli 和 Lacoste，這是我們最近的 2 份授權協議。對於 Roberto Cavalli，我們計劃於 2024 年 1 月開始運送香水產品，並計劃在 2024 年夏季推出 Cavalli 的第一個擴展。值得注意的是，我們沒有購買先前被許可人的剩餘庫存。相反，我們策劃了該系列並生產了全新的新鮮商品。

Also, we partnered with one of the top luxury retailers and distributors in the Middle East, a concentrated market for the brand to further expand the brand. We also have summer [Animation] hair and body fragrance mist and Just Cavalli due on track to see shelves early and mid-summer, respectively. The Lacoste license will take into effect in January 2024. And we have been using the time since the license was signed to develop go-forward strategies. And like Cavalli, we did not buy any existing inventory.

此外，我們也與中東這個品牌集中市場的頂級奢侈品零售商和經銷商之一合作，進一步拓展品牌。我們還有夏季[動畫]頭髮和身體香水噴霧和Just Cavalli，預計將分別在初夏和仲夏上架。 Lacoste 許可證將於 2024 年 1 月生效。自許可證簽署以來，我們一直利用這段時間來制定前進策略。和卡瓦利一樣，我們沒有購買任何現有庫存。

The fragrance industry remains competitive as new market participants enter the category. We are not surprised by the increased competition, as we believe there are 4 significant attractive elements. Number one, I think, is growth. The fragrance market has grown tremendously and is expected to continue to grow in the upper single digits with new consumers entering the category and existing consumers building out their fragrance wardrobe.

隨著新的市場參與者進入該類別，香水行業仍然具有競爭力。我們對競爭的加劇並不感到驚訝，因為我們認為有四個顯著的吸引力因素。我認為，第一是成長。香水市場已經取得了巨大的成長，隨著新消費者進入該類別以及現有消費者建立自己的香水衣櫃，預計將繼續以較高個位數成長。

The second point is resiliency. Resiliency is a very attractive element. We consider it to be generally recession-proof as other beauty and consumer segments are hit harder when faced with macroeconomic instability. This is reflected in our successful almost 4 years of history. The third attractive element is the desirability. Fragrances have a desirable entry price point for consumers who want to invest in their favorite luxury brands without having to purchase the higher-priced luxury goods.

第二點是韌性。彈性是一個非常有吸引力的因素。我們認為它總體上可以抵禦經濟衰退，因為其他美容和消費領域在面臨宏觀經濟不穩定時會受到更嚴重的打擊。這反映在我們近4年的成功歷史中。第三個吸引人的因素是願望。對於那些想要投資自己喜歡的奢侈品牌而不必購買價格較高的奢侈品的消費者來說，香水俱有理想的入門價格點。

And last, the demand. As new consumers enter the category, it is often rare to see this new consumer exit the fragrance market. So from a license perspective, while we actively scout for opportunities to add new brands that further complement our prestige portfolio, we also find that brand owners tend to seek us out because of our size, our expertise and excellent track record that underserved brand owners are often looking for. Our portfolio, both in legacy and new brands, is in high demand across the globe. Additionally, all of our brands have benefited from newly launched and enhanced e-commerce site in existing markets in collaboration with our retail customers on their e-commerce site.

最後是需求。隨著新消費者進入該類別，通常很少看到新消費者退出香水市場。因此，從許可的角度來看，雖然我們積極尋找機會添加新品牌，以進一步補充我們的聲望產品組合，但我們也發現品牌所有者傾向於尋找我們，因為我們的規模、我們的專業知識和卓越的業績記錄，而服務不足的品牌所有者則傾向於尋找我們。經常尋找。我們的產品組合（無論是傳統品牌還是新品牌）在全球範圍內都有很高的需求。此外，我們所有的品牌都受益於與我們的零售客戶在其電子商務網站上合作，在現有市場上新推出和增強的電子商務網站。

In fact, our retail sales in the Amazon premium beauty category, an invitation-only prestige platform, have soared by an impressive 149% year-to-date through October. The remarkable growth is largely attributed to the successful launches of some of our key franchises, such as Donna Karan and DKNY. We are also developing and implementing omnichannel concepts and compelling content to deliver an integrated consumer experience. Coupled with our ongoing innovation, we are confident in our ability to continue to outpace the overall fragrance market through the end of the year.

事實上，截至 10 月份，我們在亞馬遜高端美容類別（僅限受邀參加的知名平台）的零售額從年初至今激增了 149%，令人印象深刻。顯著的成長很大程度上歸功於我們一些主要特許經營權的成功推出，例如 Donna Karan 和 DKNY。我們也正在開發和實施全通路概念和引人注目的內容，以提供整合的消費者體驗。加上我們不斷的創新，我們有信心在今年年底前繼續超越整個香水市場。

So now I will turn to our financial performance. So I will do it for the first time myself because Michel, as I said before, is not able to join us. So let's try. On a consolidated basis, gross profit increased 29% to $235 million. Within our European-based operations, gross margin declined 90 basis points, primarily due to an unfavorable product mix as we shipped more gift sets in this quarter compared to prior year. On a year-to-date basis, gross margin declined only modestly due to the onetime expense related to inventory as we reported in the second quarter. Excluding this onetime adjustment, gross margin will have been in line with the 9-month period last year.

現在我將談談我們的財務表現。所以我將第一次親自這樣做，因為正如我之前所說，米歇爾無法加入我們。那麼讓我們來試試看。合併後的毛利成長了 29%，達到 2.35 億美元。在我們位於歐洲的業務中，毛利率下降了 90 個基點，這主要是由於產品組合不利，因為我們本季出貨的禮品套裝比前一年多。年初至今，由於我們在第二季報告的與庫存相關的一次性費用，毛利率僅小幅下降。剔除此一次性調整後，毛利率將與去年 9 個月持平。

In our U.S.-based operations, third quarter gross margin expanded approximately 190 basis points from the prior year period, driven by price increases that more than offset inflationary impacts on components that we are used for production during the quarter, coupled with ongoing favorable brand and channel mix. Additionally, with our net sales outperformance, we are better able to absorb fixed expense such as depreciation and point-of-sale expenses than at this time last year.

在我們位於美國的業務中，第三季度的毛利率比去年同期增長了約190 個基點，這主要是由於價格上漲，遠遠抵消了本季度我們用於生產的零部件的通膨影響，再加上持續良好的品牌和影響力。頻道組合。此外，由於我們的淨銷售額表現出色，與去年同期相比，我們能夠更好地吸收折舊和銷售點費用等固定費用。

SG&A as a percentage of net sales declined to 40.2% from 41.9% in the quarter. On a year-to-date basis, SG&A also declined to 190 basis points to 39.8% from 41.7% in the prior year period. In our European-based operations, third quarter SG&A increased 18%, which is comparable to the increase in net sales and generally in line as a percentage of net sales from the prior year period. In our U.S.-based operations, SG&A increased 44% on a 64% increase in net sales.

SG&A 佔淨銷售額的百分比從本季的 41.9% 下降至 40.2%。年初至今，SG&A 也從去年同期的 41.7% 下降至 39.8%，下降了 190 個基點。在我們位於歐洲的業務中，第三季銷售、管理及行政費用 (SG&A) 成長了 18%，與淨銷售額的增幅相當，並且與去年同期相比佔淨銷售額的百分比基本一致。在我們的美國業務中，SG&A 成長了 44%，淨銷售額成長了 64%。

Promotion and advertising are integral part of the fragrance and beauty industry, and we have and we will continue to invest heavily to support new product launches, our strongest sellers and to build brand awareness. Promotion and advertising aggregated $62.8 million and $152.6 million for the current third quarter and for the 9-month period as compared to $44.8 million and $125 million for the corresponding periods of the prior year. Promotion and advertising represented 17.1% and 15.4% of net sales for the current 3- and 9-month period, respectively, as compared to 16% and 16.1% for the corresponding periods of 2022.

促銷和廣告是香水和美容行業不可或缺的一部分，我們已經並將繼續投入大量資金來支持新產品的發布、我們最強大的賣家以及建立品牌知名度。目前第三季和前 9 個月期間的促銷和廣告總額為 6,280 萬美元和 1.526 億美元，而去年同期為 4,480 萬美元和 1.25 億美元。促銷和廣告分別佔目前 3 個月和 9 個月淨銷售額的 17.1% 和 15.4%，而 2022 年同期為 16% 和 16.1%。

As a reminder, as part of our strategy, the fourth quarter is typically the heaviest period for promotion and advertising, and we continue to expect to deploy 21% of net sales annually, which allocates approximately the same level of promotion and advertising year-to-date to the fourth quarter alone. Royalty expenses are included in SG&A, which ticked down slightly from the prior year period to 7.8% of net sales for the quarter, again due to changes in brand mix. Our operating margins aggregated 23.7% and 23.5% for the current 3- and 9-month period as compared to 23% and 22% for the corresponding period of 2022.

提醒一下，作為我們策略的一部分，第四季度通常是促銷和廣告最密集的時期，我們仍然預計每年部署淨銷售額的 21%，這與去年同期分配的促銷和廣告水平大致相同。 - 僅追溯到第四季。特許權使用費包含在 SG&A 中，該費用較去年同期略有下降，佔本季淨銷售額的 7.8%，這也是由於品牌組合的變化。在目前 3 個月和 9 個月期間，我們的營業利潤率總計為 23.7% 和 23.5%，而 2022 年同期分別為 23% 和 22%。

We closed the third quarter with working capital of $514 million, including approximately $184 million in cash and cash equivalents and short-term investments, maintaining our working capital ratio of 2.41. We closed the quarter with $129 million of long-term debt associated with the Paris headquarters and Lacoste license acquisition.

第三季末，我們的營運資本為 5.14 億美元，其中包括約 1.84 億美元的現金和現金等價物以及短期投資，營運資本比率維持在 2.41。本季結束時，我們因巴黎總部和 Lacoste 許可收購相關的長期債務為 1.29 億美元。

From a cash flow perspective, accounts receivable is up 49% from December 31, 2022, quite reasonable based on 2023 record level sales, and reflects the combination of high volume of shipments towards the end of the third quarter as well as some payment schedules extended going into the holiday season. Additionally, strong collection activity resulted in days sales outstanding decreasing to 72 days at the close of the quarter from 80 days at this time last year.

從現金流的角度來看，應收帳款較2022 年12 月31 日增長了49%，基於2023 年創紀錄的銷售水平，相當合理，反映了第三季度末的大量出貨量以及一些付款時間表的延長進入假期季節。此外，強勁的催收活動導致本季末的應收帳款天數從去年同期的 80 天減少到 72 天。

Inventory levels at September 30 increased 26% from year-end 2022 in support of our exponential sales growth. We have learned an important lesson from the supply chain issues experienced during the pandemic, and we have aimed to carry more inventory overall, source components from several suppliers and manufacture products closer to where they are sold to ensure we protect our service levels.

截至 9 月 30 日的庫存水準較 2022 年底增加了 26%，支持了我們指數級的銷售成長。我們從大流行期間經歷的供應鏈問題中吸取了重要教訓，我們的目標是增加整體庫存，從多家供應商那裡採購零件，並在更靠近銷售地點的地方生產產品，以確保我們的服務水平。

And finally, turning to our full year 2023 guidance. As we announced in yesterday's release, we are affirming our full year 2023 net sales guidance of $1.3 billion or growth of 20% from fiscal year 2022 despite geopolitical tension and a very high fourth quarter 2022 base. We are also -- excuse me, we are increasing earnings per diluted share guidance to $4.75 from our prior estimate of $4.55, which represents growth of 26% from the $3.78 for fiscal year 2022, thanks in great part to the operating leverage afforded by our significant growth. We expect to announce our initial guidance for full year 2024 later this month.

最後，轉向我們的 2023 年全年指導。正如我們在昨天的新聞稿中宣布的那樣，儘管地緣政治緊張且2022 年第四季度的基數非常高，但我們仍確認2023 年全年淨銷售額指導為13 億美元，或較2022 財年增長20%。對不起，我們還將稀釋後每股收益指引從先前的4.55 美元提高到4.75 美元，這意味著2022 財年的每股收益比3.78 美元增長了26%，這在很大程度上要歸功於我們提供的營運槓桿顯著成長。我們預計將於本月稍後公佈 2024 年全年的初步指引。

So with that, operator, you can open the floor for questions.

因此，接線員，您可以開始提問了。

(Operator Instructions) Our first questions come from the line of Linda Bolton-Weiser with D.A. Davidson.

（操作員說明）我們的第一個問題來自 Linda Bolton-Weiser 和 D.A.戴維森。

I was wondering with regard to your comments on China that your POS grew, and so you could work down some retail inventory. How do you feel about your current levels of retail inventory there in China? Do you think there's more reduction that needs to happen? Or are things in a good condition right now?

我想知道您對中國的評論，即您的 POS 增長了，因此您可以減少一些零售庫存。您對中國目前的零售庫存水準有何看法？您認為還需要進一步減少嗎？或現在情況良好嗎？

Thank you, Linda. So regarding China, this is something that we monitor on a weekly basis. We ask our distributors to give us an idea on the most important accounts like Sephora and department stores and also the different digital operators. We are in a much better shape than before, and we see an improvement week after week, quarter after quarter.

謝謝你，琳達。因此，關於中國，這是我們每週都會監控的事情。我們要求經銷商向我們提供有關絲芙蘭和百貨公司等最重要客戶以及不同數位營運商的想法。我們的狀況比以前好多了，而且一周又一周、一個季度又一個季度都在進步。

We think that the inventory will be in at a normal level when we start the year in 2024. But again, with China, you know we have been always super conservative. And I think we've been right to be like that because it's a big country and things are changing super fast. So we'll take also, even for next year, a conservative approach. But I can definitely notice an improvement in the inventory, that's all.

我們認為 2024 年年初時庫存將處於正常水準。但同樣，對於中國，我們一直非常保守。我認為我們這樣做是正確的，因為這是一個大國，而且事情變化得非常快。因此，即使是明年，我們也將採取保守的方法。但我確實可以注意到庫存有所改善，僅此而已。

Great. And then without Michel here, I'm not sure if you can answer this.

偉大的。如果沒有米歇爾，我不確定你是否能回答這個問題。

I'm going to try. I'm going to -- it's my first. So be nice with me. Just tell me, I will try to answer. But again, if I'm -- if I don't know, I will tell you, I don't know, and we'll ask someone in the company to answer you in the next couple of hours. But go ahead, Linda.

我要嘗試一下。我要去——這是我的第一次。所以對我好一點吧。只要告訴我，我會盡力回答。但同樣，如果我——如果我不知道，我會告訴你，我不知道，我們會請公司裡的人在接下來的幾個小時內回答你。但繼續吧，琳達。

Yes. My question is just with the level of advertising that you're guiding to in the fourth quarter, it does look like gross margin is implied to be sort of improved sequentially. So I would think it would be higher in the fourth quarter versus third quarter because of less gift sets. Does that sound reasonable to you that it should be higher in the fourth quarter?

是的。我的問題是，根據您在第四季度指導的廣告水平，毛利率似乎確實會有所改善。因此，我認為第四季的銷售額會比第三季更高，因為禮品套裝較少。您認為第四季的成長率應該更高，這聽起來合理嗎？

No, I think you can -- for gross margin, I prefer that you use the same margin as the first 3 quarters. You don't -- it shouldn't be higher. But as I said, we will spend a very big amount of money in advertising in the fourth quarter to ensure the sell-through at store level.

不，我認為你可以——對於毛利率，我更希望你使用與前三個季度相同的利潤率。你不——它不應該更高。但正如我所說，我們將在第四季度花費大量資金進行廣告宣傳，以確保門市層級的銷售。

Okay. And then just my final question is about -- I know you don't want to get detailed into 2024 yet, but I'm thinking that Roberto Cavalli and Lacoste can together add $100 million of revenue roughly. Is that about in the ballpark range?

好的。我的最後一個問題是——我知道您還不想詳細了解 2024 年的情況，但我認為 Roberto Cavalli 和 Lacoste 的收入總共可以增加約 1 億美元。這大約在大概範圍內嗎？

If Michel were here, he will say he cannot answer because we don't have but I think that, look, Lacoste has been in the fragrance business, and we have disclosed already how much we were doing with the former licensee, Cavalli also. So I think that it's a fair number to use for now.

如果米歇爾在這裡，他會說他無法回答，因為我們沒有，但我認為，看，拉科斯特一直從事香水業務，我們已經披露了我們與前被許可人卡沃利的合作情況。所以我認為目前使用這個數字是一個合理的數字。

Okay. Thank you very much, Jean. Thank you. I appreciate it.

好的。非常感謝你，讓。謝謝。我很感激。

Our next questions come from the line of Ashley Helgans with Jefferies.

我們的下一個問題來自 Ashley Helgans 和 Jefferies。

Some of your competitors are still taking price. Can you just talk a little bit about where you are in your current pricing journey? And then if you think consumers...

您的一些競爭對手仍在定價。能簡單談談您目前的定價過程嗎？然後如果你認為消費者...

You're talking about pricing?

你說的是定價？

Yes, yes, pricing. Yes, where you guys are with your pricing journey. And if you think consumers are going to start pushing back on price at all? And then maybe any updates you can give us on the travel retail channel.

是的，是的，定價。是的，你們的定價之旅處於什麼位置。如果您認為消費者會開始降低價格？然後也許您可以在旅遊零售通路上向我們提供任何更新。

Okay. Let's try on pricing. We took a modest pricing earlier in 2023, something around 5%, which more than offset inflationary expenses during the quarter. And we do not expect to take further pricing actions at this time. But because like you said, we think that some consumers will eventually resist this price increase that, by the way, has been going on for the last 2 years. So we think that our pricing is at the right level.

好的。讓我們嘗試一下定價。我們在 2023 年初採取了適度的定價，約為 5%，足以抵消本季的通膨費用。我們預計目前不會採取進一步的定價行動。但正如您所說，我們認為一些消費者最終會抵制過去兩年持續的漲價。所以我們認為我們的定價處於正確的水平。

And we will not -- except maybe for certain particular SKU, we'll position it a little bit higher, but this is more for marketing reason, not to offset any inflationary expense. So that's about pricing. And you wanted to talk about the travel retail. This is your second question?

我們不會——除了某些特定的SKU，我們會把它定位得更高一點，但這更多是出於行銷原因，而不是為了抵消任何通貨膨脹費用。這就是定價。您想談談旅遊零售。這是你的第二個問題？

Yes.

是的。

We see definitely a big improvement for us in travel retail, but again, as opposed to our larger competitors, our business is -- our base is small on travel retail, we were roughly at 5% in the beginning of the year, and we are trending now something around 7% or 8%. So definitely improvement, definitely more traffic in the airports. I mean, everybody is traveling, and you can see that business is definitely more active.

我們在旅遊零售方面肯定看到了很大的進步，但同樣，與我們更大的競爭對手相比，我們的業務是——我們在旅遊零售方面的基礎很小，今年年初我們的市場份額大約為5%，而且我們現在的趨勢約為 7% 或 8%。所以絕對是進步，機場的交通一定會更多。我的意思是，大家都在旅行，你可以看到生意肯定更活躍。

So we have -- we are quite optimistic for travel retail worldwide. If your question is more about travel retail in China, this is, I will say, enough a point also where we want to be conservative, and we are not putting big numbers for travel retail in China or for Chinese travelers. That's what I can tell you for now.

因此，我們對全球旅遊零售業非常樂觀。如果你的問題更多的是關於中國的旅遊零售，我想說，這已經足夠我們想要保守了，我們不會為中國的旅遊零售或中國遊客提供大量數據。這就是我現在可以告訴你的。

Our next questions come from the line of Korinne Wolfmeyer with Piper Sandler.

我們的下一個問題來自 Korinne Wolfmeyer 和 Piper Sandler。

Congrats on a good quarter. I'd like to just touch on the guide for the year. I mean, obviously, a pretty big step down in the top line growth for Q4, and I know there's some really challenging comps, but can you just provide any color on maybe why you're not pushing a little bit higher for Q4 and kind of what you're baking into the guidance for the remainder of the year?

恭喜季度表現良好。我想談談今年的指南。我的意思是，很明顯，第四季度的營收成長出現了相當大的下降，而且我知道有一些真正具有挑戰性的比較，但您能否提供任何顏色，說明為什麼您不為第四季度和其他類型推高一點。您將在今年剩餘時間將哪些內容納入指導？

And then maybe how we should think about the trajectory into 2024? I understand Michel's not here. So I appreciate any color you can provide.

那我們該如何思考 2024 年的發展軌跡呢？我知道米歇爾不在這裡。所以我很感激你能提供的任何顏色。

I can try. But I knew that you were going -- someone was going to ask me this question. We have decided to keep the level of sales at -- because as you said in your question, we are against a very strong fourth quarter last year. We have increased the EPS numbers because of the results of the third quarter, of course. But we want to maintain this prudence in our numbers. There is some instability in the world, as you know, 2 weeks ago, a war started in a very important region for perfume, which is the Middle East. So we have to be prudent. And that's why we prefer to stay conservative in our guidance. That's what I can tell you for now.

我可以試試。但我知道你會——有人會問我這個問題。我們決定將銷售水平保持在 - 因為正如您在問題中所說，我們去年第四季度的表現非常強勁。當然，由於第三季的業績，我們增加了每股盈餘數字。但我們希望在數字上保持這種謹慎。世界上存在一些不穩定因素，如您所知，兩週前，在香水非常重要的地區中東爆發了一場戰爭。所以我們必須謹慎。這就是為什麼我們更願意在我們的指導中保持保守。這就是我現在可以告訴你的。

And then on the advertising and marketing spend, I mean, you're still planning for that to be fairly heavy. What is your willingness if we do start to see a heavier slowdown in the top line, what is your willingness to maybe pull back on that spend to preserve the profitability of the business? Or is that something that you're going to continue to invest in even if the top line gets a little more pressure?

然後，在廣告和行銷支出方面，我的意思是，您仍然計劃相當重的支出。如果我們確實開始看到收入大幅放緩，您是否願意削減支出以維持業務的獲利能力？或者即使收入受到更大的壓力，您也會繼續投資嗎？

Yes. We will continue to invest. This investment is to ensure that all our retail partners sell out what we shipped them. So we did great in the third quarter because we shipped a lot, a lot of products, and it's absolutely necessary to maintain or to increase all our expenses to make sure that our retailers worldwide have a great sell-through and we can replenish inventory coming first quarter next year. .

是的。我們將繼續投資。這項投資是為了確保我們所有的零售合作夥伴都能售出我們運送給他們的產品。因此，我們在第三季度表現出色，因為我們發貨了很多很多產品，絕對有必要維持或增加我們的所有費用，以確保我們在全球的零售商有很好的銷售量，並且我們可以補充即將到來的庫存明年第一季。 。

So it will be a very short-term vision to reduce advertising to show a little bit more profit. No, we are here for the long term, and we are here to gain market share. So I'm convinced that this is the right thing to do.

因此，減少廣告以顯示更多的利潤將是一個非常短期的願景。不，我們是為了長期發展而存在的，我們是為了獲得市場份額而存在的。所以我確信這是正確的做法。

Our next questions come from the line of Hamed Khorsand with BWS Financial.

我們的下一個問題來自 BWS Financial 的 Hamed Khorsand。

Just wanted to see what kind of spending changes have you seen at the retail level going into the holidays? And are you assuming that the retailers are as much stocked as they were last year? Or do you think there's ample room for them to do reorders in Q4?

只是想看看假期期間零售層面的支出有何變化？您是否假設零售商的庫存與去年一樣多？或者您認為他們在第四季度有足夠的空間進行重新訂購嗎？

A good question. This is also something that we are monitoring on a daily basis. Retailers are quite prudent. They are not taking massive inventory. We are delivering daily. I was with many retailers in the last couple of weeks, and we have -- they have given us a lot of smaller orders, but more sequenced in order for, I guess, to receive products in a cadence that is on a weekly basis.

這是個好問題。這也是我們每天都在監控的事情。零售商相當謹慎。他們沒有大量庫存。我們每天都在送貨。在過去的幾周里，我與許多零售商打交道，他們給了我們很多較小的訂單，但順序更順序，我想，以便以每週的節奏接收產品。

And that's what we are doing. So they are not -- they don't have a huge amount of stock, but they are continuing to buy. And we have, I think, orders to ship up to Christmas. So I think it's a prudent attitude from retailers, but I do not see any issue with their inventory level.

這就是我們正在做的事情。所以他們不是——他們沒有大量庫存，但他們仍在繼續購買。我認為我們已經接到了聖誕節前發貨的訂單。所以我認為這是零售商的謹慎態度，但我認為他們的庫存水準沒有任何問題。

Okay. And my other question was for next year, other than Cavalli and Lacoste, what are you focused on as being important events for -- into perfume next year?

好的。我的另一個問題是明年，除了 Cavalli 和 Lacoste 之外，明年香水領域的重要活動還有哪些？

So of course, Cavalli and Lacoste are the new brand in the portfolio, but we are going to concentrate on the 5 biggest franchise in the portfolio. Number one is being Montblanc and Coach and Ferragamo and Jimmy Choo and GUESS. So these 5 brands will represent maybe 70% of the sales, and we will continue to invest. And what is very important is that this 5 big franchise will all have a blockbuster in 2024, where for 3 out of 5, we didn't launch any blockbuster in 2023.

當然，Cavalli 和 Lacoste 是產品組合中的新品牌，但我們將重點放在產品組合中的 5 大特許經營品牌。排名第一的是萬寶龍、蔻馳、菲拉格慕、Jimmy Choo 和 GUESS。所以這5個品牌可能會佔銷售額的70%，我們會繼續投資。非常重要的是，這 5 部大片都將在 2024 年推出大片，而 5 部中有 3 部我們在 2023 年沒有推出任何大片。

So this is positive. In a couple of weeks, we're going to give the sales guidance for 2024. We are optimistic but prudent because, again, the world conditions, these tensions also are not great for business, and we have to take this into account, of course.

所以這是積極的。幾週後，我們將給予 2024 年的銷售指導。我們樂觀但謹慎，因為世界條件，這些緊張局勢也不利於​​業務，我們必須考慮到這一點，課程。

We have reached the end of our question-and-answer session.

我們的問答環節已經結束。

I hope I was able to answer the right way. But again, I repeat, if there is more info that you need, we will be happy to have Michel's team answer, you just have to call the office. I'm sorry, operator, yeah, you wanted to say something else? No?

我希望我能夠以正確的方式回答。但我再說一遍，如果您需要更多信息，我們將很樂意讓米歇爾的團隊答复，您只需致電辦公室即可。對不起，接線員，是的，您還想說點別的嗎？不？

No, I was just going to hand the call back over to you for closing comments.

不，我只是想把電話轉回給您以供結束評論。

Okay. So before I end the call, I wanted to touch again on recent geopolitical tensions. As a global business with over 2,200 touch points across the globe, we do everything we can to help support our manufacturers and distributors. At Inter Parfums, we are in support of humanitarian efforts and the innocent people experiencing so much pain. We condemn the terrorist attacks in Israel, and we'll continue to work to find more ways to provide support to our partners, consumers and all those affected by this war. We hope for a pathway to peace soon.

好的。因此，在結束通話之前，我想再次談談最近的地緣政治緊張局勢。作為一家在全球擁有 2,200 多個接觸點的全球性企業，我們竭盡全力為我們的製造商和分銷商提供支援。在Inter Parfums，我們支持人道主義努力和遭受如此痛苦的無辜人民。我們譴責以色列的恐怖攻擊，我們將繼續努力尋找更多方式為我們的合作夥伴、消費者和所有受這場戰爭影響的人提供支持。我們希望盡快找到一條通往和平的道路。

And as I said, if you have additional questions, please contact Karin Daly from the Equity Group, our Investor Relations counsel. Her telephone number and her address can be found on our most recent earnings release.

正如我所說，如果您還有其他問題，請聯絡我們的投資者關係顧問股權團隊的 Karin Daly。她的電話號碼和地址可以在我們最新的財報中找到。

Since this is our last conference call of the year, Michel and I hope you have a safe and pleasant holiday season and a prosperous New Year. We look forward to the next conference call. Thank you very much, and have a good day.

由於這是我們今年的最後一次電話會議，米歇爾和我希望您度過一個安全愉快的假期和繁榮的新年。我們期待下一次電話會議。非常感謝，祝您有美好的一天。

Thank you. This does conclude today's teleconference. You may disconnect your lines at this time. Thank you for your participation, and enjoy the rest of your day.

謝謝。今天的電話會議到此結束。此時您可以斷開線路。感謝您的參與，祝您有個愉快的一天。