Sales of luxury brand Gucci have returned to pre-coronavirus levels, further boosting the turnover of the Kering Group, Gucci’s parent company. The Italian fashion brand also did everything it could to attract shoppers.

For example, it attracted customers with a joint digital fashion show with sister brand Balenciaga. That recently roped pop star Justin Bieber as the face for campaigns.

Over the past six months, Gucci’s annualized revenue has increased by nearly 46 percent to EUR 4.5 billion. That is well above the level analysts were expecting. Moreover, in the months of April, May and June in particular, sales in the stores in North America and Asia increased.

Sales of all of Kering’s fashion brands, including Yves Saint Laurent and Bottega Veneta, propelled the company’s total sales in the first half to more than 11 percent over the same period in 2019.

Like other luxury companies such as LVMH, owner of fashion brand Louis Vuitton, and Richemont, owner of jewellery brand Cartier, Kering has seen sales pick up since the store reopened. In 2020 and early 2021, shops were closed mainly due to the pandemic. But people are now spending their hoarded savings from last year on, for example, luxury bags, shoes and jewellery.

Kering chief executive François-Henri Pinault said in a statement that his company had resumed its “strong, profitable course” after a “remarkable acceleration” over the past three months.