Interparfums lifts 2026 sales target as Asia jumps 32% in Q3
Nine-month sales are still 2.9% lower as reported, even as the maker of Jimmy Choo, Coach and Montblanc scents upgrades its target.
Interparfums SA reported third-quarter sales of €265.5 million, an increase of 4.8 percent in reported terms against the same period a year earlier. At constant exchange rates the French fragrance maker grew 4.6 percent for the three months ended 30 September.
The result sent the company's shares up 4 percent to €33.74 by 1.10 p.m. CET on Wednesday. Interparfums, which makes perfumes under licence for Jimmy Choo, Coach and Montblanc, said momentum recovered over the summer after a mixed start to 2026.
Philippe Benacin, chairman and chief executive, said the improved pace allows the group to aim at the top of its sales guidance of around €870 million for the full year. “Our activity regained more favorable momentum over the summer,” he said.
Asia drove the rebound, with the region posting a gain of close to 32 percent in the third quarter and 8 percent across the first nine months. The performance was led by a strong showing in China after a mixed beginning to the year.
What the third quarter delivered
The three largest licensed brands each contributed tens of millions of euros in quarterly sales. Jimmy Choo led at €74.1 million, followed by Coach at €65.7 million and Montblanc at €61.9 million.
Over the first nine months of 2026, sales reached €679.8 million, down 2.9 percent in reported terms and 0.7 percent at constant exchange rates. The gap between those two declines shows currency movements weighed on the reported figure.
Benacin struck a cautious note on the final quarter. “We nevertheless remain prudent for the fourth quarter, in view of an international context that continues to be complicated, not least in the Middle East and Eastern Europe,” he said.
He added a reminder about the United States: “We should not forget the strong seasonality of the American market, structurally focused towards the months of November and December.” The peak selling season there falls in the year's final two months.
The outlook beyond 2026
The guidance revision follows a year in which nine-month sales were still lower than a year earlier. A single strong quarter has now put the top of the company's own range within reach, though the range itself is unchanged at around €870 million.
Benacin said the very favorable reception from partners to the 2027 launch plan reinforces confidence in the group's growth prospects.
Interparfums did not say how its fourth-quarter sales would need to compare with the same period of 2025 to reach the target. Its statement named the Middle East and Eastern Europe as the sources of caution, without quantifying their effect.
The company's model rests on long-standing licences with fashion houses, building fragrance lines around names including Jimmy Choo, Coach and Montblanc. Partner reception of new launches therefore shapes the sales trajectory directly.
The 2027 plan is now the next lever. Partners' approval of the coming launches gives the chairman a basis for confidence that extends beyond the immediate quarter and into the year that follows.
Other listed names have also raised guidance this year, among them Brunello Cucinelli, which lifted its 2026 forecast to 12 percent after a 10 percent nine-month sales gain, and Victoria's Secret after a 10 percent second-quarter rise.
What differs here is the geography. Interparfums is leaning on China and the wider Asia region, where a 32 percent quarterly jump has reversed the early-year softness and returned the region to growth.
The next reading will come with the full-year results, which will show whether American seasonality and Middle East difficulty left the €870 million target intact or forced a retreat from the top of the range.
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