French luxury group Kering said the economic rebound in China helped boost sales at its international jewellery houses Boucheron and Qeelin despite a challenging 2020.

Both jewellers reported strong growth in sales in Asia, with Qeelin seeing a sharp year-on-year improvement on the back of favourable business conditions in China. Boucheron, for its part, delivered a solid performance in the Asia-Pacific region.

Fourth-quarter sales were also promising, according to the luxury conglomerate.

“(There was) very good performance in Q4 of Boucheron and Qeelin, driven by increasing penetration and development especially in mainland China,” the group said. 

Kering’s consolidated revenues in 2020 dipped by 17.5 per cent while overall retail sales were down by 15.9 per cent, with the retail business heavily impacted by store closures and a halt in tourism

The group however noted a sharp rebound in the second half of 2020, led by North America and Asia-Pacific. Online sales were up 67.5 per cent from the previous year, accounting for 13 per cent of total retail sales.