TOUS, the affordable luxury jewelry brand, achieved sales of 403 million euros during 2016, representing 9.4% growth over the previous year, when it closed with 368 million euros in sales. These results were driven by continued strong growth in retail performance both domestically (+6%) and internationally (+10%), as well as by the outstanding development of the e-commerce channel (+130%). The company continues to expand internationally, with more than 50 store openings during 2016 across existing markets and with new entries into the Czech Republic and Qatar. China, a key growth market for the brand, is developing as planned and reached 15 stores at the end of the year, with two new flagship sites in the city of Shanghai planned to open during the first quarter of 2017. In addition, TOUS has successfully rolled out its new flagship concept across iconic sites such as Via Frattina in Rome, Unicentro in Bogotá, Masaryk in Mexico City, the Dubai Mall in the United Arab Emirates, and Soho and the new Westfield World Trade Center in New York. It also reinforces its presence in Spain with the consolidation of the new flagship openings in Calle Serrano and Gran Vía in Madrid and Paseo de Gracia in Barcelona. The brand continues focused on delivering an Omni-channel experience for its consumers. It is worth noting the rise of its e-commerce channel, which accelerated its year-on-year growth from 80% in 2015 to 130% in 2016. The online store is now present in 10 countries after expanded its reach to include Poland, Russia and Greece. "We are very pleased with the success of the online store globally and especially in Spain, where we have doubled our growth. E-commerce now accounts for over 4% of the company's sales, which will spur us to keep working to offer our customers the best shopping experience," said TOUS chairwoman Alba Tous. Likewise, TOUS continues to focus on enhancing its presence in the travel retail channel. In 2016 it opened a store in Terminal 2 of Hongqiao International Airport in Shanghai, which joins the openings in other major international airports in 2015, such as Miami, Panama and Barcelona. This strategy will continue into 2017. Jewelry remains the company's main product category, accounting for 67% of total 2016 sales and followed by handbags and accessories which generated 16% of sales.
