Prada posts 28 percent drop in profit

Prada SpA reported a 28 percent drop in full-year profit as fewer Chinese shoppers splurged on $2,950 leather handbags and other luxury products.

Net income in the year through January fell to 450.7 million euros ($490.9 million), Milan-based Prada said on Monday in a statement. Analysts had predicted 468 million euros, according to the average of estimates compiled by Bloomberg.

Prada plans to open fewer stores and introduce more bags priced in the range of 1,000 euros to 1,200 euros as it seeks to revive revenue that fell last year amid a slowdown in China. The moves are designed to redress errors such as having an overly expensive product mix and a lack of novelty that have led shoppers to spend elsewhere, according to Exane BNP Paribas.