Christian Dior Rides Profitable Couture Wave

Given the uncertain economy, it's surprising that any luxury fashion company will turn a profit this year. It's even more surprising when it's the allegedly dying couture trade. Today, Christian Dior Couture announced a 5% increase in couture sales. This is particularly surprising because Dior designer John Galliano is known for his conceptual (if not outright obtuse) couture collections -- not to mention that couture can run to the hundreds of thousands, cost-wise. Dior accounts for the raise in sales by way of the strength in consumer spending in emerging markets like China, Russia, and the Middle East. Price really is no object for some objects.