For Europe’s upmarket fashion and spirits brands, doing business in China in recent years has been anything but a life of luxury¹. Lower economic growth and a government crackdown on opulent gift-giving between businesspeople and officials have slashed² sales growth and weakened³ profits.

对欧洲的高档时装和烈酒品牌来说，近几年在中国做生意绝不轻松。经济增长放缓、以及政府对商人与官员之间送礼行为的打击，已经大幅削弱了这些品牌的销售增长和利润。

But as brands ranging from Rémy Martin and Martell to the likes of Gucci and Louis Vuitton try to compete in the new environment, one thing has become startlingly clear: in the face of China’s newfound temperance, some groups are faring better than others.

但随着各大品牌——从人头马(Rémy Martin)和马爹利(Martell)到古驰(Gucci)和路易威登(Louis Vuitton)——努力在这种新环境下展开竞争，有一件事变得极为明显：面对中国新的节制风气，一些集团要比其他同行表现得好一些。

Pernod Ricard revealed⁴ yesterday that like-for-like sales of wines and spirits in China in the second half of 2014 fell 6 per cent, compared with the same period a year earlier. Shares in the Paris-based group closed more than 4 per cent down as markets swallowed the news.

保乐力加(Pernod Ricard)周四披露，2014年下半年该公司在中国的葡萄酒和烈酒的同店销售同比下降6%。受此消息影响，这家总部位于巴黎的集团的股价收盘下跌逾4%。

That same morning, however, Hermès said that sales of its luxury leather goods, silk scarves and fashion items in Asia excluding⁵ Japan had grown 8.9 per cent on a constant-currency basis during the past three months of 2014.

然而，就在同一天上午，爱马仕(Hermès)表示，按固定汇率计算，该公司2014年最后3个月在亚洲（不包括日本）的高档皮具、丝巾和时尚单品的销售增长8.9%。

The latest figures helped push annual sales for the luxury group — famed for its Kelly and Birkin leather bags — above