Ralph Lauren brand worldwide

Our results confirm the extraordinary operational and managerial disciplines of our global teams, and they are reflective in the incredible appeal of the Ralph Lauren brand worldwide.

Our international sales rose 33% in 2012 and represented 36% of our revenue, Polo ralph lauren which is 300 basis points above the prior year level and compares to just 20% 5 years ago.

Our European revenue was up 26%, an acceleration from the low-teens compounded growth rate we achieved over the prior 5 years. This is considerable progress for a period characterized by substantial macroeconomic challenges. And despite near-term caution, it's also a validation of growth opportunities we continue to see in Europe over the long term.

We made major progress transforming our operations and brand presence throughout Asia during the year. Our talented locally based teams are leveraging our more comprehensive and direct control over the regions and are implementing plans that, we believe, significantly benefit our company over the long term.

We have a unique opportunity to get this right. So we're being thoughtful and deliberate in the pacing and sequencing of our investments in people, ralph lauren pas cher systems, infrastructure, distribution and marketing. In some cases, this involves taking a step back in order to find a clearer, more profitable path to the future. This same approach has worked very well for us in the past in Europe and Japan and with the transition of many of our product licenses.

As most of you know, we embarked on a major brand repositioning effort in Greater China, closing 95 points of distribution, representing 60% of our network, during the year. We effectively reset our presence in the market, leaving us with what we believe is a more brand appropriate and a stronger foundation for growth.

Over the next 3 years, we expect to open approximately 60 new stores in Greater China, all in premier locations and adjacent to the world's leading luxury brands. 15 of those stores are in place for the back half of fiscal 2013 across many of the major cities including Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong.

The integration of our formally licensed South Korean operations was executed seamlessly during the year. Short ralph lauren And in a relatively short period of time, the local team has embraced our culture and operating procedures. Over the last year, we successfully closed and repositioned 30 concession shops, which is approximately 17% of our total Korean shop presence, and we are beginning to implement many of the strategic merchandise initiatives that have worked well for us in other parts of the world.

Today, more than half of our Asian revenues are generated in Japan. We started fiscal '12 with a cautious outlook for Japan in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake and tsunami. And while sales were challenging in the few weeks following disasters, they recovered quickly and gained momentum throughout the year. I believe the current strength of our Japanese operations is a function of resetting our presence there. This is a process that began in earnest 4 years ago and include the closing and relocating of shops and implementing strategic merchandise initiatives. Over the next several years, we intend to build on our strong foundation in Japan by relocating and adding concession shops in addition to growing our freestanding store network, which is very modest today.

It will take time and patience for us to substantially scale up our presence throughout Asia especially since we will not compromise on the real estate or brand positioning. Securing appropriate incremental distribution is a multiyear process especially with our standards of excellence. T shirt ralph lauren However, growing a more elevated local market presence should help sales to Asians and especially Chinese tourists visiting other parts of the world, particularly Europe and the United States.