The Business of Fashion
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
"As China's Workforce Dwindles, the World Scrambles for Alternatives" (The Wall Street Journal)
"The end of very cheap labor in China is giving a push to these advances in technology, which will make China less central to global manufacturing. But changing consumer tastes—enabled by the same technological change — are diminishing China's role too."
"Chow Tai Fook Declares First Special Dividend as Profit Plunges" (Bloomberg)
"Chow Tai Fook Jewellery Group Ltd. declared its first-ever special dividend while easing off on expansion plans, as the world's largest publicly traded jewelry chain posted its steepest decline in semi-annual profit since listing."
"China's Rich No Longer Putting on the Ritz" (The Financial Times)
"Without its main motor for growth, it is no longer a life of luxury for the world's €250bn industry, which is having to work harder to adjust to the complexities of a more mature and fragmenting market."
"China Seeks to Remove Provincial Barriers to Trade" (Reuters)
"China will accelerate reforms to remove internal barriers to both foreign and domestic trade, the country's cabinet said on Monday, a move designed to bolster domestic consumption in its slowing economy."
"Hugo Boss Says Sales Next Year Will Miss Forecast on US, China" (Bloomberg)
"Hugo Boss AG said sales next year will miss a long-term target of high single-digit growth as demand continues to slump in the US and China."
The French beauty giant’s two latest deals are part of a wider M&A push by global players to capture a larger slice of the China market, targeting buzzy high-end brands that offer products with distinctive Chinese elements.
Post-Covid spend by US tourists in Europe has surged past 2019 levels. Chinese travellers, by contrast, have largely favoured domestic and regional destinations like Hong Kong, Singapore and Japan.
While travel to Europe remains muted, Chinese shoppers are flocking to Singapore, Thailand and other Southeast Asian destinations where fashion retailers are hoping Lunar New Year marketing investments will pay off.
Local fashion designers experimenting with puffers and other down clothing have scored collaborations with outerwear companies like Moncler and attracted the attention of prominent international retailers like H.Lorenzo.