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.
"Chinese Textile Mills Are Now Hiring in Places Where Cotton Was King" (The New York Times)
"Once the epitome of cheap mass manufacturing, textile producers from formerly low-cost nations are starting to set up shop in America. It is part of a blurring of once seemingly clear-cut boundaries between high- and low-cost manufacturing nations."
"Counterfeit.com" (The Economist)
"Kering alleges that Alibaba helps fakers sell goods on its websites. The French firm is not the only one to be incensed."
"India's Snapdeal Said to Draw $500 Million From Alibaba" (Bloomberg)
"Indian e-commerce company Snapdeal.com is raising about $500 million from investors led by Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., according to people familiar with the matter."
"Learning to Speak Lingerie" (The New Yorker)
"Without a clear strategy, China has turned to a basic instinct of the Deng Xiaoping era: When in doubt, build factories."
"In Rural China, Shoppers Go Online — With a Little Help" (Reuters)
"E-commerce growth in the countryside now outpaces that in major cities, though fewer than one tenth of online purchases made on Alibaba platforms were shipped to rural areas in the first quarter of this year."
With consumers tightening their belts in China, the battle between global fast fashion brands and local high street giants has intensified.
Investors are bracing for a steep slowdown in luxury sales when luxury companies report their first quarter results, reflecting lacklustre Chinese demand.
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.