Hello BoF Professionals, welcome to our latest members-only briefing: The Week Ahead. Think of it as your "cheat sheet" to what everyone will be talking about on Monday.

THE CHEAT SHEET

Kering Acquisition Chatter Ratchets Up

Kering depends heavily on Gucci for sales and profits | Source: Shutterstock

• Luxury conglomerate Kering reports first-quarter earnings on April 17
• Gucci generated 63 percent of revenue and about 80 percent of operating income for the group in 2018
• Kering is attempting to build Balenciaga and Alexander McQueen into billion-dollar brands alongside Saint Laurent

For Brands at Coachella, the Real Audience Is at Home

YSL Beauty's "lip station" at Coachella | Source: Instagram/@yslbeauty

• The Coachella music and arts festival runs April 12-21 in Indio, Calif.
• Brands see the influencer and celebrity-filled crowds as a prime marketing opportunity
• However, influencer campaigns have replaced events and pop-ups for some companies

The Bottom Line: Instagram's introduction of an in-app shopping feature will accelerate the tilt toward influencer marketing, as it raises the potential to turn a mention in a trending hashtag into real money.

Allbirds Jumps Wool-Sneaker-Clad Feet First Into China

Allbirds shoes | Source: Instagram/@allbirds

• Allbirds launches in China on April 20 with a store in Shanghai and an online shop on Tmall
• China is the sneaker brand's first Asian market, and first outside the English-speaking world
• Allbirds does not work with wholesalers, rare for a digital native brand

In a few short years, Allbirds has emerged as one of the stars of the current crop of digital fashion brands. Much like the similarly buzzy beauty brand Glossier, Allbirds relies on its own stores and distribution infrastructure rather than wholesalers, a slower but potentially more rewarding growth strategy. That the brand chose China for its first stores outside the US is a sign of how the country's retail market has matured. Allbirds had plenty of potential partners eager to help it set up shop, and a thriving e-commerce sector that's already home to dozens of Western brands. There are challenges as well, from the potential for cultural missteps to counterfeiters, a serious threat for Allbirds, which relies on a few simple silhouettes for the bulk of sales and has had to fend off imitators in the US.

The Bottom Line: Allbirds saw China as a promising market in part because so many Chinese tourists were buying the shoes while abroad. With Chinese consumers spending more on fashion at home, the start-up, following the lead of luxury brands, is wise to open stores where its customers live, rather than continuing to rely on the tourist trade.

Fanny Bourdette-Donon, international PR and special projects manager for Dior Beauty | Source: Courtesy

COMMENT OF THE WEEK

"Social media is amazing but your number of followers is not going to help your career" -advice from Fanny Bourdette-Donon, international PR and special projects manager at Dior Beauty.

SUNDAY READING

Professional Exclusives You May Have Missed: 

• What Chanel can learn from Nike about the resale marketplace.
• How to get your customer to pay full price.
• Elizabeth and James leaves the contemporary market behind for Kohl's.
• What a tax cut reveals about China's luxury climate.
• Why do fashion brands still advertise in print?

The Week Ahead wants to hear from you! Send tips, suggestions, complaints and compliments to brian.baskin@businessoffashion.com. 

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