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.
After deleting all the posts on its Weibo account, which boasted 270,000 followers, the Italian luxury house has deleted the account altogether. The brand still has a presence on WeChat, another critical platform in China, but it hasn’t published any new posts since February 9.
Bottega Veneta declined to comment on the move, which aligns with its global communications strategy. The Kering-owned brand deleted its Facebook, Instagram and Twitter accounts last month.
Speaking to analysts on Kering’s fourth-quarter earnings results on February 17, chairman and chief executive officer François-Henri Pinault pointed out that “[Bottega Veneta is] not disappearing from social networks — it’s merely using them differently.” Rather than having the brand speak for itself, it will rely on ambassadors and fans to drive conversation.
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.