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.
The luxury e-commerce group’s founder and CEO Li Rixue announced on its 13th anniversary that it would open over 300 offline spaces in the country through direct franchises and joint partnerships.
The Beijing-based company has formed partnerships with Wanda, Sunac, Longemont and other Chinese real estate groups and its first offline space will be unveiled in Shanghai on September 25.
Secoo began experimenting with offline expansion in 2009. The new Shanghai space will revive this concept by complementing its online business, offering second-hand consignment, maintenance, identification, private customisation and community events such as cultural salons. Secoo now has more than 40 million registered users, a high net worth customer base with strong demand for luxury goods, tourism and cultural experiences, according to a company press release.
Though luxury consumption is still booming in China, competition is fierce and operational costs are on the rise. In the third quarter of 2020, Secoo’s revenue fell 29.3 percent from a year earlier, and its net profit fell 66.5 percent to 20.8 million yuan ($ 2.73 million). In January, the Nasdaq-listed company announced it had received an offer to go private.
Further Reading: Secoo Looks to Go Private
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.