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 Italian luxury house has named Mitchell Bacha its chief executive officer for Greater China, according to a statement from Valentino.
Bacha will be in charge of Valentino’s retail channel and online business, as well as continuing to raise the brand’s profile and strengthen its e-commerce presence in China.
Valentino, along with many other European luxury brands, has focused on providing immersive brand experiences within the Chinese market since the pandemic, as the Chinese shoppers they would normally serve overseas stay home to shop.
In December 2020, the brand launched a major exhibition at Shanghai’s Power Station of Art it called “Resignify”.
Before joining Valentino, Bacha was chief executive of Diesel Asia Pacific, and prior to that, Celine China’s managing director.
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.