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.
China’s antitrust watchdog has fined flash sales e-commerce platform Vipshop 3 million yuan ($464,000) for unfair competition.
It’s the second time Vipshop has been fined by China’s State Administration for Market Regulation in a three-month period, after the platform was slapped with a 500,000 yuan ($77,000) fine in December for pricing irregularities.
According to an official announcement from the regulator, Vipshop has been illegally obtaining information about brands that sell through its and competitor’s platforms. In a Weibo post, the company responded by saying it did not object to the facts in the ruling, and that it will “rectify and reform” to maintain market order.
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.