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Category: Fashion

Retail News Asia is committed to providing both local and global retailers with the latest Fashion news throughout the Asian market. This on a daily base.

  • First standalone M&S Food store in Singapore opens

    First standalone M&S Food store in Singapore opens

    Marks & Spencer has opened the first standalone M&S Food store in Singapore.

    Located in One Raffles Place, the store features take-away hot food, ice cream and coffee, besides M&S-branded groceries. The store also features self-checkout machines, digital ticketing and digital menus.

    There are more than 20 quick breakfast and lunch options for customers in a hurry such as bacon or sausage buns, traditional British sausage rolls or prepared meals such as Macaroni Cheese and Chicken Tikka Masala.

    “Our customers are passionate about M&S Food, and have often shared that they are eager to see more of M&S’s famous food lines here in Singapore,” said Christine Choi, CEO of M&S Asia. “We have taken this feedback on board and are very excited to unveil the very first standalone M&S Food store in Singapore.”

    Besides coffee made from M&S-roasted single-origin beans, the store also features an in-store bakery providing fresh bread daily and an ice cream machine serving “ice cream made from luxurious Jersey cream from British herds”.

    Choi added: “We know our customers are finding themselves busier than ever, which is why our One Raffles Place location will stock a wide range of top-quality, convenient options for people on the go. Alongside this, we will offer many of our classic food ranges for customers to shop, too.”

    M&S has also partnered with DBS Bank and Botty to introduce a chatbot solution that allows M&S customers to pre-order their coffee through M&S’s Facebook Messenger and pick it up at the store. Customers then pay via DBS PayLah! to complete their order.

    Operated by Marks & Spencer’s franchise partner Al-Futtaim Group in Singapore and Hong Kong, standalone M&S Food stores already trade in Hong Kong in a variety of different footprint sizes.

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  • Vans releases range of footwear for those with autism

    Vans releases range of footwear for those with autism

    Lifestyle fashion brand Vans has released a collection of shoes and apparel celebrating autism awareness.

    The range is designed for consumers with Autism Spectrum Disorder and comes in calming colors with features that focus on the senses.

    The collection includes slip-on shoes with squishy uppers and rubber toe caps, and an assortment of long- and short-sleeved tees. The firm collaborated with the International Board of Credentialing and Continuing Education Standards in crafting the designs.

    Part of the collection’s sales proceeds – a minimum of $100,000 – will be donated to the A.skate Foundation, which aims to help children with autism learn skateboarding. The charity provides grants to children with autism for skateboarding gear, teaching them how to participate in the sport and its inclusive culture.

    The autism footwear and apparel collection is available online and in Vans retail locations.

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  • Kikki.K needs to be saved

    Kikki.K needs to be saved

    Twenty-four hours after it announced that it was going into voluntary administration, nine potential partners approached lifestyle and stationery brand Kikki.K last week, according to emails viewed.

    “We remain truly optimistic and excited re: one key partnership deal, in particular, we’ve been working on for over 12 months  – they’re beavering away full steam ahead,” wrote co-founder Paul Lacy in the email.

    According to a statement Kikki.K sent out early in the week, the brand got caught “in a perfect storm” of circumstances, from suffering the impact of Brexit during its UK store rollout to the Hong Kong protests, a subdued Christmas, the disastrous Australian bushfires and now, coronavirus.

    “There is still an amazing business opportunity with 3.7 million loyal customers on our database, over 20 million people a year visiting our physical and online stores and strong opportunities for growth into new product categories,” said founder Kristina Karlsson. “But obviously it requires a big re-set and a buyer who understands the opportunity.”

    Shortly after the announcement was made, Kikki.K’s head of retail Alana Hose said store sales went up 94 percent and according to the brand, a few days later, the week ended 50 percent above target Australia-wide. Online revenue rose by 470 percent at one stage.

    Kikki.K has 450 full-time equivalent employees and $70 million annual revenue with 65 stores in Australia, the UK, New Zealand, Singapore and Hong Kong.

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  • Tag Heuer pop up opens in Shibuya, Tokyo

    Tag Heuer pop up opens in Shibuya, Tokyo

    Swiss luxury timepiece maker Tag Heuer has launched a pop-up at Shibuya Parco, Japan.

    The “Tag Heuer Connected” store delivers a futuristic ambiance in luxurious and stylistic tones featuring the colors of the brand against black. The store showcases Tag Heuer’s key technologies and celebrates the firm’s 160th anniversary.

    To mark the opening, the pop-up is conducting a promotional campaign called the Digital Tag Heuer Touch Rally, whereby visitors who scan a QR code from a Tag Heuer poster in the store and register as an official Line friend will receive an original branded Tag Heuer gift, while stocks last.

    Additionally, the story is holding a lottery for those who purchase the new Tag Heuer Connected watch.

    The pop-up will run through to April 12.

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  • Chopard Japan opens flagship boutique in Osaka

    Chopard Japan opens flagship boutique in Osaka

    A new Chopard Japan flagship store has opened in Osaka, its design upgraded to reflect the latest styles of the French jewelry brand’s European boutiques.

    Chopard Boutique Hankyu Umeda Honten “embodies the spirit of the Maison” according to a Chopard Japan statement.

    “A boutique that combines the warmth and comfort of an elegant yet homely atmosphere, a place where every visitor can feel at home – a relaxing space that feels like a private residence,” the company said describing the design.

    “We welcome customers with a wide range of products, from the maison’s icon collection, Happy Diamonds, to magnificent high jewelry, to full-fledged mechanical men’s watches that go through integrated production.”

    Reflecting the maison’s commitment to sustainability, since July 2018 Chopard has exclusively used 100-per-cent ethical gold for all watch and jewelry production.

    The Chopard Japan boutique is located on the sixth floor at 8-7 Kakudacho, Kita-ku, Osaka-shi.

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  • Esprit warns of big loss as Europe shuts down

    Esprit warns of big loss as Europe shuts down

    Fast-fashion retailer Esprit says foot traffic into its stores worldwide have evaporated in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic and warned shareholders to expect a “considerable loss”.

    Public health initiatives enacted in many countries across the world aimed at slowing the spread of the pandemic have resulted in the closure of “a significant number of stores,” said Esprit company secretary Ophelia Lo.

    Public life has been locked down in France, Italy, Spain, Poland and Austria with other European countries most likely to follow, she said. All of those are important markets for Esprit which as part of a major restructuring plan is refocusing its business on Europe.

    “Obviously apparel retail sentiment is at its lowest level possible and store traffic in the group’s retail stores and its partners’ points of sale has subsided entirely,” said Lo.

    “In addition, the logistics of the supply chains of merchandise shipments are significantly affected.”

    Esprit expects the pandemic will “significantly adversely impact the sales of the group” in the second half of the current financial year, ending June 30.

    “As a result, management expects the group to incur a considerable loss in the second half,” said Lo.

    Right now, Esprit management cannot quantify the actual impact of the pandemic on the group’s business performance, given the inability to predict the speed and extent to which the pandemic will spread in markets in which the group and its suppliers operate in, and with no reliable estimation on when the pandemic may be over.

    “The company will continue to diligently assess the impact of the pandemic on the group’s business performance and will make appropriate announcements on updates as and when necessary,” she said.

    Meanwhile, the company will take “all practicable measures to cope with the challenges ahead,” including using working capital management and cost-control measures and exploring financial support provided by local governments.

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  • Laura Ashley may call in administrators

    Laura Ashley may call in administrators

    Malaysian-owned clothing and home furnishings retailer Laura Ashley may go into administration if it fails to secure £15 million (US$18.44 million) in loans from Hilco Capital.

    According to reporting in Retail Gazette, the firm is currently in talks with the Homebase garden center business owner for the emergency loan to avoid collapse by the end of this month. The business has said its operations have not been strongly affected by the coronavirus outbreak but has otherwise experienced a challenging year’s trading.

    The firm suffered a 166-per-cent loss in the December financial half-year, with a sales drop of 10.8 percent amidst poor market conditions and the spectre of Brexit. Last year, the business lost 60 percent of its share value.

    The firm currently operates 150 UK stores and around 2700 staff will be affected if the business fails.

  • MCM Philippines opens first store, at SM Mall of Asia

    MCM Philippines opens first store, at SM Mall of Asia

    The first MCM Philippines store has opened its doors, at the giant Mall of Asia complex in Metro Manila.

    The German luxury leather accessories brand MCM Worldwide store is located inside the Luxe Duty-Free precinct in the mall.

    The MCM Philippines boutique offers leather handbags, luggage and accessories and the store open featuring the Spring/Summer 2020 collection.

    Vicente Pelagio Angala , COO, Duty-Free Philippines Corp (DFPC) said the opening of MCM complements the DFPC’s aim to always be the first Philippine retail brand to bring new luxury labels to the market.

    MCM Worldwide is a leather luxury goods brand founded by Michael Cromer in 1976. The brand’s signature logo-printed material, called Cognac Visetos is being showcased on some of the products. It has a brass plate insignia that can be found on all the heritage collection bags and most of its products.

    In 2005, the company was acquired by Sungjoo Group, a South Korean retail business founded by Kim Sung-joo.

    Kim re-launched the brand in 2006 with a new store in Berlin and currently has 650 stores worldwide including in Hong Kong, New York, Toronto, Paris, London, Singapore, Tokyo, China and the Middle East.

  • Pomelo launched in-app livestream shopping with Davika Hoorne

    Pomelo launched in-app livestream shopping with Davika Hoorne

    Pomelo has launched in-app shoppable Livestream starring famous Thai actress Davika Hoorne.

    The new service is based on its in-app Livestream technology rolled out last month. With the new shoppable functionality, Pomelo offers its customers “an engaging and interactive dimension” of the digital retail experience, the company said in a statement.

    During the in-app Livestream, Pomelo’s customers will be able to interact with Davika Hoorne, receive the actress’ fashion opinions and purchase items immediately.

    Pomelo also hosts a weekly live show called ‘Live On Pomelo’, featuring the brand top picks and latest collections.

    Pomelo’s in-app shoppable livestream with Davika Hoorne will be available on March 18.

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  • South Korean fashion chain Aland quits Hong Kong

    South Korean fashion chain Aland quits Hong Kong

    South Korean fashion chain Aland has quietly exited the Hong Kong market, after shuttering its final stores.

    The multi-brand retailer opened its first international branch in 2011 at Harbour City. Riding the ‘Korean Wave’ in the local market, the multi-brand retailer opened multiple stores within the following years, including at Lee Theatre, APM and Megabox. Without an official announcement, Aland has just folded its most recent branch at Mong Kok’s TOP mall, which opened in 2018.

    The South Korean fashion chain Aland, best described as an affordable fast-fashion brand, was founded 15 years ago by sisters Kinam Jung and Jung Eun Jung in Seoul, South Korea and still has branches in their domestic market and Thailand. It recently expanded its footprints in the US.

    Meanwhile, South Korean coffee chain Tom n Toms also left Hon

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  • Pandora lays off 180 staff due to reorganization

    Pandora lays off 180 staff due to reorganization

    Danish jewelry giant Pandora has announced a new company structure that will eliminate an organizational layer between the global headquarters and local markets with the aim of getting closer to the customer and speeding up the execution of marketing campaigns and product launches.

    Effective April 2, Pandora will close its three regional organizations (Americas, EMEA, and Asia Pacific) and group the 100-plus markets where it operates into 10 clusters, each headed by a GM.

    The GMs, based in the largest market in each cluster, will report to a newly established chief commercial officer position, who will report directly to Pandora’s president and CEO, Alexander Lacik, and be part of the executive leadership team.

    The three current regional presidents will step down from the executive leadership team and 180 employees from regional offices and markets will leave the company.

    The total cost of the reorganization is expected to amount to around US$197 million, with one-off costs of around $30 million, primarily related to severance payments, additional consultancy support, extraordinary recruitment costs and other costs of closing down the regional offices.

    David Allen, currently president of Pandora EMEA will stay with Pandora and support the company’s turnaround plan, Programme Now, while Sid Keswani, current president of Pandora Americas, will become president of the North America cluster.

    Kenneth Madsen, current president of Pandora Asia Pacific, will leave the company.

    The cost reductions from the redundancies of 180 employees are expected to be largely offset by costs related to the further strengthening of the global organization, limiting the net cost savings.

    Lacik said in a statement that the new structure would ensure feedback from customers was incorporated into new designs more quickly.

    “The reorganization will reduce organizational complexity, enable Pandora to execute with more speed and agility, and add critical capabilities required to support growth,” he said.

  • Giordano looking for global expansion

    Giordano looking for global expansion

    Giordano group sales fell 11.9 percent last year to HK$4.852 billion (US$624.6 million).

    Sales from physical stores fell by 9.6 percent, while sales to franchisees declined by 24.2 percent, partly due to the tightening of the company’s credit policy in light of weakening economic conditions.

    Excluding the impact of a change in accounting standards to allow a direct comparison of year-on-year results, Giordano would have recorded a profit for the year of HK$289 million ($37 million) for the year, down 39.8 percent. But the group’s gross margin slipped by just 0.3 percent to 58.7 percent.

    In a stock-exchange filing, the company said multiple factors including the Sino-US trade war, social unrest in Hong Kong, and an unseasonably warm winter impacted on sales by dampening consumer sentiment. The worst-hit markets were Hong Kong and Mainland China.

    One of Giordano’s biggest challenges was its e-commerce business on the mainland, where sales dropped 15 percent to HK$267 million ($34.4 million) due to “ferocious competition on established third-party platforms”.

    But e-commerce in other regions recorded strong growth. In Hong Kong “substantial growth” was achieved as the group launched on local third-party platforms such as HKTV Mall.

    “Management is determined to further develop our e-commerce business in all regions by improving the product mix and collaboration with emerging online platforms, the company said.

    In the year ahead, Giordano plans to expand its global footprint. Four franchised stores opened in Mauritius in the second half of last year and this year the company plans openings in India and Kenya. The Middle East and Indonesia businesses recorded sales growth last year, making them “critical markets” for short-term expansion.

    Meanwhile, the company expects the coronavirus outbreak to affect its business “significantly” in the first quarter of this year. “Nevertheless, with a secure brand positioning and quality merchandise, management is confident of overcoming the challenges ahead. Management will further strengthen the group’s financial position through a combination of strategies and actions.”

    The group plans a more cautious approach in Mainland China and Hong Kong this year and will instead focus on overseas markets, especially the Middle East and developing markets in Southeast Asia – Vietnam and Indonesia.

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  • Le Saunda profit downhill as store network slashed

    Le Saunda profit downhill as store network slashed

    Le Saunda sales slumped in the latest quarter as the Hong Kong footwear retailer slashed its store network.

    In a stock-exchange announcement covering the fourth quarter, Le Saunda sales declined by 30.9 percent for the three months to February. It also noted a same-store sales decline of 18.5 percent, compared to last year.

    Le Saunda currently operates 441 outlets in Mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau, including 55 franchised outlets – 85 fewer stores than it held as of February last year.

    Despite the drop in sales at Le Saunda’s physical stores, the firm’s e-commerce business saw a total growth of 7.2 percent compared to last year.

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  • Japanese online watch rental concept Karitoke opens third store and launches AR app

    Japanese online watch rental concept Karitoke opens third store and launches AR app

    Japanese watch rental service Kairtoke is launching in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Marui building next Friday.

    The Karitoke store offers monthly watch rentals from more than 40 available brands and 1100 models, with users invited to preview how each watch will look on their wrist before visiting the outlet via an AR app. Users can check from home whether the size of any particular watch matches the size of their wrists, and can coordinate the timepieces with their clothes and suits.

    The Karitoke AR app is unique in Japan in that it is not limited to a specific brand or model of watches. All watches advertised on the brand’s website are now available in the Shinjuku Marui store, the brand’s third physical outlet following its locations in Yurakucho Marui and Namba Marui.

    All Karitoke rentals must be reserved in advance online.

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  • Struggling Shandong Ruyi fails to support Bally buy

    Struggling Shandong Ruyi fails to support Bally buy

    Chinese apparel group Shandong Ruyi has been unsuccessful in raising funds to settle its planned purchase of Swiss luxury brand Bally.

    According to a Reuters report, the potential deal has been in the works for more than two years and would have required funding of US$600 million. Since making the agreement, the firm has suffered financial difficulties, with the recent coronavirus outbreak proving the final insurmountable hurdle against the transaction.

    Shandong Ruyi has already spent billions of dollars in purchasing luxury brands from Europe, including Aquascutum and SMCP brands Sandro, Maje and Claudie Pierlot, with a view to establishing a major luxury fashion house to rival the likes of LVMH, which has brought significant pressure to bear on the firm’s own financing. It also bought the iconic Lycra business last year.

    Sales of its newly purchased brands have suffered heavily during the epidemic.

    The firm recently suffered negative publicity for its difficulties settling payment for a controlling stake in Israeli menswear group Bagir. Another disgruntled partner, Japanese clothing group Renown, has reported losses caused by failure to collect debts from Ruyi, while Portuguese tailoring company Calvelex has also moved to sue Ruyi for non-payment of debts.

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