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Tag: China

  • China key driver for Hermes sales growth

    China key driver for Hermes sales growth

    Chinese consumers have been credited with driving a 14.7 per cent rise in Hermes’ sales in the June quarter.

    While the Sino-US trade war may have been impacting on many brands, subduing consumer confidence and generating uncertainty, the French luxury leather retailer seems immune to the tempest.

    Sales reached €1.67 billion, exceeding analysts forecasts, with first-half sales totalling €3.28 billion.

    “Hermes sales were very dynamic in the first half of 2019, in all regions and in all business lines,” said CEO Axel Dumas.

    The fastest-growing region, however, was Asia (excluding Japan) where sales soared 18.6 per cent in the second quarter, excluding currency effects. Hermes referred to “positive momentum in continental China and double-digit growth in all other countries in the area” in a statement.

    Eric du Halgouet, Hermes’ finance director, said sales in Hong Kong rose by a double-digit rate during the first half year, despite the impact of June’s pro-democracy demonstrations when two of the company’s stores had to close briefly.

    Sales in Japan rose by nearly 10 per cent.

    Sales of the company’s core business lines, including handbags, rose by 12.2 per cent, while ready-to-wear fashion and accessories achieved 16.9 per cent growth.

    Jewellery and homewares posted the highest growth, at 21 per cent.

    In the statement, Hermes said that despite growing economic, geopolitical and monetary uncertainties around the world, the group confirms an ambitious goal for revenue growth in the medium term, at constant exchange rates.

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  • Mainland China retail sales surge in June

    Mainland China retail sales surge in June

    Motor vehicles and the 6.18 shopping festival spurred a healthy increase in Mainland China retail sales in June.

    Official government figures show a 9.8 per cent year-on-year increase for the month, higher than the 8.6 per cent of May and 8.4 per cent for the first half year.

    Summer Wang, an equity analyst at Jefferies, said auto sales surged due to deep discounts on older models ahead of stricter State VI emission standards which took effect on July 1, and the 6.18 Shopping Festival  which drove cosmetics, jewellery and appliance sales. Small-ticket items like food and daily goods also outperformed.

    Urban Mainland China retail sales grew 9.8 per cent, ahead of the 8.3 per cent year-to-date figure, reaching RMB2.896 trillion (US$421 billion) in June, while rural retail sales grew by 10.1 per cent, ahead of 9.1 per cent for the half year.

    Cosmetics sales grew by 22.5 per cent, cars by 17.2 per cent and daily goods by 12.3 per cent.

    “We believe the beauty category is continuing to benefit from functional premiumisation, as consumers – both women and metrosexual men – are willing to pay a premium for a tangible improvement in appearance,” said Wang.

    “Most discretionary categories saw improvement as well, including gold and jewellery (up 7.8 per cent), home appliances (up 7.7 per cent) and apparel and footwear (up 5.2 per cent).”

    By channel, online retail goods sales kept momentum with a robust 21.6 per cent year-on-year growth during the first half of the year, accounting for 19.6 per cent of Mainland China retail sales.

  • Bali bakery Starter Lab to open in Singapore

    Bali bakery Starter Lab to open in Singapore

    Bali-based bakery Starter Lab is opening its first overseas branch in Singapore.

    Located at 721 Havelock Road, Singapore’s Starter Lab will be able to host up to 35 people around a communal table and bars, offering take-away coffee and bread.

    Its menu is expected to feature seven types of sourdough loaves each day, and flavours such as Rosemary Lemon and Sea Salt Sourdough, Garlic Confit & Parmesan, as well as Salted Egg & Curry Leaf.

    There will also be sandwiches and pastries on the menu, banana bread, scones and cookies.

    Starter Lab has already launched pop-ups in Singapore, including at Camp Kilo Charcoal Club.

    Founded by Emerson Manibo, who worked at NYC’s three Michelin-starred restaurant Per Se, Della Fattoria and Tartine Bakery, Starter Lab is famous for its American-style sourdough bread.

  • Luk Fook sales drop 10 per cent as trade war bites

    Luk Fook sales drop 10 per cent as trade war bites

    The trade war between the US and China has been partially blamed for a 10 per cent fall in Luk Fook sales.

    In a quarterly sales update, the Hong Kong-listed jewellery retailer said a relatively higher base in the comparable period also contributed to the decline.

    First-quarter same-store Luk Fook sales were down 10 per cent with the overall same-store sales of gold products down 19 per cent. Gem-set jewellery sales rose 4 per cent.

    In Hong Kong and Macau, sales of gold products fell by 20 per cent while gem-set jewellery sales rose 6 per cent.

    “The favourable sales performance of lower-value items resulted in a double-digit drop in the average selling price of gem-set jewellery products,” said chairman and CEO Wai Sheung Wong. “However, due to the remarkable increase in sales volume, the same-store sales of gem-set jewellery products still recorded positive growth given a high base.”

    Sales on the mainland fell 7 per cent, with gold products down by 4 per cent and gem-set jewellery down by 7 per cent. However, mainland licensed shops recorded a low single-digit same store sales growth.

    Luk Fook added a net 35 new Lukfook stores in the mainland during the quarter. As at June 30, the company operated 1861 worldwide, 1790 of those on the mainland.

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  • Same-store sales fall for Chow Tai Fook

    Same-store sales fall for Chow Tai Fook

    Jeweller Chow Tai Fook says same-store sales in its Hong Kong home market and Macau fell by 11 per cent in the June quarter.

    But sales in Mainland China rose by the same percentage.

    Sales volume fell by 14 per cent in Hong Kong and Macau and by 3 per cent on the mainland, while the value of retail sales rose 24 per cent on the mainland and fell 6 per cent on local markets.

    “The Hong Kong and Macau market was affected by a tough base of comparison and cautious consumer sentiment amid an uncertain macro environment,” the company said in a stock-exchange filing.

    Sales of gem-set jewellery fell by 16 per cent in Hong Kong and Macau during the quarter as consumers held back on spending.

    The difference in volume growth verses sales growth reflects consumers opting for less expensive purchases in a period when the gold price was relatively flat.

    The company opened 119 points of sale in Mainland China during the quarter: 113 bearing the Chow Thai Fook Jewellery banner, three Monologue stores, and three SoInLove stores. It closed three CTF Watch stores and one Hearts on Fire store. In other markets, it opened three Chow Tai Fook Jewellery stores – in Singapore, South Korea and the Philippines, and closed four Hearts on Fire stores in Taiwan. At the end of June the store network totalled 3248, up by 114 over the previous quarter.

  • China boosts Uniqlo parent

    China boosts Uniqlo parent

    Uniqlo owner Fast Retailing’s healthy online sales and strong performance in overseas markets, particularly in China, have helped boost its third quarter results.

    The Japanese retailer said its online sales saw a 16.1 per cent year-on-year increase in the three months to May 31 to ¥19.0 billion (US$176.1 million), increasing their proportion of total sales from 7.8 per cent to 9.1 per cent.

    For the three months from March to May 2019, Uniqlo’s international segment reported strong results, with revenue expanding 15.3 per cent year-on-year and operating profit expanding 14.9 per cent year-on-year over that period.

    Uniqlo continued to achieve significant year-on-year growth in both revenue and profit in Mainland China, and achieved double-digit growth in both revenue and profit in Southeast Asia and Oceania on the back of strong sales of its summer range.

    But Fast Retailing’s less-than-stellar domestic sales have overshadowed the company’s strong performance in its e-commerce and international segments, indicating that Japan’s market still has a huge influence on the retailer’s results.

    The company’s domestic sales saw a 0.5 per cent decline brought about by shifting a sales event to June.

    On the profit front, the retailer’s operating profit declined by 7.5 per cent year-on-year on the back of a higher selling, general and administrative expense ratio, and a lower gross profit margin, which was dampened by its decision to bring forward discounting of leftover Spring Summer inventory.

    China continues to be one of the main engines driving overseas expansion, with sales in the country rising in the double digits.

    The retailer said Uniqlo so far hasn’t been hurt by the trade war between the US and China, and sales there were strong even in the face of a weaker yuan.

    Uniqlo Europe reported a decline in profit caused by unseasonal weather patterns and political uncertainty. However, within that region, Russia continued to perform strongly and report expanding revenue and profit.

    In terms of new-store activity, Uniqlo opened its first store in the Netherlands in Amsterdam in September 2018, as well as its biggest Southeast Asian global flagship store in Manila, Philippines in October 2018, and its first store in Denmark in Copenhagen in April 2019.

    Fast Retailing said it is planning to focus its efforts on expanding its global e-commerce operation and its Uniqlo international and GU casual fashion brands to meet its medium-term vision to become the world’s number one apparel retailer.

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  • Bonjour Holdings warns of loss ahead

    Bonjour Holdings warns of loss ahead

    Bonjour Holdings says it expects a loss in the half year to June as protests took their toll on the city’s retail sector.

    Last year, Bonjour Holdings reported a profit of HK$7.4 million in the six month period.

    In a stock-exchange filing, the company did not release an estimate of the level of loss it anticipates, with the preparation of final results still incomplete.

    Chairman and executive director Wilson Ip Chun Heng said the board believes the reversal of fortune is mainly attributable to the weak sales performance brought about by both local and global factors, including the US-China trade war, the depreciation of RMB, and the demonstrations and social unrest in Hong Kong which occurred in June.

    “Moreover, the implementation of the e-commerce law in China at the beginning of the year has severely hit the mainland “Daigou” (surrogate shopping) which has, to a certain extent, adversely affected our group’s turnover in the short-term.”

  • Michael Kors launches on Tmall Luxury Pavilion

    Michael Kors launches on Tmall Luxury Pavilion

    US fashion brand Michael Kors is to launch a digital flagship store on Alibaba’s Tmall and the Tmall Luxury Pavilion.

    The launch marks Michael Kors’ first e-commerce channel in China, apart from its own site, offering consumers the full line of clothing sold offline, as well as a selection of handbags and footwear. The brand said Tmall would be its main destination for debuting products in China, including new items that will be exclusive to the platform – not sold anywhere else in the world.

    John D Idol, chairman and CEO of Capri Holdings, the parent of Michael Kors, Versace and Jimmy Choo, said consumers are becoming more digitally engaged with luxury shopping in China and Tmall Luxury Pavilion is the perfect venue for the Michael Kors brand to communicate its vision.”

    The label will hold a series of events in the coming months, including during New York Fashion Week in September, to celebrate the flagship’s grand opening. On Chinese Valentine’s Day, on August 7, Michael Kors will launch a capsule collection featuring graffiti-inspired clothing, handbags, footwear, jewellery and wristwatches, samples of which are pictured below

    “Michael Kors is an iconic, beloved brand and we are delighted to partner with it as it looks to accelerate its momentum in the Chinese market. This collaboration will bring both exciting products and elevated shopping experiences to the more than 700 million Chinese consumers on our platforms,” said Jiang Fan, president of Taobao and Tmall.

    Launched in 2017, Tmall Luxury Pavilion now offers more than 115 brands, ranging from apparel and beauty items to watches and luxury cars, including Chanel, Bottega Veneta, Valentino, Burberry, Tod’s, Versace, Stella McCartney, Moschino, Gentle Monster, Giuseppe Zanotti, MCM, Maserati, and LVMH-owned Rimowa, Guerlain, Givenchy, Tag Heuer and Zenith.

    Tmall wants to double that number by the end of next March.

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  • Ajisen China sales on the up

    Ajisen China sales on the up

    Ajisen China has reported a 4.8 per cent improvement in same-store sales for the June quarter.

    The Hong Kong-listed fast-casual restaurant operator combined sales in its local operations with those in the mainland and did not comment on the respective markets this reporting period.

    Overall sales for the restaurant business rose by 6.4 per cent, reflecting network expansion.

    The sales growth is a marked turnaround from the same period a year ago, when it reported a 10.8 per cent sales decline in Hong Kong and 1.8 per cent drop on the mainland, citing stiff competition in the restaurant and catering sector, especially in Mainland China.

    Ajisen China operates Ajisen Ramen restaurants under licence to the Japanese brand owner.

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  • China boosts Uniqlo parent

    China boosts Uniqlo parent

    Uniqlo owner Fast Retailing’s healthy online sales and strong performance in overseas markets, particularly in China, have helped boost its third quarter results.

    The Japanese retailer said its online sales saw a 16.1 per cent year-on-year increase in the three months to May 31 to ¥19.0 billion (US$176.1 million), increasing their proportion of total sales from 7.8 per cent to 9.1 per cent.

    For the three months from March to May 2019, Uniqlo’s international segment reported strong results, with revenue expanding 15.3 per cent year-on-year and operating profit expanding 14.9 per cent year-on-year over that period.

    Uniqlo continued to achieve significant year-on-year growth in both revenue and profit in Mainland China, and achieved double-digit growth in both revenue and profit in Southeast Asia and Oceania on the back of strong sales of its summer range.

    But Fast Retailing’s less-than-stellar domestic sales have overshadowed the company’s strong performance in its e-commerce and international segments, indicating that Japan’s market still has a huge influence on the retailer’s results.

    The company’s domestic sales saw a 0.5 per cent decline brought about by shifting a sales event to June.

    On the profit front, the retailer’s operating profit declined by 7.5 per cent year-on-year on the back of a higher selling, general and administrative expense ratio, and a lower gross profit margin, which was dampened by its decision to bring forward discounting of leftover Spring Summer inventory.

    China continues to be one of the main engines driving overseas expansion, with sales in the country rising in the double digits.

    The retailer said Uniqlo so far hasn’t been hurt by the trade war between the US and China, and sales there were strong even in the face of a weaker yuan.

    Uniqlo Europe reported a decline in profit caused by unseasonal weather patterns and political uncertainty. However, within that region, Russia continued to perform strongly and report expanding revenue and profit.

    In terms of new-store activity, Uniqlo opened its first store in the Netherlands in Amsterdam in September 2018, as well as its biggest Southeast Asian global flagship store in Manila, Philippines in October 2018, and its first store in Denmark in Copenhagen in April 2019.

    Fast Retailing said it is planning to focus its efforts on expanding its global e-commerce operation and its Uniqlo international and GU casual fashion brands to meet its medium-term vision to become the world’s number one apparel retailer.

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  • China·Chengdu Panda Cafe opens in Naples

    China·Chengdu Panda Cafe opens in Naples

    China·Chengdu Panda Cafe, a coffee house featuring panda elements, officially debuted in Naples, Italy last weekend.

    The cafe, presents Chengdu-themed performances to guests, quickly attracted local customers curious to try the brand’s unique “Chengdu Flavour” coffee. It also features a number of interactive events, including panda painting, calligraphy, and Chengdu-themed postcard writing.

    “Baby pandas” in the cafe warmly invite all Italians to “drink coffee today in Naples, and in 2021 drink Panda covered-bowl tea in Chengdu”. The activity serves as an invitation to the 31st Summer Universiade, to be hosted in Chengdu. Naples was the previous host of the sports event.

    To promote the opening, a Panda-themed flash mob performed the “Panda Swing Dance” at many famous scenic spots across Naples.

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  • China Liberates Its Automotive Strategy To Support Hybrid Vehicles Sales

    China Liberates Its Automotive Strategy To Support Hybrid Vehicles Sales

    China is one of the biggest EV markets in the world and many global automakers have developed electric vehicles particularly for the Chinese market. However, some carmakers like Toyota and Honda have also invested heavily in the hybrid technology and have been expecting support from the Chinese Government to promote the sales of hybrid vehicles. Finally, it looks like that the Chinese Government will consider their demand and has started focussing on hybrid vehicles as well in its new strategy for the auto sector.

    Earlier this year, the Chinese government had introduced manufacturing and sales quota to promote new-energy vehicles which include electric cars, hydrogen fuel cell vehicles and plug-in hybrids. According to the quota rule, new-energy vehicle must account for 10 per cent of automakers fleet in 2019. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology wants to amend the regulations and allow automakers to include more fuel-efficient hybrid vehicles in their line-up. Hybrid vehicles will be still categorised under the fossil fuel powered segment but will be classified as low-fuel consumption vehicles. The new rule is likely to help automakers in China to meet the environmental quota norms along with allowing them to add more hybrid vehicles in their product line-up.

    The current rule requires automakers to manufacture 20,000 high performance EVs for every one million hybrid vehicles. If EVs do not meet the performance standards, then they require to manufacture more than 20,000 units as hybrids are grouped along with petrol and diesel vehicles, under the same category. That said, the new proposed rule will allow automakers to manufacture only 6000 EVs for a million hybrid vehicles, while the number of EVs for one million petrol or diesel vehicles will be increased to 29,000 units. China is also world’s largest car market and hybrid vehicles being more fuel efficient and low on emission will help carmakers to achieve emission targets in such a high-volume market along with improving sales.

  • Luckin Coffee to launch tea brand Xiaolu

    Luckin Coffee to launch tea brand Xiaolu

    Luckin Coffee, the Chinese cafe startup that has directly taken on Starbucks in the territory, is moving into the takeaway tea market with its new Xiaolu brand.

    “Coffee and tea are the two most popular drinks in the office,” said Luckin VP Jinyi Guo. “However, there are currently few renowned brands of milk tea in China, the quality of franchise stores is inferior, and supply chain management is deficient.”

    The new brand, launched this week, is targeting young Chinese white-collar workers and offers cheese foam tea, fresh tea and milk tea, among others.

    “We want to transform the tea series from traditional tea drinks into creative ones and we hope people drink it in the offices instead of streets,” said the brand’s chief marketing officer Fei Yang.

    Luckin completed its New York IPO this May, raising US$561 million.

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  • Belgian fashion chain Jean Paul Knott to enter China

    Belgian fashion chain Jean Paul Knott to enter China

    Belgian designer brand Jean Paul Knott will open its first Chinese flagship in Beijing next month.

    The designer behind the eponymous label, which emphasises high-quality fabric and minimalist design, revealed the plans at a recent conference marking the brand’s 2019 Autumn/Winter collection, inspired by the classic French 1960s romantic film A Man and a Woman, and featuring a natural and smooth linear beauty of cuts and edits.

    In a dialogue with local fashion writer and translator Gu Chenxi, Knott revealed that he has refocused on the “design of the clothing itself” in an attempt to introduce a “new sincerity to the Chinese market”.

    At the conference, Knott introduced a creative artistic and visual immersive experience designed around brand’s signature blue element, representing “the infinite possibilities of Jean Paul Knott in China”, and featuring stills and clips from A Man and a Woman.

    Knott studied fashion design in New York and worked in Paris with legendary designer Yves Saint Laurent.

  • VIPshop buys Chinese outlet malls

    VIPshop buys Chinese outlet malls

    Discount e-commerce platform Vipshop has acquired a chain of Chinese outlet malls.

    The online business has paid RMB290 million (US$42 million) for Shan Shan, extending its offline footprint.

    The Tencent and JD-backed site has been making strong moves to trade offline since opening a store in Beijing last October, and has gone on to launch retail outlets in Guangzhou, Changsha, Shenyang, Tianjin, and Hefei. The new acquisition adds five outlet malls to VIPShop’s network in Taiyuan, Harbin, Zhengzhou, Nanchang, and Ningbo, with five more outlets in the works.

    “This represents another milestone in our efforts to explore online and offline integration in our core business,” said Vipshop founder Eric Shen. “Through this highly strategic transaction, we will gain presence in the offline outlet business in China, which further enhances our ecosystem and fortifies our leading position in China’s discount retail segment.”

    Vipshop’s first 2019 financial quarter saw it take in RMB21.3 billion (US$3.1 billion) in revenues, providing a net income of RMB872.3 million ($127 million).

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