Retail News CRM

Tag: footwear and apparel

  • Levi Strauss Expands in China After Asia Revenue Rises 10 per Cent

    Levi Strauss Expands in China After Asia Revenue Rises 10 per Cent

    US apparel retailer Levi Strauss & Co plans fresh capital investment and new store openings across China, moving against broader retail headwinds as multinational rivals shutter underperforming outlets. The San Francisco-based group is expanding its network after steady demand from younger consumers.

    Asian net revenues rose 10 per cent year on year in the third quarter, representing a third consecutive period of double-digit expansion for the territory. Markets outside North America now account for more than 60 per cent of total global business, though regional management still classifies Asia as a small contributor with long-term expansion potential.

    Executive vice-president and chief commercial officer Gianluca Flore confirmed that mainland operations have improved markedly over the past 12 months, allowing the company to reset commercial targets. “We are going to be able to see China become a much bigger portion of our business globally,” Flore said. “I’m aware of other brands, even luxury brands, that are reducing [their footprint]. I’m personally and professionally bullish on China.”

    Flore added that Levi’s remains a relatively small brand insulated from direct macroeconomic shifts, noting he expects China’s broader consumer environment will eventually improve.

    Tier-One Hubs and Franchises

    Levi Strauss is directing direct capital expenditure toward first-tier metropolitan hubs while partnering with local operators to scale franchise locations. Core demand centers on fashion-conscious consumers aged 20 to 30, prompting regional merchandising teams to adapt global assortments.

    “Within the global assortment, we have some fine tuning, some nuances that we bring to the products in certain cases,” Flore said. “We are really open, and we try … To be flexible and agile to adapt to that nuance.”

    Execution risks remain centered on product responsiveness and inventory control. Wang Tianshi, an analyst at Shanghai-based LeadLeo Research Institute, noted that foreign operators must flatten operational hierarchies to navigate rapid consumption shifts.

    “Merchandising must cater closely to local niche preferences in China, reduce standard global sourcing and expand locally developed products,” Wang said. “Only by keeping pace with China’s fast-shifting consumption trends can foreign retailers turn their brand equity into sustainable competitive advantages.”

    Earlier Footprint Moves

    The push follows targeted brick-and-mortar marketing pilots across key regional shopping corridors. In September, Levi’s opened a pop-up store at Leighton Centre in Hong Kong’s Causeway Bay district to show localized assortments ahead of broader regional store rollout initiatives.

  • Australian Retail Health Index Drops to Negative 1.07 as Insolvencies Rise

    Australian Retail Health Index Drops to Negative 1.07 as Insolvencies Rise

    Australian retail conditions worsened sharply in the three months ending June 2026, dragging KPMG’s Retail Health Index down to negative 1.07 from negative 0.37 in the previous quarter.

    A steep 11.4 per cent drop in consumer sentiment drove the decline, even as total household spending and producer prices recorded modest gains.

    Pressures on cash flow and demand led to 254 retail insolvencies during the three-month period. Employers pulled back hiring across store networks, cutting job vacancies by 15.3 per cent to leave 26,000 open roles across the country. The index measures spending, sentiment, turnover, pricing and underlying business performance to gauge sector viability.

    Value Hunting Alters Store Economics

    Shoppers across Australia have shifted their habits toward planned, price-sensitive purchases rather than halting expenditure entirely. Foot traffic and checkout totals increasingly concentrate around major promotional windows such as End of Financial Year sales, thinning margins for operators between events.

    For regional retail groups and brand distributors, this concentration creates sharp operational volatility. Inventory holding costs rise between discount periods, while staffing models must flex quickly to handle brief spikes in transaction volume without blowing out payroll costs.

    Digital Channels and Labour Adjustments

    Suppliers face renegotiations on wholesale terms as storefront operators fight to protect gross margins against higher input costs. Landlords in secondary shopping centres risk longer lease negotiations, particularly where specialty fashion and discretionary merchants struggle to sustain standard rent-to-sales ratios.

    The contraction follows a prolonged period of cautious buying that started when higher borrowing costs began constraining disposable income across major metropolitan centres. Earlier quarters had managed to absorb rising operational overheads through modest price adjustments, but consumer pushback against shelf prices has now limited further retail pass-through.

    Promotional Execution Takes Centre Stage

    Relief for the sector depends heavily on whether lower supply chain disruptions and sustained population growth can offset cautious household budgets. Retailers are directing investment into automated personalisation and inventory tracking systems to lift conversion rates ahead of high-volume seasonal trading.

    Merchant performance across the market now hinges on order execution during the upcoming Black Friday and Cyber Monday discounting calendar.

  • Uniqlo Plans 20 Urban Flagship Stores Across Japan over Next Decade

    Uniqlo Plans 20 Urban Flagship Stores Across Japan over Next Decade

    Fast Retailing plans to expand Uniqlo’s flagship store network in Japan to around 20 locations over the next decade. The apparel group is shifting capital away from standardised suburban shopping centres to focus on multi-storey urban showpieces in prime metropolitan districts.

    The strategy alters the retail footprint that built Uniqlo into Japan’s dominant clothing chain. For decades, the brand expanded by opening uniform formats along roadside corridors and inside suburban shopping complexes across provincial prefectures. Future capital expenditure will prioritise high-traffic urban centres designed to deliver higher sales density and elevated brand visibility.

    Shifting capital from roadside formats

    Standard suburban outlets offer limited scope to show the brand’s full product range or create distinctive customer experiences. Flagship formats allow the group to display complete seasonal collections, test specialty service concepts, and handle heavier transaction volumes per square metre.

    Across Asian retail markets, apparel groups face maturing domestic suburban populations and rising store operating overheads. Flagship locations in transit hubs capture both regular daily commuters and high-spending international tourists, delivering better returns on lease costs than distributed suburban networks.

    New locations and tourist hubs

    Uniqlo currently runs global flagship stores in Tokyo’s Ginza district and Osaka’s Umeda commercial hub. Future openings under the revised 10-year plan will target prime retail corridors in Nagoya and Sapporo, along with additional high-footfall central Tokyo districts such as Shibuya.

    The urban rollout begins in western Japan, with Uniqlo scheduled to open its first global flagship store in Kyoto in November.