China’s clampdown on bling helps Hermès
29/09/2014
In recent comments to the Financial Times, Weiming Cao, said an anti-corruption campaign, in which public figures are being discouraged from giving or receiving luxury gifts, has had an impact on sales of high-end leathergoods ands other luxury products. However, he pointed out that the impact on Hermès has been less telling because extravagant corporate gifts tended to emphasise brand names and bling, whereas Hermès has sought to keep its focus on craftsmanship and traditional values.
Hermès first set up business in China in 1997 and the brand has expanded only slowly, taking its footprint over that time to 22 Chinese stores in 15 cities (Louis Vuitton has around 50 stores in China and Gucci has more than 60). However, as a mark of its confidence in its strategy there, Hermès opened a new flagship store in Shanghai in mid-September, only its fifth such store globally.
According to the Financial Times, analysts of the luxury market in China have said Hermès’s more cautious approach to growth there has protected it from the boom-bust nature of the market.
Share this story:
