Chinese Luxury Brands No Longer Content To Imitate Western Trends, Looking Inward To Develop Unique Style
Although European luxury brands are counting on China to power profits for years to come, Chinese brands have their own plans to crack their home market
Last year, Jing Daily wrote about the gradual emergence of home-grown Chinese luxury brands, which have incorporated traditional Chinese cultural and aesthetic traditions into their designs while displaying unmistakably global influences. With China surpassing the United States last year to become the world’s second-largest luxury market and the country quickly gaining ground on the longtime #1, Japan, not only will Chinese consumers be unwilling to have their voices ignored by luxury brands, Chinese luxury brands will look to get a piece of both Chinese and global market share.
This week, an article in Guangzhou Daily (Chinese) looks into the inevitability that home-grown Chinese luxury brands will someday stop imitating and start innovating, selling unique luxury goods “created in China,” not just “made in China.” From the article (translation by Jing Daily team):
The article goes on to mention established Western brands, like yachtmaker Dalla Pieta and American auto brand Hummer, which were purchased by Chinese companies (or, in the case of Hummer — which appears to be headed to the scrap heap along with its deal with Sichuan Tengzhong — courted by Chinese companies) in the wake of the global financial crisis which saw dozens of luxury brands filing for bankruptcy. As the article goes on to detail, the idea of luxury “created in China” does not have to come totally from within; For some brands, it’s good enough to have a (foreign) luxury brand “with Chinese blood.”
The article goes on to discuss other brands that have been purchased by foreign luxury brands, including Hong Kong-based clothier Shanghai Tang (owned by Richemont) and Chinese traditional spirits maker Wenjun (purchased last year by Moet Hennissey). The article then goes on to muse on luxury that is Chinese through and through, from Lan Fine Jewelry (previously on Jing Daily) to premium tea leaves: