I was looking for more info about this wonderful upcoming French jewelry brand Shourouk, and through many associations and links on the Web I finally discovered this super dynamic Chinese luxury brand called Shanghai Tang with a French executive, Raphael le Masne de Chermont, at its helm from the Swiss Conglomerate Compagnie Financière Richemont SA owning many coveted luxury brands such as watchmaker Piaget, jewelry giant Cartier, and others. Well, this guy lives happily in Hong-Kong having great dedication to his mission, within a changing market in a huge distant country, much-discussed in our days, called China. To his opinion China is evolving a lot, and Chinese consumers gradually abandon their obsession for clearly visible western logos, and get to understand the importance of quality, of great culture and transformation. He’s trying to make a Chinese brand popular to the Chinese, which was very hard at the beginning, and now he’s going well. Three years ago only 3% of the sales were to Chinese consumers and now has risen to more than 20%. There are 50 stores globally and the actual bet is to sell luxury Chinese products to a majority of Chinese clients. Standards of quality are high at this brand, and people there start to appreciate the fact. Shanghai Tang has an international approach mixing Chinese heritage and culture with western world efficiency. Already successful tactics in marketing and the rest are now being applied to a brand which is proud to be Chinese.
One of the great revolutions that the brand initiates is the Mandarin Collar Society, a movement that advocates the abolishment of the traditional Chinese necktie and the adoption of the far more elegant and relevant mandarin collar. In general, it seems that people who are investing in the modernization of the existing cultural base in this country, have the momentum right now. There is a strong heritage which has to evolve offering amazing opportunities for the rest of the world and giving to the global luxury market a breath of life. Highly-educated and experienced executives from all over the world can offer the Chinese their expertise and certainly benefit from all forms of collaborations. Chinese consumers are maturing fast, finding their path in the world of luxury. Let’s all figure out the chances to succeed through that process!
xxx
Elena Sendona
