Site Tailored To Particularities Of China Market#
Two years after entering the China market with the launch of emporioarmani.cn, this week Milan-based designer discount e-commerce site
Yoox#
launched a new Chinese site, Yoox.cn. Offering discounted end-of-season accessories and apparel from the likes of Prada, Gucci, Moschino and Dolce & Gabbana, the site is consistent with global Yoox versions yet tailored for the particularities of the Chinese shopper. Among the localized features on the site are a Chinese version of Yoox's Speak & Shop feature, which lets customers search for preferred color schemes in Mandarin, RMB transactions, FedEx shipping to 400 cities in China and a liberal return policy, cash-on-delivery or Alipay payment options, and RFID anti-counterfeit seals to assuage consumer fears of fakes. As with its global sites, Yoox's Chinese version is optimized for iPad and iPhone.
Though this week marks a "grand opening" for Yoox in China, the retailer has been very active in the market since launching Emporio Armani's e-commerce site in 2010. Since then, the company launched online shopping sites for nine brands -- among them Moncler, Alexander Wang and Marni -- and last year created a localized version of thecorner.com. Lessons learned over the last two years will go a long way to help Yoox compete with other major players that have recently expanded into the already crowded China e-commerce market, as well as the likes of Neiman Marcus and Macy's, both of which are set to enter China in the months ahead.
Though the luxury e-commerce segment is still young and relatively unproven, Yoox remains confident that it can capitalize on growth in the e-commerce sector, which is expected to reach US$360 billion in sales by 2015. Yoox Founder and CEO Federico Marchetti recently remarked that he expects China to become one of his company's top three markets within four to five years. Said Marchetti, “We believe localization is one of the keys to success in the China market. As such, Yoox.cn is localized in terms of language, customer service, assortment and local collaborations with relevant offers."