Despite China’s ongoing corruption crackdown that has dampened sales for some luxury companies, Lane Crawford President Andrew Keith told CNBC that his company hasn’t felt the pain. In fact, Lane Crawford has gone ahead with its expansion plans into mainland China, and opened a new store in Chengdu this year. “We’re fundamentally different; we’re unique,” says Keith. “We’re not at all a hard luxury business. We’re very much about fashion, so the customers that are coming into Lane Crawford, they’re buying for themselves. It’s not about gifting; it’s self-gifting.” The Hong-Kong based department store already has two stores in Beijing and a flagship store in Shanghai, and it sees expanding into mainland China as a long-term growth strategy. Without fears of a slowdown from the overhanging anti-corruption campaign, Lane Crawford next step is to offer a seamless “omni-channel” business strategy, integrating the online and brick-and-mortar experience.
