Kering bets on China’s gold jewelry boom as Laopu’s sales soar

A new crop of Chinese gold jewelry brands are attracting investor interest in the wake of Laopu Gold Co.’s breakout success. Hangzhou-based Borland, a gold jeweler specializing in traditional Chinese goldsmith technique known as “filigree,” said this week it has raised more than 100 million RMB ($14 million) from investors including Kering Ventures, the startup investment arm of Kering, and Shunwei Capital, a top Chinese venture capital firm co-founded by billionaire Xiaomi chairman Lei Jun. Kering said the small minority interest in Borland through Kering Ventures enables the company to “participate in the development of a rapidly growing brand in the particularly buoyant 24-karat gold jewelry segment.” Capital surge Separately, Dayone Capital in recent days announced a strategic investment worth more than 100 million RMB in Lamchiu, a maker of hand-crafted bespoke pieces based in the northwest Chinese city of Lanzhou. China’s high-end gold jewelry boom has been fueled by the surprise rise of Laopu, which has defied the weak performance seen among Western luxury rivals in China. Laopu’s revenue in the first half of 2025 soared more than 250% year-on-year to 12.4 billion RMB, on top of 168% sales growth the year before. “Laopu has shown the market that this niche sector can continue to break out, and rising gold prices also help lift the overall buzz,” said Richard Lin, a consumer analyst with SPDB International Holdings. “The rising investment and financing enthusiasm for the heritage gold segment is clearly driven by confidence in the category’s long-term growth potential.” Heritage gold jewelry refers to gold pieces rooted in Chinese culture and traditional goldsmith techniques, including filigree work. With stores in top-tier malls, Laopu’s clientele overlaps — and increasingly threatens — stalwarts from Hermès International to Richemont-owned Cartier. Retail reality Still, while Borland and Lamchiu have official stores on e-commerce platforms like Alibaba Group’s Tmall and JD.com, both have a limited physical presence — Borland operates just three mall outlets and Lamchiu, despite more than 1 million followers on ByteDance’s TikTok-like Douyin, has only one Lanzhou storefront. Borland said it will use the new funding to expand distribution and boost supply chain resilience. Dayone has formed a team to help Lamchiu with similar tasks.

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Kering bets on China’s gold jewelry boom as Laopu’s sales soar