Is Mytheresa Ready to Take On China?

What happened The clouds have parted for luxury fashion platform Mytheresa. It has raised 406.8 million in its long-awaited initial public offering (IPO) on the New York Stock Exchange, valuing the Munich-based e-commerce site at 2.2 billion. The 14-year-old company has consistently made money since its inception, and in 2019, it generated 459 million in revenue for the year ending June 2019 (a growth of 24.7 percent, year-on-year). The company reported a net income of 7.7 million via sales of 547.5 million in 2020. In the IPO filing, Chief Executive Michael Kliger stated, "Our customers are high-income luxury consumers that value quality and experience over price and curation over assortment breadth." Jing Take: Munich, which is known more for its designer beer than its fashion labels, is an unlikely headquarters for one of the world’s leading luxury e-tailers. But the German location was a savior during COVID-19, as its warehouse continually stayed open. And now, it is helping with post-Brexit’s shipping disruptions. While this has cemented Mytheresa's European positioning, the brand has left China relatively untapped. The company’s mobile-first focus and trusted reputation make it a strong draw for high-net-worth shoppers in first and second-tier cities. And its reasonable 70k Weibo followers and the announcement of Cecilia Song 宋妍霏 as brand ambassador last October should have provided more buzz. But instead, Mytheresa’s social posts are falling flat, from a simple push on Bottega Veneta’s CNY earrings to promoting e-commerce verticals like Mytheresa Men and Mytheresa Kids with KOLs. Traditionally, the company has traded slow growth for the hopes of capturing long-term customers, so it has likely skipped out on heavily investing resources in China. All the right content is there, including exclusive collaborations with brands like Bottega Veneta, Canada Goose, and Khaite. Aside from stronger amplification and engagement, the platform should now be eying possible logistics partners so it can give top names like Farfetch a run for their money in China. The Jing Take reports on a piece of the leading news and presents our editorial team’s analysis of the key implications for the luxury industry. In the recurring column, we analyze everything from product drops and mergers to heated debate sprouting on Chinese social media.

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Is Mytheresa Ready to Take On China?