Week In Review: October 14-18, 2013

In case you missed them the first time around, here are some of Jing Daily’s top posts for the week of October 14-18. U.S. Retailers Recognize Golden Week’s Heavy Influence Despite an economic slowdown and the Chinese central government’s ongoing frugality campaign, retail sales on the mainland grew during Golden Week this year. National retail spending rose 13.6 percent from the year before to $142 billion, a slight slowdown from the 15 percent growth recorded in 2012, when Golden Week was one day longer and coincided with the Mid-Autumn Festival. Heavy discounting on clothing, shoes, jewelry, electronics and home appliances was largely responsible for the increase in holiday retail spending, according to a report released last Monday by China’s Ministry of Commerce. Iran Looks To China’s Rich, Young Adventurers As ‘Largest Target Market’ For Tourism While in Beijing on Monday, the UK’s chancellor announced that Britain plans to relax visa requirements for Chinese tourists, a move many UK luxury companies have been lobbying for. Not to be outdone, another country’s government has also recently publicized plans to lift visa requirements for China in order to boost Chinese tourism: Iran. According to a press conference held earlier in October by the head of the country’s Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization (CHTO) Mohammad Ali Najafi, Iran is currently “studying a plan” to lift visa requirements in China and several other countries to increase tourism revenue. According to him, China is the “largest target market for the Iranian tourism industry.” Shanghai’s Sneaker King Kim of KIROIC ‘Grows Up’ With Kinkle Workshop Shoe designer Kim is no stranger to international joint projects: his first collaboration with Korean menswear designer brand Juun J. was well-received by both boutiques and the international media, his collaboration with Chinese fashion icon Wyman Wong on a line of embroidered geometric-soled shoes was popular globally, his Chinese blue-and-white-porcelain-patterned clogs for UK brand Ground Zero caught a great deal of attention, his digitally-printed and embroidered shoes for Vans were a huge success, and his brand Kinkle Workshop in Tokyo’s Comme des Garcons Trading Museum is now widely acclaimed. UK’s China Visa Change ‘Welcome Development’ For Luxury Retailers Harrods is one UK retailer that has been campaigning to loosen visa restrictions for Chinese visitors. (Herry Lawford/Flickr) In an effort to attract high-spending Chinese tourists and investment dollars, Britain announced this week it would relax visa requirements for visitors from the mainland, a development for which the country’s luxury retailers have long fought. Under the new rules, regular visitors and businesspeople will be allowed to apply for a 24-hour priority visa instead of having to wait for up to a week. The UK will also pilot a joint visa application with other European countries. China: This Week In Digital Luxury Marketing A roundup of recent and ongoing campaigns in China through October 31, featuring Sisley, Zegna, De Beers, Femina, Runtastic, and Shu Uemura.

Week In Review: October 14-18, 2013

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Published October 18, 2013

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Week In Review: October 14-18, 2013