12,000 Square Foot Store To Launch Next Month#
Topshop will land in Hong Kong in May 2013
In partnership with
LAB Concept#
, May will see the launch of the first Greater China
Topshop#
flagship in Hong Kong. The prime location, announced late last year, will comprise 12,000 square feet across two floors in a prime corner suite within the Asia Standard Tower on Queens Road Central. Split into two sections, the ground floor will showcase Topshop fashion lines in a modern concrete and gloss-white setting in one room, while the second will showcase the company's accessories and makeup collections. Upstairs, a dedicated shoe lounge stocks the popular footwear collections among glass fixtures and a mirrored ceiling, while by-appointment personal shopping offers Hong Kong shoppers the VIP treatment in a private setting.
Coming off Topshop's 2012 pop-up in Shanghai, the Hong Kong flagship reinforces the fact that Asia -- as well as other emerging markets like Brazil and South Africa -- is in the brand's crosshairs. Over the past year, Topshop has added 27 stockists in the Far East, opening five dedicated stores in the region. However, Topshop's presence in mainland China in particular has to date been limited to temporary store-in-store spaces, as in its recent Shanghai pop-up and previous cooperations with Beijing's FEI Space and Shenzhen's King Glory Plaza. (Though Chinese fashion lovers can shop and ship to China on Topshop's website.)
The new Hong Kong flagship will be managed by LAB Concept, a subsidiary of respected luxury department store
Lane Crawford#
, which recently opened a new space in Queensway Plaza. In addition to staff and logistical support, LAB Concept will provide the retail space and operational expertise, while Topshop will manage the merchandising.
Topshop's Shanghai pop-up on Changle Lu (Image: Time Out Shanghai)
As Topshop owner Sir Philip Green said last fall of the partnership, “I am delighted to be launching Topshop in Hong Kong in 2013, with Lane Crawford’s LAB Concept as our chosen partner. Their team’s expertise in the Chinese market is invaluable to us." Added Andrew Keith, President of Lane Crawford, "We are excited to be working with Sir Philip Green and his fantastic team to bring Topshop to the market as a full retail concept that truly represents the creativity and energy of the brand, at a time when the contemporary market in Greater China is booming.”
With the entrance of Topshop into the Hong Kong market, the city's fast-fashion shoppers have never been more spoiled for choice. Last year alone, the city saw an influx of international fast-fashion retailers, among them H&M's more upmarket Collection of Style (COS), Abercrombie & Fitch (which took over Shanghai Tang's former flagship on Pedder Street), and J.Crew (in partnership with Lane Crawford).
However, don't expect to see the fast fashion powerhouse rush from Hong Kong straight into mainland China. As Green recently told the Telegraph, he plans to closely watch how Topshop’s new venture fares before pushing northward. That said, Green added, “I still think we can do China and I think once we do Hong Kong, China will become more obvious because it’s easier being local and being able to talk to people.”