Jing Daily’s Top Posts for the Week#
In case you missed them the first time around, here are some of Jing Daily’s top posts for the week of August 29-September 2:
Three Unmistakable China Luxury Trends
Over the past five years, one of the most obvious trends in China’s luxury retail market, primarily in top-tier cities, has been frenzied expansion. Gaining pace in the years preceding the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the Chinese capital has, perhaps more than any other city, seen its retail sector suffer from overcapacity, with new luxury-focused malls multiplying and ever more brands opening flagships and boutiques, even as the city’s middle class has continued to search for deals online, done their luxury shopping in Hong Kong, and cultivated an increasingly vibrant second-hand luxury market.
With rent at Beijing’s many high-end malls continuing to rise, and consumers often using these venues for window-shopping more than anything else, some are wondering how the situation in Beijing can jibe with the news we see every day about China’s booming luxury market.
China’s Zhang Dali Among Artists Honored In MoMA’s Annual Photography Series
The eclectic Chinese artist Zhang Dali, whose career has evolved from graffiti and photography to sculpture and portraiture, has had a busy year. In April, Zhang launched his fifth exhibition, “New Slogan,” in New York, then in May took part in the “Love And Hope” Japan charity event in Beijing, which raised money for Japanese earthquake and tsunami relief. In June, Zhang’s “A Second History (2003-2010)” series was included in the “Speech Matters” exhibition at the Danish Pavilion at the Venice Art Bienniale. Next month, Zhang is set to be feted once again, at the 26th annual New Photography exhibition at New York’s Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), where he will be celebrated alongside five other artists from around the world: Moyra Davey, George Georgiou, Deana Lawson, Doug Rickard, and Viviane Sassen.
As organizer Dan Leers said in a release this week, ”Whether using an appropriative practice like Zhang Dali, analog forms of communication like Moyra Davey, the documentary approach of George Georgiou, conventions of portraiture like Deana Lawson, web-based images like Doug Rickard, or Viviane Sassen’s self-reflective analysis, each of the artists in New Photography 2011 has his or her own individual means of addressing issues relevant to the world today.”
Online Scandals: Good Or Bad For Luxury Brands In China?
Conspicuous consumption may be very slowly going the way of the dodo among China’s more sophisticated luxury consumers as disdain towards overt extravagance grows in major urban centers, but that hasn’t stopped some from flaunting their wealth online in a blatant attempt at fame or notoriety. This summer, scandal broke when a young woman, Guo Meimei, who claimed to work as general manager of the Red Cross Society of China, posted photos of her many luxury handbags and cars on Sina Weibo. A firestorm of criticism, both of Guo and the Red Cross, soon ensued, despite the quick denial by the Red Cross of China, and admission by Guo herself, that she had ever been an employee. Chinese netizens regularly took to Weibo to ridicule Guo for flaunting her Hermès handbags and Maserati, causing online searches of both of these brands to skyrocket.
Any association with a scandal-hit celebrity — self-styled or not — is generally considered a bad thing for luxury brands, but in the wake of the Guo Meimei incident, the great irony is that Hermès may have seen a sales bump in China.
Chinese Luxury E-commerce Platform Expands Brand Portfolio#
As one of China's largest e-commerce platforms, VIPStore has recently been working to establish eight to ten partnerships with global luxury goods per month in an effort to enrich its brand portfolio while expanding its product mix.
The rapid growth of China's e-luxury market has attracted a flood of global luxury brands to leverage e-commerce platforms in an attempt to meet online shoppers' evolving and localized needs.
A brand that's new and lesser-known to Chinese consumers may still encounter push-back, due to low name recognition, but with platforms like VIPStore adding more of these second-tier brands to its portfolio -- which currently counts Burberry and Chanel among its stable of brands -- e-commerce could be a relatively easy way to get their foot in the door.
Wallace Chan: The Only Fine Jewelry Artist Of Chinese Origin#
Top global luxury jewelry brands like Cartier and Tiffany are gaining a strong foothold in Hong Kong and mainland China. After 30 years of development, China’s jewelry industry has now become one of the world’s biggest consumer market. Along with the booming jewelry market, a group of Chinese jewelry artists are emerging. With their extraordinary creativity and superior technique, Chinese jewelry artists are gradually in the spotlight in the collection world. Among them, Wallace Chan, who possesses passion and breadth of mind and has achieved himself several honors, is one of the most outstanding jewelry artists.
Over the past few years, Wallace Chan has captured the attention of luxury retailers such as Bergdorf Goodman and Neiman Marcus. We believe a creative artist like Wallace Chan who is of Chinese origin and has profound knowledge in jewelry design, will stand him out and catch the eyes of luxury jewelry brands as well as the collection world.