In “Chinese Whispers,” we share the biggest news stories about the luxury industry in China that haven’t yet made it into the English language.
In this week’s edition, we discuss:
- Ermenegildo Zegna and Canali's partnership with JD.com,
- Alfred Dunhill's WeChat mini-program store, and
- C Venture's investment in streetwear platform Yoho!.
1. JD.com sees two more Italian luxury brands join its platform - JD.com#
Last week, two Italian menswear brands Ermenegildo Zegna and Canali announced their partnerships with China's second-largest e-commerce firm JD.com. Zegna is about to launch a virtual pop-up store on TopLife, JD's premium platform, to sell the brand's new "XXX" collection to Chinese consumers. Zegna will unveil an exclusive product to JD.com's more than 300 million users. Canali, which had already debuted on TopLife earlier this year, opened an official store on JD.com on October 11.
Both brands will be able to use the white-glove delivery service, provided by JD.com to deliver orders to Chinese consumers’ doorsteps via a well-dressed courier in an electric car.
2. Alfred Dunhill launched a WeChat mini-program store to enable "shop the runway" - Dunhill#
British luxury brand Alfred Dunhill unveiled its first WeChat boutique store last week. The new store allows consumers to directly purchase runway items showcased at the brand's 2018 Autumn/Winter fashion show. Dunhill also offers special products for Chinese shoppers. Brand CEO Andrew Maag said the launch of the WeChat store was a step further for Dunhill to explore China's digital e-commerce world, and it serves as a significant extension of offerings by the brand's 20 offline boutique stores in the country.
3. Chinese streetwear platform Yoho! received a new round of funding - Jiemian#
The explosive popularity of streetwear fashion in China has boosted the market value of many players in this segment. The latest instance is Yoho!, a youth-oriented streetwear platform, which raised 25 million in Series E+ funding from C Ventures.
C Ventures is a venture capital firm set up by K11 founder Adrian Cheng in 2017 that concentrates on global fashion, creative and media platforms. Luxury e-commerce platform Moda Operandi, media channels Dazed Media and Nowness are among C Ventures' investment portfolio.
