Louis Vuitton and Dunhill Top Among China's Wealthy

[Gus]

I find it interesting to read about brand strategies in China. The following article shows one study that shows preferences towards certain brands in China by those earning £100,000 or more. A brand like Dunhill gets very little traction in the US yet is #2 in China. Ports is #4. When was the last time you heard an American woman say she wanted Ports?

http://www.licensemag.com/licensemag.../detail/695360

 

[JohnGalt]

In general, that income bracket is still aspirational to the really wealthy, hence why you tend to see the big brand names, all of which have no qualms about throwing large logos all over their products. let's not forget that 100k GBP is upper-middle class in many parts of the world. brands like dunhill find success because of their old european heritage. china's wealthy in this case are trying really hard to class signal.

 

[Gus]

Originally Posted by JohnGalt

china's wealthy in this case are trying really hard to class signal.

Yes, and every luxury brand (I'm getting to hate that phrase) is doing what ever they can to be China's class signal

 

[Valor]

Oh Louis Vuitton, the emblem of the classless noveau-riche, and a wonderful marketing strategy.

 

[dcg]

They also love Buick over there, from what I hear.

 

[Gus]

I've read a number of pieces about the life cycle of brands especially status brands. Brands love emerging markets the same way they loved the USA in the 70's when the US consumer discovered "status" brands (or Japan in the 80's). It is an all-out battle to be the "it" brand for India and China. Their US and Japan strategies are on auto pilot by comparison.

 

[intent]

What is Ports? I can't find it on google.

 

[Gus]

Originally Posted by intent

What is Ports? I can't find it on google.

wimenz clothing

 

[Monaco]

Yup, Haggen Daz is a huge deal there, with cafes all around and 2 scoops costing $10 USD.

I was actually thinking about opening Frozen Yogurt places there back in 2008 when it wasn't big in China but the timing wasn't right. Too bad.

 

[LabelKing]

Originally Posted by intent

What is Ports? I can't find it on google.

Ports International. They show at NY Fashion Week for some reason.

 

[jdcpa]

GM generally does really well in China. “GM technology makes it very reliable,” Han 32 Who ever thought they would hear that again. http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?p...d=apZ8D8YQ1ZM0

 

[DaveStPaul]

Here in Hong Kong you definitely see that. Walking down the street, when you hear Chinese being spoken, 95% of the time it's Cantonese (locals). But when you're in a high-end mall like Pacific Place (with Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Dior, Prada, Roberto Cavalli, Hermes, etc), or say it's a stand-alone store like the Louis Vuitton over in Causeway Bay, it's mostly Mandarin you hear. As those companies get a larger foothold up north, you'd have to think there will be less of that here. But for now, everyday you can see how mainlanders want the big names.

(Two quick examples: At Louis Vuitton stores, if it's, say, 6pm on a Saturday, there'll actually be a line of people waiting to get it, with a doorman controlling the flow. It's like outside a club. Crazy.

And the main Dunhill shop in the Central District recently opened a restaurant and bar on the 3rd floor, and it's been packed so far. People even want Dunhill food!

)

 

[Pantisocrat]

Originally Posted by DaveStPaul

Here in Hong Kong you definitely see that. Walking down the street, when you hear Chinese being spoken, 95% of the time it's Cantonese (locals). But when you're in a high-end mall like Pacific Place (with Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Dior, Prada, Roberto Cavalli, Hermes, etc), or say it's a stand-alone store like the Louis Vuitton over in Causeway Bay, it's mostly Mandarin you hear. As those companies get a larger foothold up north, you'd have to think there will be less of that here. But for now, everyday you can see how mainlanders want the big names.

(Two quick examples: At Louis Vuitton stores, if it's, say, 6pm on a Saturday, there'll actually be a line of people waiting to get it, with a doorman controlling the flow. It's like outside a club. Crazy.

And the main Dunhill shop in the Central District recently opened a restaurant and bar on the 3rd floor, and it's been packed so far. People even want Dunhill food!

)

Have any of them discovered the internet? Sheezz...with all that money, you don't have to wait in line to shop.

 

[skywalker]

Originally Posted by DaveStPaul

Here in Hong Kong you definitely see that. Walking down the street, when you hear Chinese being spoken, 95% of the time it's Cantonese (locals). But when you're in a high-end mall like Pacific Place (with Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Dior, Prada, Roberto Cavalli, Hermes, etc), or say it's a stand-alone store like the Louis Vuitton over in Causeway Bay, it's mostly Mandarin you hear. As those companies get a larger foothold up north, you'd have to think there will be less of that here. But for now, everyday you can see how mainlanders want the big names.

(Two quick examples: At Louis Vuitton stores, if it's, say, 6pm on a Saturday, there'll actually be a line of people waiting to get it, with a doorman controlling the flow. It's like outside a club. Crazy.

And the main Dunhill shop in the Central District recently opened a restaurant and bar on the 3rd floor, and it's been packed so far. People even want Dunhill food!

)


This is odd, when they could just buy everything online.

 

[Don Carlos]

Originally Posted by Pantisocrat

Have any of them discovered the internet? Sheezz...with all that money, you don't have to wait in line to shop.

The visceral thrill of beating a mob of people into a hot store and impulse shopping with wads of cash will never go out of style to brand-aspirational types. Especially women.

A little bit closer to home, you can see this phenomenon in effect in cerrain parts of LA, NY, or Chi, among other cities. Its most concentrated and obnoxious form is probably in the Caesar's Palace Forum Shops area in Vegas. That place is like Disneyland for adult females.