High-end Roman fashion house Valentino has opened a flagship store on the Tmall Luxury Pavillion.
Selling selected products from the designer’s womens and menswear collections and a host of limited edition products only available on Tmall. The launch last week also live-streamed Valentino’s runway show from Tokyo as part of its launch.
Valentinojoins Tiffany, Burberry, Hugo Boss, La Mer, Maserati and Guerlain (LVMH) and Zenith as brands using the luxury pavilion on Tmall to sell to China’s ever-increasing wealthy middle class millennials and Gen Z-ers.
According to research by Bain & Co, China’s Millennial and Generation Z shoppers are on track to make up 46% of purchases in the global personal luxury goods market by 2025, up from 32% in 2017.
The research also points to how much more important online is becoming to luxury brands as its target audience – who grew up online – comes of age. Bain & Co predicts that official sites and e-commerce platforms expected to account for 25% of the market’s value in 2025, up from the current 10%, as a result.
“Valentino is a true luxury maison, and we are honored to have the brand on board. This launch goes beyond a simple cooperation. We experimented with new ways to build the campaign such as with the online store design, the fashion show livestream, and especially, ‘sending’ our newly appointed digital ambassador Noonoouri to attend the Tokyo event in a dress by Valentino. All this effort is to help [the fashion house] engage and build emotional bonds with Chinese luxury consumers in a unique experience.”
– Lili Chen, general manager of Tmall Luxury Pavilion
The move comes as research shows that this Christmas, many shoppers around the world will be turning to luxury brands for unique gifts. Research by Bazaarvoice revealed in Novemberthat 76% of UK shoppers who usually shop at mid-market brands such as Next and Debenhams are likely to switch to luxury brands including Selfridges, Burberry, Mulberry and Omega at Christmas.
