Luxury Brand Logo Is No Longer "Dazzling". Armani And Gucci Are Betting On Unmarked Luxury Goods In China.

It seems that Chinese consumers no longer value luxury goods, especially the "dazzling" brand logo.

Retail consultants say that the tastes of Chinese luxury consumers are changing, and they are beginning to turn their attention to products that do not make people feel naked.

"Luxury goods with conspicuous labels are not cool for Chinese consumers." Fashion trend Forecast Ltd Stylesight chief executive Frank Bober said.

Luxury magnates have realized this and are gambling on this change.

The proportion of unmarked products in Gucci has risen to 23%.

Mancone Mancone, the franchise and public relations director of Giorgio Armani SpA in Italy, said that the company now has a more concise and elegant skirt designed to replace the Armani and handbags with striking labels.

Not only is Giorgio Armani, but Gucci is also making some changes.

Dreyfuss, director of marketing and public relations at Gucci (Gucci Group), said that the company stores more leather products in its 52 stores in the mainland of China, including the classic ones, Robert (Triefus). shoes It is hoped that Chinese rich people will be attracted by these low-key products. These products are often priced more expensive than canvas and cotton clothing, which has the most prominent logo and the best selling brand in China. For example, Jia Ji Bao, which is made of Python skin, sells for $6000 on Gucci English official website.

Four years ago, Gucci stores in China sold mainly low-end cloth handbags with logo. Today, the proportion of unmarked products in Gucci's product portfolio has increased from 6% in 2009 to 23% this year.

"The trend of buying gifts from Gucci products has not subsided." Dreyfuss said that people want to buy unidentified luxury goods, which is not directly related to China's recent economic slowdown. Instead, it shows that Chinese consumers have become loyal luxury buyers, and they have bought more than just entry level products.

More than half of wealthy consumers are more willing to buy implicit and restrained luxury goods.

"I don't want to look like I've just become one of these rich people." Lu Jing, a 35 year old entrepreneur in Beijing, said that 10 years ago, she and her friends just got rich. At that time, the number of well-to-do consumers in China was limited, and they wanted to stand out among the crowd. But now, with the rapid expansion of the number of wealthy people in China, she feels that she does not need to prove herself.

Lu Jingqing owns a garden design company. She said she now buys thousands of dollars in a set of evening wear instead of buying a brand name wallet as she did 10 years ago.

In addition to "no longer need to prove themselves" and "do not let themselves concern", it is also one of the reasons for the change of style. Tang Shide, partner of management consulting firm Monitor Group (Torsten Stocker) said that, especially for those with high exposure, they need to integrate into the public. "Showing off wealth may cause unnecessary attention."

"As time goes on, Chinese people now speak more about style, and what they want is elegance." Mancone of Giorgio Armani group said.

There is data as evidence. A survey of 1500 consumers in 17 cities in China by McKinsey, a consultancy, showed that 52% of wealthy consumers in 2010 were more willing to buy implicit and luxury goods, up from 32% in two years ago (the latest data available in 2010). The "richness" refers to the annual household income of more than 250 thousand yuan (US $39283).

Retailers and consultants say Beijing and Shanghai have led to a shift in Chinese consumers to low-key luxury goods. Consumers in small cities in China get richer later and tend to buy more high-profile products, which are still growing in general. Gucci's side can prove this point - in the relatively developed market, its store windows still show the company's iconic double ring logo.

Private goods market

Consumption has shifted to a low profile and is creating new opportunities for some companies. Mattress brands such as Tempur-Pedic and Serta aim at this new low-key consumer group.

Lin Hui, a 34 year old private investor in Beijing, recently bought a new bedroom furniture for $more than 30 thousand, including a large size mattress called "California".

"I only want the best." Lin Hui said that it's okay to spend so much money. Mattresses can't be used to publicly display their status.

It is not only the private goods such as mattresses, but also the underwear market is said to be "low-key".

Six years ago, Calvin Klein (CK) underwear was very hard to sell in China. At that time, the clothing sales of the New York Warnaco Group, which produced the brand, amounted to 20 million 800 thousand US dollars in the Chinese market, and CK accounted for only a very small part of it.

But now the underwear business is booming. Warnaco, which sells CK jeans in China, has announced that it earned $163 million 300 thousand in China last year. About 30% of them come from underwear sales, according to McClaskey, chief executive of the company, Helen McCluskey.

"Today's Chinese consumers are more willing to give up men's underwear with 10 yuan and two pieces in the street market, and to buy 260 yuan one CK pants in the mall." He said. Earlier this year, she told an interview in Hongkong that designer underwear is an undeveloped category.