China Crisis In Martha'S Department Store, "Seven Year Itch" Under Shanghai Customs Shop

Martha, the largest multinational retail group in the UK, is experiencing the "seven year itch" in China.

In March 2nd,

China's market strategy has been announced, which is different from that of the Chinese market. Martha brought the news of store closure this time.

According to Martha, it will be closed before August 2015.

The five branches in the large area include Wanda shop in Shanghai Jiangqiao, Wanda shop in Changzhou, Changzhou Yuyue Plaza, Wuxi Wanda shop and Jiangyin Wanda store.

In fact, over the past year, foreign-funded department stores have been common occurrences, and Martha's closure of 5 branches in the Shanghai area undoubtedly reflects that the old department store, founded in 1884, is facing difficulties in China.

Once upon a time, Martha's department store became the head of the British department store with its own brand and "relationship management" mode, which was full of British sentiment.

However, it seems that Martha is facing "acclimatization" just like other foreign department stores.

In this regard, RET Rui Yi De director, Susan Shan, said that the reasons why the self operated department stores such as Marsha and lac Crawford were not entirely satisfactory in China were not due to the problem of the self owned department store, but whether the advantages of the model were fully and effectively utilized in combination with the local market.

Martha's "China Crisis"

In fact, since the first branch opened in Nanjing West Road, Shanghai in 2008, Martha has entered the second tier cities of Qingdao, Changzhou, Ningbo, Wuhan, Jiangyin, Wenzhou, Suzhou and so on, and has opened 15 stores.

However, its development in China has not been smooth.

For Martha, the official said that this is not a move away from the Chinese market, but a resource integration.

While closing the store, Martha also plans to modernize several stores in Hongkong and one of two flagship stores in Shanghai.

As a way to restore the decline, Martha also plans to open new stores in Beijing and Guangzhou later in 2015 while reducing the number of stores in the surrounding cities of Shanghai.

And as food business develops faster than clothing business, in Martha's new plan, it will open more separate food stores in Hongkong in 2015 and 2016.

In addition, Martha said he would assess the potential local partners in the region and consider expanding the brand awareness in China through online sales.

It is understood that Martha department store's Tmall

The shop opened in January, and the Tmall flagship store for men's and women's wear was launched in 2012.

At the same time, Martha also has a clothing store in Jingdong mall.

However, no matter whether the south is moving northward or embracing the Internet, Martha's all sorts of new attempts are undoubtedly filled with too many helplessness.

In fact, in the Chinese market is not smooth Martha, its overall performance is also difficult to say optimistic.

According to the latest performance data released by Martha department store in January, the performance of the third quarter was deteriorated due to the lack of order fulfillment capability during the holiday season, including general merchandise department sales of clothing, household goods and Christmas goods, which fell by 5.8%, far exceeding the market forecast of 2%-3%, and it was the 14 consecutive quarterly decline.

Although it has always been a paragon of the department store industry and the title of "the largest multinational business retail group in Britain", it now meets "Waterloo" in the domestic and foreign markets.

It is not hard to see that Martha's department store is also suffering from the "China Crisis".

And Sophie pointed out that whether it was the closing of the domestic market or the decline of the overall performance ultimately directed at Martha's own positioning.

The strategy of changing all kinds of difficulties

Martha's failure to take Shanghai as a representative of the self run mode has also become the focus of the outside world.

However, Soza, director of RET Rui Yi De, pointed out that this is not a problem in the mode of self-employed department stores, but whether this mode is combined with the local market.

The profit of department stores operated by proprietary products comes from the efficiency of inventory trading. Therefore, it is very important to accurately grasp the preferences of target customers, adjust the flexibility of goods and maintain customers.

Under the impact of the electricity supplier, the abundance of goods no longer has the advantage. Under the fast fashion competition dominated by fast economy and fast culture, if we can not adjust in time, that will affect the overall operation of the brand.

Susan said.

It is understood that since the 20s of last century, Martha stores began to operate independently, with its low price and high profits, its own brand rapidly rose in the global retail market.

However, when the tentacles extend to developing countries such as China, Martha is really "taught".

In his interview with the real estate new media, Suo Shan said frankly that the fundamental reason for Martha's poor management in China was that he adopted a strategy of constant change.

It is said that, whether it is products or brands, Martha has always adopted the European version as the standard, and does not combine with the reality of Asians.

And its strategy of constant change has been deviated from mainstream consumption.

"At present, the mainstream consumption in China has changed from 70 to 80 and 90, and this generation is following the fast fashion. It is pursuing something that represents individuality. While Martha's goods have some basic funds and fashion items, the so-called fashionable money is no longer close to consumers."

In fact, Martha's position is a middle class department store.

On the high end of foreign trade, but less than the luxury; on fashion and evaluation, but also in recent years, the rapid rise of fashion.

Especially since the popularity of the "fast fashion" market in China, the traditional department store clothing brand similar to Martha has gradually been marginalized.

Despite its own strategy, Martha, a foreign capital enterprise, has become a "handicap" in its overseas development.

"Like Martha, a historical brand, the process will be correspondingly tight, which has led to a slow decision cycle. The idea has arrived, but if the execution path is too long, its decision can not quickly respond to the rapidly changing market."

Soza emphasized.

Therefore, in her view, if Martha is pragmatic, it is still necessary to do a good job of thinking of his own positioning and even the choice of future designers.

In the case of the electricity supplier is only a sales channel, if it can not solve the most essential problem with the customers, Martha's future will inevitably run into a wall.

As for entering Beijing and Guangzhou market, Susan said that if Martha did not think clearly, he would not be able to enter these markets.

"Because the biggest problem in the first tier cities is the high rent in the core area, resulting in great cost, and some other brands that are better than Ma Sha are difficult to locate, so the location of Martha in these cities will be peripheral, and the location will still have the same problem."