Fast Fashion ZARA And Other Sales Decline, But Did Not Slow Down The Expansion Rate?

Jingan Temple crystal shopping center, a long baffle on the front door has been removed.

The brand C&A is officially open here.

At the opening ceremony, Lawrence Brenninkmeijer, chief executive of C&A China, who just took office in August, appeared at the scene.

"Before coming, I have no idea of how big the Chinese market is, nor how fast it will grow here.

The whole world is focusing on China, and every brand wants to open up the Chinese market, "Brenninkmeijer said." consumers can find almost all the earth's existence here.

Competition is becoming more and more intense. "

The fast fashion brand from Holland wants to gain market share from competition, which is not easy because not only the fast fashion brands in Europe have been working here for a long time, even the fast fashion brands in Korea say they want to enter China.

Just like in the crystal shopping center, besides C&A, there are Forever 21 around H&M.

C&A and

Entered China in the same year.

In 2007, the first four Chinese shops of C&A opened one after another, once for the industry and analysts.

However, H&M has more than 200 stores in China, but official figures show that C&A has only 75 stores in China.

Apart from its emphasis on localization and quality, it has not brought more memories to consumers.

The arrival of Lawrence Brenninkmeijer is to change this embarrassing situation.

Itself comes from the Brenninkmeijer family with C&A. Before arriving in China, he served as vice president of C&A Brazil operations since 2012.

In the 3 and a half years in office, the number of stores in Brazil has increased from 200 to 300.

Brazil is now Germany's second largest market in the world after C&A.

Earlier, he served as managing director of C&A Turkey, expanding its staff from 3 to 500, and successfully opened 26 stores in Turkey.

Putting family members in the past in China's CEO position, which makes most people believe that C&A intends to regain its advantages in the Chinese market.

However, the Chinese market is big and complex. Brenninkmeijer said it is too early for him to make plans for the Chinese market while he is still in the process of understanding and familiarity.

But by the end of 2015, there will be 10 new stores opening in C&A.

C&A is expanding, and other fast fashion brands have not slackened in the Chinese market.

From 2002

Since landing in Shanghai, fast fashion has been developing rapidly in China.

Ji Xiaoyan, senior project manager of Roland Begg consulting, said that in the past 3-5 years, fast fashion has entered the outbreak period in China.

In addition to the general factors such as big price, low price and fast speed in designing the market, many Chinese local clothing brands have abandoned the low price market.

"Originally these domestic costumes are not expensive, but in the past 7-8 years, the annual price increase is 20%, which leaves much room for international fast fashion brands."

Ji Xiaoyan said.

In Ji Xiaoyan's view, in the fast fashion brands that are doing business in China, the best development trend may be UNIQLO, which is "classic and useless, and the price is close to the people, even if the four line cities are sinking."

And opening stores to more non tier cities is also the strategy of UNIQLO's China market.

"In China's mainland market, 316 stores, more than 100 shops are concentrated in the four cities in the north, Guangzhou and Shenzhen, and the future is sure to penetrate into two or three or even four tier cities."

Last October, Pan Ningceng, the senior executive vice president of Japan's fast selling group, and CEO of Greater China in UNIQLO, said.

From 2013 to 2015, China's fashion market has undergone dramatic changes. The sales of luxury goods in China have been slowing down from double-digit growth in successive years to the 1% negative growth in 2014.

Luxury stores' strategy has also changed from radical in previous years to conservative.

Bain expects that the situation will not be much improved in 2015.

However, in contrast to luxury goods, fast fashion has not slowed down in China.

CBRE, a commercial real estate service and investment company, published the evolution of China's retail business in 2013: fast fashion.

The report shows that China has become the most important overseas market for international fast fashion brands from the total number of stores: Zara and UNIQLO, the largest overseas market in the world, H&M and C&A, the largest overseas market in Asia.

In the first half of this year, the number of four fast fashion stores in UNIQLO, H&M, Zara and C&A increased by 65% compared with June 2013, according to Chen Zhongwei, executive director of the CBRE Research Division in China.

Every fast fashion brand has a pretty big budget for opening stores. H&M will open 80 new stores in China this year, Zara will add 60, and UNIQLO will add 100.

Forever21 has removed 9, and plans to open another 50.

Shopping centres built around the country are fueling the boom.

Shopping centers once used department stores and first-rate luxury brands as main stores, but in the past few years, the fast fashion that can drive passenger flow is getting more and more popular.

With the strong ability of gathering customers and the demand of large area shops, fast fashion brands become the retail tenants who are competing for preferential terms.

"The first tier cities, the location is very good, and the operators' experienced shopping centers will not lay down their bodies to seek them (fast fashion brand), but in the two or three tier cities, especially shopping centers, there has been a supply exceeding demand phenomenon, these fast fashion will have more advantages in the negotiations."

Chen Zhongwei added.

Some fast fashion enters and even does not pay basic rent. It only needs to pay a certain percentage of rents on the basis of turnover and reduce fixed costs.

With the pace of commercial real estate, the expansion strategies of major brands are much the same: from the past to the development of "two or three tier cities" in a "two tier" major cities.

"Last year we set up shop mainly in the second tier cities, which is the fastest growing fashion."

C&A China Marketing Director Shen Wei said.

The growth of consumption capacity of the two or three tier urban residents, ample retail property and cheaper rental conditions attract brands to extend further.

However, there is still a certain gap between the three or four line consumption concept and brand recognition and acceptance compared with the mature market.

As a result of oversupply, many shopping centers have dismal business.

Once the brand chooses to quit in advance, it may face the loss of initial investment, and the brand image will also be affected.

While opening stores, the fast fashion brands also did not ignore the investment in online stores, such as UNIQLO, H&M, Zara, C&A and other brands in Tmall and Jingdong stores.

In addition, more and more brands are actively trying to implement multi brand strategy in China to meet the increasingly differentiated and differentiated purchasing needs of Chinese consumers.

For example, Zara's Zara Home home and Oysho women's underwear brand, UNIQLO sister brand GU and so on.

But even if the fashion trend is good, C&A is not planning to join the store wars.

"I don't want this to be a competition in the number of stores. We want to maintain our pace, which is based on the decision of the economy and our ability to serve consumers."

Brenninkmeijer said.