Chinese Fashion Leaders Are Shaping The Future Of This Industry.

In this year's global fashion leaders Ultimate Guide BoF 500 list, China has 33 members, including designers, inspirational Mousika, creative people, entrepreneurs, fashion prophets, and business executives who are promoting the development of international fashion industry.

The dynamism of China's vitality and fashion industry is at the heart of global fashion topics.

The Chinese members who joined the BoF 500 list in 2018 clearly reflect this point, and show how the huge market evolving is how to use creative, innovative technology and unique modern fashion ecosystem to meet the needs of the growing consumer class.

According to McKinsey, the annual consumption expenditure of Chinese luxury consumers exceeds 5000 billion yuan (US $73 billion), accounting for almost 1/3 of the global luxury goods market.

The demand for middle and upper class consumers in China is still growing, and the government's encouragement of economic growth towards domestic consumption has led to a number of parallel development trends, which can be seen from the latest BoF 500 list. One or two

Global investment of Chinese corporate giants

International Merger and acquisition activities of China's large scale enterprise groups are increasing day by day.

In February of this year,

(leader)

(Shandong Ruyi Group) purchased the high-end leather accessories brand Bally International from the European Investment Fund JAB Holdings.

"This is an important milestone for Shandong Ruyi group to become the leader of the global fashion industry," Qiu Yafu pointed out in a statement issued at the time.

Prior to that, Shandong Ruyi group bought the British traditional brand Aquascutum from the Hongkong YGM Trading Group in 2017 for 117 million US dollars, and subsequently acquired the French fashion group SMCP, fabric expert Taylor & Lord and Harris Harris (Harris Tweed) manufacturer Carloway Mill.

It is rumoured that the group is looking for more western brands.

Another Chinese company, which is also buying luxury brands in a big way, is

(Fosun International).

This large scale started from the field of market research, health care and real estate.

In 2018, it acquired Lanvin, other luxury brands including La Perla, St. John and Folli Follie.

"China is becoming the main driving force in the global luxury market. I believe Fosun will be able to empower Lanvin through the integration of global resources and professional strength," said Cheng Yun, another new member of the list, chairman of Fosun fashion group and chairman of the board of directors of Lanvin (Joann Cheng).

On the other hand, Ma Huateng, the Alibaba's Ma Yun and Tencent's BoF (two people were selected for the first time in the list of BoF 500) and other technology pioneers are bringing more global fashion to the hands of Chinese consumers than ever before.

According to Statista data, China's e-commerce market driven by Alibaba's Tmall and Tencent backed Jingdong (and their recently launched luxury platform Luxury Pavilion and Toplife) are the largest and most mature market in the world.

Last year, online B2C

Sales reached nearly $500 billion, and more than 52% Chinese consumers spent at least once a week on mobile phone shopping.

The social network and digital payment platform developed by Alibaba and Tencent have promoted the development of mobile priority e-commerce.

Over the years, through Taobao and WeChat, Ma Yun and Ma Huateng have played an important role in the daily life of Chinese consumers.

At the same time, through a series of investments outside China, their fashion influence has been directly expanded, and their influence on the consumption habits of the most populous countries in the world has been magnified.

In the domestic fashion investment of Alibaba, people may be familiar with Intime department stores, Suning Commerce Group, Mei.com charm and Xiao Hong book (XiaoHongShu).

However, Alibaba also has a large share in foreign e-commerce giants such as Rent the Runway.

Trendyol, Daraz in Pakistan, Tokopedia in Indonesia, and

Lazada of Thailand, Malaysia, Philippines and Vietnam.

Tencent has invested in Wanda Commercial Properties, China's men's wear chain brand Heilan, Jingdong, spinner, vip.com and India's e-commerce giant Flipkart (owns Myntra), linking China with a broader Asian fashion retail ecosystem to achieve sustainable development.

The prophets behind the new ecosystem

In recent years, much attention has been paid to the rise of China's new generation of fashion designers.

These designers graduated from the best fashion colleges in London, New York and Milan, then returned home and launched their own brands, hoping to benefit from the middle and upper class consumers who promoted the growth of international brand sales.

Liu Xinxia (Tasha Liu) is the main supporter of these young designers who are active in China and around the world. She was the co founder of the multi brand concept shop, and then worked with Shanghai fashion week to develop her own platform tiger Labelhood.

Shanghai fashion week is an important platform for leading Chinese young talents to enter the large-scale fashion stage.

"This is very exciting," said Liu Xinxia.

"China's emerging designers are making progress every year in the field of creativity and business, and the environment of the whole industry has also been improved, including professional services for the business development of designers.

Now, more young and smart consumers can understand and experience these brands. "

Long term members of the Shanghai fashion week Deputy Secretary General Lv Xiaolei (Lv Xiaolei) and the BoF 500 list are leading the building of a broader fashion ecosystem and the commercial infrastructure to support Chinese designers and brands.

Shanghai fashion week has become one of the most important and most concerned fashion week in the world, which owes much to her foresight.

"Becoming a member of the BoF 500 list again is a recognition of us and a summary of our hard work last year."

She said.

"It is not easy to continue to lead the fashion trend. I sincerely hope that the new generation of China can get more international attention and business development from the platform of Shanghai fashion week."

Create a new generation

The new generation of beneficiaries has a new entry list of Chen Xuzhi (Chen Xuzhi).

He graduated from the Central Saint Martin s, Saint Martin, and is still working in London.

He has been nominated for H&M Design Award, LVMH Prize and Woolmark Prize award, and has appeared in the Milan show with the support of Giorgio Armani. This year, he debuted the list of BoF 500.

"It's more exciting to enter the list than my fashion designer idols. There are many excellent Chinese entrepreneurs on this list," Chen said.

He also jokes that even his grandparents, who know little about fashion, will be moved by his selection of BoF 500 with Chinese billionaires and corporate tycoons.

"I think China's entry list members are very diverse and they will enhance China's influence in the global fashion industry," he added.

Together with him in the ranks of outstanding figures in China's design circles, there are Uma Wang brand designer Wang Zhi, Guo Pei, a senior custom costume designer, and Shangguan Zhe, a designer who uses street culture to define street fashion. As a member of the creative circle, they will push the credibility of Chinese design to a new era.

Just like Shangguan Zhe's brand Sankuanz, many media companies and celebrities are also standing at the forefront of the new "cool Chinese characteristics".

Hip-hop culture has led to an explosive trend. For example, Wu Yifan Rap of China, a member of the BoF 500 member list, is a harbinger of The.

Hypebeast, founded by Liang Chao, Yoho Kevin media group and Kevin Ma, is shaping the fashion culture aesthetics of Chinese young people.

Along with the rise of native designers, celebrities and media celebrities, a less striking but equally important trend has emerged, that is, the rapid growth of China's local, large-scale and popular fashion brands.

Chinese consumers' fashion market has been occupied by low cost local brands or international luxury brands, with almost no local mid-range prices.

However, in recent years, this has changed with the rise of Chinese brands such as JNBY and Jenny Kim, founded by Li Lin and Kim, including MO&Co..

These two Chinese women, who are full of entrepreneurial spirit, have made a brilliant profit from the market gap of the masstige fashion market, and let them choose the list of Bof 500 for the first time in 2018.

Just as China's economy is changing from export mode to domestic consumption, China's fashion industry is shifting from import brands and talents to the development mode of local consumer market, which develops continuously because of local ideas, creativity and innovative ideas, and may also be exported to all parts of the world.

BoF is not only simply recording this change, but also introducing and encouraging more important Chinese leaders to enter the global stage, thus contributing to and promoting this pformation.

On this basis, we will further assemble these industry leaders to the BoF China Summit to demonstrate their achievements and share more valuable insights.

(pictures are all sourced from the Internet)