Luxury brands sold in China by South African-owned Swiss-based conglomerate, Richemont, have landed a significant promotional push following the signing of a joint venture (JV) with global e-commerce giant Alibaba.
The deal has been hailed as ground-breaking by both companies and Alibaba, apart from providing support around the tech-infrastructure and marketing requirements of the JV, will also freight the goods to China.
The JV was made possible following the recent acquisition by Richemont of e-commerce entity YOOX Net-a-Porter (YNAP).
Business Day reported that prior to the YNAP purchase the company had had a sizeable presence in the Far East market, recording sales of €2.13bn in the five months to August.
After the deal Richemont experienced a steep upward curve in sales of almost 20%.
Speaking from his home in Stellenbosch, Richemont chair Johann Rupert said the company was serious about digging deeper into the Chinese market which, according to predictions, will account for 25% of global luxury brand purchases by 2025.
In addition to widening the Asian reach of luxury brands Mont Blanc, Lancel, Van Cleef & Arpels, Baume & Mercier, and Jaeger-LeCoultre, the JV also heralds a multi-pronged approach that will see the launch of several new platforms as well as Alibaba’s increased involvement in the logistics arena.
