Can Fast Fashion Survive the Post-Lock Closure in China?

Although China has been the lifeline for the world’s fastest fashion chains for more than a decade, the market for more diverse – and more challenging – markets such as Zara, Uniclo and H&M is slowly emerging from COVID locks. . Facing high rent increases, general consumer indifference, competition from e-commerce forums and local (and very fast) fashion brands and The popularity of second-hand luxury is on the riseFast fashion brands may be in trouble.

Probably no international fast fashion brand has taken China’s retail change as seriously as H&M, which was a difficult time for the brand. Identified During the Zingang Cotton Controversy in March 2021 – 60 stores (or 12 percent of China’s total) were closed last year. And in 2021. Urban OutfittersAsos and Gap ownership Former Navy He made general out of the market. But even the fastest-growing fashion players have struggled to protect Inditex Extract the three portfolio brands – Bershka, Pool and Bear and Stradivarius – From mainland China, they closed their physical stores earlier this year after closing all physical areas of the market.

The cost of balloons, which are the main cause of global COFID-19 outbreaks and the protection of their environment, is not just what Chinese consumers buy, but how and why. This is the problem facing products in the pricing spectrum, even the world’s largest luxury brands, in the hope of revenue growth in the second half of 2022.

Pisbord’s collaboration with Susan Fang was a success earlier this year. Photo: Peacebird

Basis For Chinese language media, the main problem facing international fast fashion brands is the inability to innovate and improve with target consumers in China. With brands like Zara Raising prices And it has the same fashion – that is, foreign and domestic brands offer the same thing – an increasing number of Chinese consumers are less motivated when they can get the same basics from H&M, Zara, or Uniqlo. low cost. (Or simply buy a second-hand luxury item from many local luxury reseller e-commerce platforms.)

Meanwhile, domestic production has moved rapidly to start Well thought out collaboration And try to add some value-added. For example, the Nintendo-based Peacebird collaborated with a French designer. Coralie Marabelle And Dutch designer Mickey Wormak, as well as local Chinese talents such as Calvin Luo; Xu ZhiAnd Susan Fang. Another 13-piece collection by hot domestic brand SHUSHU / TONG has sold more than 17,000 pieces on Tmall, and the hashtag (# 太平 鸟 神仙 联名) honoring the Peacebird collaboration has nearly 23 million views on the album.

Another major hurdle faced by foreign fast fashion brands is the persistent brand nationalism in China, which is linked to its popularity. Guechao And it was due to driving inside “Cancel” H&M and other brands last summer. Basis A.D. In a 2021 PwC survey of Chinese people aged 18 and over, 37 percent of respondents said they would prefer to buy local Chinese brands, 24 percent preferred foreign brands, and 40 percent were indifferent. And while Zara It was recently released A well-received collaboration with designer Susan Fang for the Chinese market and H&M Worked with. Called a local brand last year, international brands have always had problems with Guochao’s front compared to domestic players.

The demand for spare parts for Chinese consumers is threatening to squeeze more major global fast fashion brands and force them to move to H&M and close down retail outlets, focusing on brands like Inditex’s Massimo Dutti or premium portfolio brands. H&M’s ARKET And COS. The other route is explored by Zara and H&M, which is developing partnerships with local designers and brands as well as pop-ups and social media experiences (such as ARKET’s popular in-store cafes).

It is unlikely that the fast fashion market will disappear in China – the consumer base is simply too big, too affordable, too stylish. However, it will no longer be possible for them to take control of this place as foreigners, such as Uniclo, H&M, Zara and others. In the years to come, local brands will have to work twice as hard to deliver what they can’t afford, in size, or in a critical market.