In the middle of November, Shanghai has entered the early winter. The morning breeze is clear and sunny on the banks of the Huangpu River.
In the Yicang Art Museum, which is built along the river, pieces of jewelry and watches shine brightly under the reflection of the lights. The treasures from the Italian jewelry house Bulgari attract the attention of every Chinese audience, and seem to echo one of the themes of Bulgari's Mediterranea High Jewellery and Watch Collection: "East Meets West".
Caption: Jean-Christophe Babin, global CEO of Bulgari, an Italian fine jewelry and watch brand, sits on a sky-blue sofa in a lounge next to the exhibition space of the Wind of Southern Italy, reminiscing about his first visit to China 43 years ago, as he looks at the barges slowly sailing along the Huangpu River.
In 1980, Babin decided to celebrate his newly earned master's degree with a trip around the world. After visiting Hong Kong, he set foot in Shanghai with great curiosity. "Although there are a lot of people in Shanghai, only Nanjing Road is slightly prosperous. The First Department Store is one of the few high-rise buildings. Pudong, where we are today, had nothing at that time."
Over the next 40 years, Babin and China have forged an indissoluble bond. As backpackers, he and his wife have been to Harbin to see ice sculptures, eat hot pot in Chengdu, explore the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, and feel the bright sunshine in the south of Caiyun. In 2000, Babin entered the luxury industry, serving as CEO of TAG Heuer and then Bulgari. With the booming economy of China, the Chinese market has also become a must for international high-end consumer goods brands, "Before 2020, I would come to China three or four times a year. ”
Caption: Jean-Christophe Babin, CEO of Bulgari, embarked on a return trip to China in February this year. During the Shanghai International Import Expo, babin, on behalf of Bulgari, signed a memorandum of cooperation with the Haikou Comprehensive Bonded Zone, which not only further serves the growing duty-free market in Hainan, but also uses this as a new entry point to continue to explore the Chinese market and meet the diverse needs of consumers.
"The most important market".
"The Chinese market is our most important market. Chinese customers are also our largest customer group. ”Babin said to Wall Street"For many industries, not just high-end consumer goods, China will continue to be an important growth engine. ”
In 1884, the Greek silversmith Sotirio Bulgari founded the Bulgari brand in Rome, Italy. After more than 100 years of development, Bulgari has grown into a high-end consumer goods brand with five major businesses: jewelry, watches, accessories, perfumes and hotels. In 2011, Bulgari was added to the portfolio of the French luxury goods giant LVMH, and in the years that followed, it grew rapidly to become one of the best-performing brands in the LVMH group.
Caption: Mediterranea Mediterranean High Jewellery Emerald Lotus NecklaceIn 2004, Bulgari set up a counter at the Peninsula Hotel in Beijing to kick off the Italian brand's journey to China. Today, Bulgari has built more than 100 boutiques in major cities in China, including Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan. In addition to its jewellery business, Bulgari also operates two boutique hotels in Beijing and Shanghai.
"In the next 3-5 years, Bulgari will expand further in China and strive to open more boutiques in more cities," he saidBabin said,"Next year we will open two more boutiques in Shanghai."
Caption: Bvlgari, the Italian jeweller Bvlgari China, unveiled its façade at Hang Lung Plaza in Shanghai. On the basis of inheriting the classic aesthetic elements of Bulgari, the new *** draws inspiration from the main store of Bulgari on Via Condotti in Rome, and integrates the local culture of Shanghai to present a unique Art Deco style. The design of ** continues to practice the concept of environmental protection, using brass, recyclable glass and other environmentally friendly materials to create a sense of high jewelry, and the jade-like green façade interprets the exquisite and transparent charming effect, constituting a beautiful scenery in Shanghai.
According to Babin, before 2020, 70% of Chinese customers chose to buy Bulgari products overseas due to tax rates and other reasons. Since the beginning of this year, despite the resumption of outbound travel, Chinese customers still choose to buy more high-end consumer goods in China. "In terms of buying regions, the buying behavior of Chinese customers is more balanced than before. With the further resumption of outbound travel, the proportion of domestic purchases may drop to 60% or 50%, but this is not a small increase compared to before the pandemic. ”
Behind this shift is the convergence of pricing of Bulgari products at home and abroad. "Even taking into account tariffs, the price of Bulgari products in mainland China** is less than 5% higher than in Hong Kong. In the past, the price of the same product in China may be 25% higher than that abroad. ”Babin said.
For cities without brick-and-mortar stores, Bulgari relies on e-commerce platforms to reach a growing consumer base. In addition to the official website, Bulgari has a WeChat mini-program, Tmall, and JD.com, but for now, it seems that the main consumers of watches and jewelry are still more focused on the offline boutique experience.
"Double-digit growth".
When asked if the importance of the Chinese market would be reduced in the future, Babin said that everyone is particularly sensitive to the challenges facing their own country's economy. But in fact, Europe, the Middle East and other regions may need to deal with all kinds of conflicts;Inflation in the United States is high, and it may soon be necessary to raise taxes to solve the debt problem.
"The absolute growth rate of China's economy is still relatively high," he saidBabin said. "This year, we still have double-digit growth in revenue from Chinese consumers, which is a very positive sign. ”
In Babin's view, there are many world-class shopping malls in China, and excellent hardware and good service provide consumers with a first-class shopping experience, which is essential for the continued growth of China's high-end consumer goods industry.
Caption: Bulgari China***Like Bulgari, many high-end consumer goods brands have high hopes for India. After all, India has a large educated population and impressive economic growth. However, poor infrastructure is still a bottleneck for India's development, and the high-end consumer goods industry is no exception.
Due to the lack of a large shopping mall, Bulgari opened its second boutique in India in October this year. In 2014, Bulgari opened its first boutique in India with the opening of India's first shopping mall in Delhi. Although Bulgari did well in India, it took a decade for India's second shopping mall to open in Mumbai. "India is like China 20 years ago. One day, Bulgari may have 40 boutiques in India, but it will take a while. ”
"Unique Challenges".
However, the fast-growing Chinese market has its own unique challenges.
"In China, if you do it right, you win a lot. But if you make the wrong choice, you will also lose badly,"Babin said. "Western high-end consumer goods have only been experienced for one generation in China, unlike in Europe and the United States, where there are several generations of brand recognition, and consumers may change their preferences overnight. ”
There is a certain age difference between Bulgari's Chinese customers and European customers, and the Chinese market has a relatively younger consumer base. For these young consumers, Bulgari hopes to resonate with its customers through the brand's values, in addition to the exquisite design and European craftsmanship.
Caption: Mediterranea's High Jewellery Mystery Watch"We're probably the only jewelry manufacturer in Europe that relies on geothermal and solar energy, and the packaging we use for our products is all plastic ......These dimensions are something we rarely mentioned before, but now we keep emphasizing them," says Babin, "Today's consumers are not just buying a high-end consumer product, but also a community of like-minded users and the values that the brand represents." ”
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