Diane von Furstenberg: Journey of a Dress Exhibition

Pace Beijing holds exhibition for DVF.

Starting from 2 April to 14 May, Pace Gallery in Beijing is hosting Diane von Furstenberg: Journey of a Dress, an exhibition that celebrates and tells the story of the illustrious Ms. Von Furstenberg.

Continue reading »

Hotel Rooms: Aman at Summer Place, Beijing

Amanresorts’ first foray into China.

Amanresorts‘ has opened their first resort in the heart of Beijing at its most iconic site, steps away from UNESCO World Heritage sites, the Forbidden City and the Temple of Heaven.

The Aman at Summer Palace inhabits a series of historic pavilions that dates over a hundred years old. Traditional craftsmen and preservation experts were called on to painstakingly restored and re-created the once regal and traditional Qing-dynasty imperial complex to its former glory.  The final result, a masterpiece resort in the courtyard architectural style of the Palace with elegant Ming-Dynasty that pays homage to China’s Imperial past. The resort holds 51 rooms and suites, offering guests a taste of what it would have been like to live as a guest awaiting an audience with the Empress Dowager at the turn of the century.

Continue reading »

H&M Doing Well in 2009, Beijing Store Coming this Spring

H&M looks to be recession proof with new jobs and a new China store.

With all the doom and gloom forecast for this year, we wanted to share the good news from H&M. The Swedish retailer who has 4 outlets in Hong Kong has just released their 2008 earnings report and they look just great, proving that smart management and a great product line with innovative marketing campaigns are recession proof, but we digress.

Highlights from their Full Year Report that ended November 30, 2008:

• Profit after financial items for the fourth quarter was SEK 7,114 m (6,221), an increase of 14 percent.
• Sales in the first two H&M stores in Tokyo surpassed the company’s high expectations and were H&M’s most successful store openings ever.
• The outlook for the future expansion and the development opportunities remains positive. H&M will create 6,000 to 7,000 new job opportunities during 2009.
• For the financial year 2008/2009 a net contribution of 225 stores is planned.
• The company is preparing the first store opening in Bejing during the spring 2009.
• Sales in January 2009 expected to increase by 8 percent in local currencies compared to the same month last year.
• The total number of stores in the Group as per 30 November 2008 thus amounted to 1,738 (1,522), of which 18 are franchise stores.

Interested to read the rest click here. It seems that H&M may have some challenges ahead of them in 2009 is strong enough to weather the current economic tsunami.

American Apparel Comes to China

Controversial U.S. brand to open 4 stores in China – starting in Beijing!

It’s almost like a dare, isn’t it? American Apparel, after being delayed for months and missing Olympics face-time, is getting into China:

Continue reading »

Beijing Apple Store Opens July 19

Yes, the Mainland gets one before Hong Kong.

Looks like Apple is also jumping at the Olympics promotional opportunities and opening their first China store in Beijing.

The Apple store is located in Sanlitun, formerly a quiet, leafy neighborhood adjacent to one of the city’s diplomatic quarters. In recent years, Sanlitun turned into a lively—and often rowdy—nightlife district known by locals as “Bar Street.” As part of preparations for the Olympics, Beijing authorities worked to spruce up the neighborhood, driving out the drug dealers that often approached foreigners on the street and knocking down apartment blocks to clear the way for a new shopping center.

Like other Apple stores, the Beijing store will give Chinese consumers a chance to try out Apple products or seek help from company representatives at the shop’s Genius Bar. The store will also host events aimed at bringing potential customers into the store.

Apple already has a Chinese-language store online, but this is a big coup for Apple in China – it must be because of those 400,000 iPhones that were found to be used on China Mobile. talk about using the grey market to test market your brand.