Chinese tourism recovery: what opportunities for luxury?
In China, the lifting of restrictions just over a month ago should boost demand in the global luxury retail market. But several unknowns remain. Will Chinese tourists prefer to shop at home? Will they fly again to travel and consume abroad? Here is an update on the new behaviors of the Chinese population after these three years of confinement.
After a long time under drastic restrictions, China’s economy is slowly recovering. Its 1.4 billion inhabitants will finally be able to regain a semblance of freedom, and at the same time, resume their consumption habits. But some questions arise. Taxes on luxury goods being very high, the Chinese favored foreign purchases until the pandemic. But with the rise of Hainan Island, China’s duty free paradise, one wonders what direction the population will take. Will they now focus on domestic shopping or will they start to focus on overseas consumption again?
Last week, the share prices of luxury brands jumped. And this after Beijing announced that it would ease travel restrictions from the second week of January. This will allow Chinese tourists to travel again to shopping malls around the world.
But some analysts and luxury houses are skeptical about the immediate return of Chinese travelers to the West. The cause? Some airlines have yet to fully resume operations. And luxury brands, having lost a significant part of their Chinese clientele, have decided to invest more in the shopping experience in China.
This is notably the case of Hermès, which last week opened a new boutique in the city of Nanjing. The French group had already established itself in the country since 2010 with the opening of 27 outlets.
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Featured photo : ©Reuters
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