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Swedish style arrives in Beijing - after a while

By Michelle Zhang | April 30, 2009, Thursday | Print Edition

SINCE the Swedish fashion giant H&M launched its first shop on the Chinese mainland in Shanghai two years ago, it has opened 14 shops in southeast China. Last week, it finally landed in Beijing. Michelle Zhang finds out why there was a delay.

On a chilly, rainy Thursday morning, more than 600 people waited quietly in line on Qianmen Avenue, a newly developed shopping area in the center of Beijing, for the opening of H&M's first shop in the capital city.

Some probably felt they had been waiting too long. Since the Swedish fashion giant launched its first shop on the Chinese mainland in Shanghai two years ago, it has opened 14 shops in southeast China, including some in small cities like Suzhou and Wuxi in Jiangsu Province. Last week, it finally landed in Beijing. A star-studded gala event was held on April 22, the night before the opening, spotlighted by a 589.5-meter red carpet - a record length in China - rolled out along Qianmen Avenue.

"Best location has been our establishment principle since 1947," says Lex Keijser, country manager of H&M China, when asked why it has taken so long for the company to open a store in Beijing.

"Our stores should always have the best location in a city or in a mall. Sometimes the right opportunity and a good location make us open first in one city then in another."

Year 2009 is the "year of Beijing" for the high street fashion house, which has so far found three perfect locations in the capital city. Apart from the Qianmen Avenue store, two more H&M stores are scheduled to open this year - one at Joy City in Xidan (opening today), and the other at Glory Mall in Chongwenmen to be opened in early fall.

"Qianmen Avenue is a newly developed shopping area in the very heart of the cultural capital," Keijser explains. "Our shop there is a street store, and it will be our flagship store in Beijing."

The one at Joy City, a mature shopping center in Beijing, will help gather more young customers, while the one at Glory Mall will be a full-concept store with a sales area of 2,000 square meters.

More and more high street fashion brands are coming to China nowadays. At the same time, some local companies are launching their own brands, copying H&M's marketing strategy. The question is: What does H&M think of the competition? How does it set itself apart from the others?

"There is competition everywhere," he says. "In fact, H&M sees itself as the biggest competitor. Also, we see it as an advantage to be geographically close to our competitors - it increases the popularity of the whole area. Our Huaihai Road store in Shanghai and its surroundings is a good example."

After H&M opened its four-story flagship store in Shanghai in April, 2007, French beauty retailer Sephora, European fashion chains Zara and C&A all opened branches in the same area.

The world economy is gloomy but apparently H&M's business in China is unaffected. Its turnover in China last year amounted up to 881 million SEK (US$108 million), compared with 482 million SEK a year before.

"China is still a new market in our global map, but it is certainly a market with huge potential," Keijser says. "It is such a big country and our commitment is long-term. We are still learning and fine tuning every day."

In Shanghai, H&M opened its fifth store at Wanda Life One Plaza in Yangpu District last week. The sixth will be launched tomorrow in Channel One, a new shopping complex in Putuo District.
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