Luxury sector anxious to win back chinese tourists

19-01-23

The resumption of travel in China with the end of restrictions is big news for the luxury sector, although it has managed to make up for its absence, thanks mainly to the Americans, who have outperformed their pre-pandemic results.

"The reopening of China is one of the key issues for the luxury sector in 2023," says RBC in a note, which revises up its growth forecast for the sector to 11% by 2023, up from 7% previously.

Luxury brands are not wrong: to celebrate the Chinese New Year this Sunday, this year under the sign of the water rabbit, Burberry has created a collection with a rabbit as the main character, Dior a "year of the rabbit" watch, Bottega Venetta placed a sign on the Chinese wall wishing a happy new year in Mandarin...

Before the pandemic, the Chinese clientele represented "one third of luxury purchases in the world and two thirds of these purchases were made outside China," Joëlle de Montgolfier, director of the luxury division of Bain and Company, recalls to AFP. At the time, the luxury sector represented 281 billion dollars.