Can ‘autocratic’ Chinese owner Shaw-Lan Wang give Lanvin a second life?
Wang has decided to ‘inject fresh cash into the label by the year-end’
This article was written by Yiling Pan and was originally published in Jing Daily
A great number of high-end European luxury brands such as Gucci, Saint Laurent, Hermès, and Dior are having substantial success in the Chinese market.
However, Lanvin, France’s oldest high-fashion brand, is struggling.
Back in the late 2000s and early 2010s, Lanvin was one of the world’s hip luxury fashion brands.
From fashion professionals and retailers, to global celebrities, everyone was truly in love with the designs of Alber Elbaz, the creative director of Lanvin at the time.
Chinese consumers were no different. In a 2015 interview with Chinese domestic fashion media outlet Luxe.co, Shaw-Lan Wang, who owns 75 per cent of the company, said the brand had achieved 30 to 40 per cent of sales growth in that market.
Wang pointed out that this high growth rate was achieved when the country embarked on a nationwide anti-corruption campaign, which banned extravagant spending and luxury gifting culture associated with government officials and hurt the business of foreign luxury brands dramatically.
The brand has actually been in deep financial distress for almost three years, with an apparent lack of distinct creative design to capture the attention of global luxury shoppers in a highly competitive market.