The "Luxury 2004: the Lure of Asia" conference wrapped up here Thursday, with participants from the world luxury industry expressing their confidence in the Asia-Pacific region, and in China in particular.
   
The two-day conference, organized by the International Herald Tribune, has attracted major players in the world fashion industry including UmBernard Arnault, the chairman of LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton; Ferruccio Ferragamo, the CEO of Salvatore Ferragamo; Christian Blanckaert, the executive vice president of Hermes International.
   
The representatives from the world famous brands had a lot of discussions on China at the conference, expressing their confidence in the country with a fast economic growth and vast population.
   
Arnault noted that Louis Vuitton will open 13 stores in the Chinese mainland by the end of this year, and all their products enjoy robust sales there. After the opening of a Louis Vuitton flagship store in Shanghai, another one in Beijing is to open later.
   
Moreover, Prada is targeting 30 stores in the Chinese mainland by 2008. Giorgio Armani, who opened a store in Shanghai in April, announced direct store sales on the mainland up by 17 percent and plans 20 to 30 stores in the mainland by 2008, when the next Olympic Games will be held in China.
   
Ferruccio Ferragamo noted that he was glad about his company's decision of opening the first store in China in 1994, as the decision brought about good returns.
   
In order to explore the huge Chinese market, many of the company's employees have decided to learn Chinese mandarin, he said.
   
Dickson Poon, the group executive chairman of Dickson Concepts (International) Limited, noted that of the company's 390 stores worldwide, 140 are in the Chinese mainland.
   
He suggested that in order to avoid the heated luxury market competition in big cities like Beijing or Shanghai, the luxury industry could target the mid-sized cities in the Chinese mainland.
   
Suzy Menkes, fashion editor of the paper who also acted as the moderator of the conference, noted that China is viewed as a promising land for the luxury industry. The event itself, she said, demonstrated the world fashion industry's confidence in Asia, which is already the fashion manufacturer for the world.
   
Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Tung Chee Hwa said at the opening of the conference that many of the world's best-known fashion names have established their Asian headquarters or Asian flagship stores in Hong Kong.
   
He noted that global retailers are increasingly using Hong Kong as their platform for developing brand recognition in the region, and especially for penetrating the biggest prize of all - that vast Chinese mainland market of 1.3 billion people.
   
Moreover, CEPA which is Hong Kong's free-trade arrangement with the Chinese mainland, will enable multi-national companies to use Hong Kong to gain faster and greater access to the mainland market.
   
According to statistics, Asia accounts for 40 percent of the world market for luxury brand sales, followed by America and Europe. Market watchers noted that with the saturation of luxury brand sales in Japan, China offers potential as a long-term equivalent of dominant market.
   
This is the first time that the fashion conference, the fourth of its kind, was held in Asia. The previous three were all held in Paris.

(Xinhua News Agency December 3, 2004)