波司登借势伦敦进军高端市场

London has become such a hotspot for Chinese tourists seeking luxury brands that the first fashion retailer from China has opened a West End store to raise its profile back home.

伦敦已经成为中国游客购买奢侈品牌的热门地区，因此中国男装品牌波司登(Bosideng)在伦敦西区开了一家门店以提高其在国内的品牌形象，这是第一家在伦敦开店的中国服装品牌。

Bosideng, the Chinese menswear brand, launched its first UK store on Friday close to Bond Street. The exercise is less about attracting British shoppers than reflecting the growing international appeal of the British fashion scene.

波司登于上周五开张的首家英国门店毗邻伦敦邦德街(Bond Street)。波司登此举与其说是为了吸引英国顾客，还不如说是反映了英国时装界日益增长的国际吸引力。

“Our ambition is to be a well-known brand – and London is the fashion centre of the world, said Gao Dekang, its wealthy founder and chairman. With nearly 11,000 Bosideng shops across China, Mr Gao describes the retailer as being “the Marks and Spencer of China. In making the journey to Europe, the business has sought to move its image upmarket. It hopes to rival brands such as Hugo Boss.

波司登财力雄厚的创始人、董事长高德康表示：“我们的抱负是成为一家知名品牌，而伦敦是全球时尚中心。高德康将在中国拥有近1.1万家店铺的波司登描述为“中国的玛莎百货(Marks and Spencer)。波司登进军欧洲市场，寻求打造高端形象。它希望挑战雨果博斯(Hugo Boss)等品牌。

Bosideng has spent ￡30m – a small slice of its gross profit last year of ￡418m – on its glitzy Mayfair store, the upper floor of which contains its “European headquarters, signalling the extent of its ambitions. It is now planning to open in Italy next year in partnership with a large Italian company, and is close to buying a store on Fifth Avenue in New York.

波司登已斥资3000万英镑（仅为其去年4.18亿英镑毛利的一小部分）打造这家位于伦敦梅费尔区的奢华旗舰店，其“欧洲总部就位于该店上层，展示出该公司的宏伟抱负。波司登目前计划与一家意大利大公司合作，明年在意大利开设门店，而且它很快就会收购纽约第五大道的一家店铺。

By upgrading its image in this way, Mr Gao hopes it can raise its status in the all-important eyes of Chinese visitors to the UK – rather than British shoppers – in the hope they will shop in its stores when they return home.

高德康希望通过这种方式提升品牌形象，提高波司登在赴英中国游客（而非英国顾客）眼中的地位——这一点极为重要——从而让他们回国后去其店铺购物。

“This is all about flashing the cash and showing that you’re a player, says Paul French, chief China analyst at Mintel. “This is aimed at the Chinese abroad and is about trying to appear like an international brand even when you’re not an international brand. It is not really trying to sell anything to anyone in the UK.

Mintel首席中国市场分析师保罗·弗伦奇(Paul French)表示：“波司登此举旨在炫富，表明自己是一家奢侈品牌。它是做给海外中国游客看的，试图在自己还不是国际品牌之际显得像一家国际品牌。波司登其实并不是真的在努力向英国人卖东西。

He said the Chinese milk company Yili had acted for similar reasons during the London Olympics when it advertised to Chinese people, in Chinese, on the side of the capital’s buses.

弗伦奇表示，中国牛奶企业伊利在伦敦奥运会期间的举措基于类似理由——它在伦敦巴士车身上用中文向中国人打广告。

Other Chinese companies are following Bosideng’s London venture closely. Mr Gao says he had already received visits from five Chinese retailers, who were all interested in opening in Britain and wanted to know more about his experiences.

其他中国企业紧跟波司登的脚步。高德康表示，有5家中国零售商已经拜访过他，这些企业全都有意在伦敦开店，希望向他了解更多情况。

Tom Troubridge, chairman of the China business group at PwC, says the professional services firm had experienced a surge in interest from Chinese companies looking at the British market.

普华永道(PwC)中国业务集团主席汤姆·特鲁布里奇(Tom Troubridge)表示，中国企业进军英国市场的兴趣大增。

“Inquiries are substantially up, he says. “We have two or three a week, whereas five years ago it was two or three a month.

他称：“询问此类事宜的企业明显多了起来。目前我们每周会接到两三宗此类咨询，而在5年前一个月才有两三宗。

“We are seeing interest in high-end brands, from motor cars to handbags, ladies’ fashion and alcohol, he says. “It is not because they think there are fantastic growth opportunities in the UK – it is about finding products and services they can take back to China.

特鲁布里奇表示：“我们发现相关兴趣聚焦于从摩托车到手袋、女装和酒的各类高端品牌，这并非是因为它们认为英国存在极佳的增长机会，而是为了寻找能够带回国内的产品和服务。

Chinese companies are hunting opportunities to target wealthier consumers in their domestic market, vying alongside western designer brands to gain the affections of China’s growing middle class.

中国企业正寻找机会将目标对准本国市场较为富裕的消费者，同时与西方设计品牌竞争，以赢得中国日益壮大的中产阶级的青睐。

However, its domestic brands tend to lack the advantage in design, creativity and innovation that British companies have, says Mr Troubridge.

然而，特鲁布里奇表示，中国国内品牌往往在设计、创意和新锐性方面不如英国企业。

Brand heritage is important to the Chinese luxury consumers’ perception of quality. This helps to explain why – unusually for the British high street – 90 per cent of Bosideng’s clothes are made in Britain or Europe.

品牌底蕴对中国奢侈品消费者的品质认知非常重要。这有助于解释为何波司登90%的服装在英国或欧洲制作——这对英国时装界来说颇不寻常。

However, retailers are not the only businesses seeking to cater for Chinese people overseas.

然而，并非只有零售商寻求迎合海外的中国游客。

Mr Troubridge says one Chinese client had instructed his firm to help buy a UK hotel chain so that it could cater for the expected rise in Chinese tourists, who might be more comfortable in a Chinese-owned hotel.

特鲁布里奇表示，一位中国客户要求普华永道帮助在英国收购一家连锁酒店，以迎合预期中的中国游客的增长。中国游客在中国人开的酒店中可能感觉更为自在。