Kering’s Richard Ginori Joins With Secoo for Online China Exclusive

PORCELAIN IN CHINA: The Kering-owned Italian porcelain-maker Richard Ginori has struck a deal with Secoo, one of China’s largest premium e-commerce platforms, with an eye to growing business in the region, WWD has learned.

An announcement is expected on Tuesday.

Richard Ginori, which has been part of Kering since 2013 and which counts Gucci designer Alessandro Michele as creative director, will open a store on Secoo in an exclusive online collaboration for the Chinese market.

Secoo said the timing of the partnership is aligned with its strategy of becoming a leading premium lifestyle platform as well as a luxury e-commerce site. The site already carries a number of high-end European brands including Versace, Roger Vivier, Mr&Mrs Italy, Gucci and Rolex.

The site, which is listed on the Nasdaq, also provides services such as personal shopping, bespoke travel and personalized education. It also prides itself on strict authentication procedures and quality controls for its products, which range from in-season luxury merchandise to vintage and collectors’ items.

The new deal with Ginori, which was founded near Florence in 1735, will allow customers to buy a range of porcelain directly from the Secoo, and have the option of collecting their purchases from one of nine Secoo “offline experience centers” in nine Chinese cities.

“The entry of Richard Ginori carries out our business strategy of further tapping into China’s robust luxury consumer market demand,” said Li Rixue, founder and chief executive officer of Secoo. “We are confident that we are well-positioned to capture emerging opportunities driven by the consumption upgrade in China and to unlock value to our customers.”

Secoo is China’s largest premium e-commerce platform, as measured by gross merchandise volume, and has an integrated online and off-line platform that comprises Secoo.com, mobile applications and offline experience centers. The company said it offers 300,000 stockkeeping units, covering more than 3,000 global and domestic brands.

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