American fashion brand Tory Burch on Tuesday opened a flagship store on Tmall Luxury Pavilion, Alibaba Group’s dedicated channel for luxury and premium goods.
Chinese consumers can now find Tory Burch’s clothing, shoes, bags, accessories and watch collections on the Pavilion – the label’s first third-party e-commerce store in the country, it said in a statement.
To mark the opening, the brand exclusively debuted seven items on the platform, including its Katya Tunic Dress, Ella Printed Logo Tote and Poppy Canvas Espadrille, as well as products from its Chinese Valentine’s Day capsule collection. The capsule includes four handbags, a card case and the brand’s signature ballet flats in pink and red.
Tory Burch also released an interactive tool for consumers to share their sentiments with one another on the romantic holiday, which falls on Aug. 7 this year. Using the augmented reality-powered “AR Buy+” function on Mobile Taobao, consumers can scan any heart-shape in their surroundings to access a special page that allows them to send personalized letters to their loved ones. Meanwhile, from July 26 to Aug. 9, the fashion brand will launch a Chinese Valentine’s Day-themed pop-up installation in China’s northern Harbin city.
“To have an iconic brand like Tory Burch join Tmall is a testament to the platform’s ability to attract and engage with the 700 million-plus consumers on our platforms for premium fashion and lifestyle brands from around the world,” said Jessica Liu, general manager of Tmall Fashion and Luxury. “We look forward to partnering with them closely to bring special products and creative activations to Chinese consumers.”
The flagship opening comes as Tory Burch expands its retail footprint across the country. The brand now operates 34 stores in China, including five new boutiques launched this year, including in Guangzhou, Hangzhou, Nanning and Chengdu.
Launched in 2017, Tmall Luxury Pavilion now offers over 115 brands, ranging from apparel and beauty items to watches and luxury cars, including Chanel, Bottega Veneta, Valentino, Alexander McQueen, Burberry, Tod’s, Versace, Stella McCartney, Marni, Moschino, Gentle Monster, Michael Kors, MCM, Breitling, Maserati, LVMH-owned Rimowa, Guerlain, Givenchy, Tag Heuer and Zenith. Tmall said it wants to double that number by the end of the fiscal year next March.
