International brand women's Iger: optimistic about the Chinese consumer market

The relationship between the fate of the Iger Group and the Chinese market is growing closer

One day in March, Pierre Pilchior, the 73-year-old founder of the Etam Group, strolled across the street in Shanghai and spent 12 hours from 8:30 in the morning to 8:30 in the evening.

Then, Pilchior told reporters: "The demand for the Chinese apparel market is still very strong and we will increase more investment."

The founder of the Iger brand was not Pilchior, but he promoted Iger. After the success, Tammy of the Agg Group, 1.2.3 for the high-end market, and Undiz, which was founded in 2007, were released.

Pilchior comes to China on average four times a year. The fate of the Iger Group has become increasingly closer to the Chinese market. Since Iger Group opened its first store in China in 1994, over 15 years, AIG Group's stores in China (including counters) have exceeded 2100, while the AIG Group has only 3,000 stores worldwide. The Chinese market has become one of the main sources of profits for the Iger Group.

The Eiger Group semi-annual report shows that in the first half of 2008, Iger's sales in the Chinese market was 78.2 million euros, gross profit was 40.4 million euros, and the Chinese market accounted for 16% of total sales and 14% of total profits. After the international financial crisis took place in 2008, the importance of the Chinese market to the Iger Group has become more prominent.

Pilchior said that after the financial crisis, the Chinese market has suffered little impact. However, in the first half of 2008, Iger's performance in the Chinese market was not good-looking.

Aiger's semi-annual report shows that in the first half of last year, the sales and gross profit of the Iger brand fashion China market decreased by 25.9% and 28.7% respectively compared with 2007. According to Pilchior, it was the self-declaration of the management of AIG China that led to the decline of its performance in the first half of 2008.

“Iger has been very successful for some time since he entered China. It can be said that it has reached a peak, but the market is changing, and competitors are changing faster than we are.” Pilchior said that this is Iger who changed China last year. The root cause of district management.

In the Chinese market, Zara and H&M are strong competitors for Iger. Pilchior said that H&M has great pressure on Iger, but he thinks Iger’s strength lies in: “We have come to China for 15 years. There are not many companies."

In China's garment industry, there have been no internationally-influential clothing brands. Zheng Yonggang, chairman of the Shanshan Group's board of directors, once stated that Chinese garment companies have not yet been able to build their own international brands, so he chose to acquire foreign brands in order to enter the international market. Market, Pilchior does not agree with this.

“Some of the existing brands in China have only 5-10 years of history. Nowadays, some international big brands have spent a long time before becoming famous. Like Zara, it was born in Europe in the 1970s. In about 15 years, French talents began to accept. Only in more time will Chinese clothing accumulate its own international brand, said Pilchior.

Why do Chinese companies rush to enter the international market? This problem has puzzled Pilchior. He said: “The Chinese market is very large. Why not develop the Chinese market first? The cost of going abroad to expand markets is higher. If you go to France or other countries in Europe, the cost may be 10 times that of China.”