LONDON — Designed to help brands accelerate their digital transformation — and pressingly in this coronavirus-hit world — to liquidate stock and bring in a new source of revenue, Luxury Soho was unveiled quietly on April 20.
With a severe industry-wide sales disruption and consumers’ discretionary spend forecast to be cut back, discount retailers are expected to benefit in the post COVID-19 world. Brick-and-mortar outlet operator Value Retail reported a quick bounce back in its China revenue to pre-virus levels, while the Hong Kong-headquartered outlet operator On the List opened a permanent showroom in Shanghai this month.
“Luxury brands have a specific product life cycle. As the main platform for brands’ digital operation in China, Tmall provides solutions for different scenarios,” said Weixiong Hu, vice president of Alibaba Group and general manager of Tmall’s apparel fashion business unit. “In the future, luxury brands can open two different types of stores on Tmall.
Tmall said it hopes this channel can be a gathering place for the fashion-loving but price-sensitive Millennials and Gen Z shoppers. There will be short-form videos, live-streams and product recommendation content from key opinion customers. Top-tier brands, media and influencers will also be able to share fashion information.