Chanel touches down on Tmall with promising pre-sales

By

Adrien Communier

Published
Jul 11, 2019

Launched in 2017 by Chinese e-commerce conglomerate Alibaba, the Tmall Luxury Pavilion has since become an inevitable stop on the journey of any brand hoping to boost its presence on the Chinese market. And despite its misgivings about online retail, Chanel is no exception to this rule. 

In this context, the arrival of Chanel Beauty on Tmall looks like a step in the right direction for the French luxury house. Up until now, the brand's policy on e-commerce, a channel that Chanel only uses to sell beauty and fragrance, had meant that Asian consumers had to use the label's official site to buy its products. 

The brand's launch on the Chinese platform has been split into two phases, with next month seeing Chanel's complete skincare, makeup and fragrance lines land at Tmall Luxury Pavilion.

Pre-sales, however, began on 5 July. "In only three days of launching its pre-sales campaign, Chanel’s store has attracted thousands of followers. We look forward to partnering with this world-class luxury brand, to explore even more digital innovations at the forefront of luxury e-commerce," said Mike Hu, general manager for consumer goods at Tmall. 

In 2018, Chanel's growth was driven by the Asia-Pacific region, which currently accounts for 42.4% of the French label's revenues. Sales in the region shot up 19.9% over the course of the year, while the company's overall global growth was 10.5%. 

Tmall Luxury Pavilion currently hosts 114 brands in categories including apparel (Valentino, Burberry), luxury cars (Maserati), cosmetics (La Mer, Giorgio Armani Beauty, Tom Ford Beauty) and accessories (Rimowa, Tod's).