Ralph Lauren CEO Patrice Louvet has promised to open a store a week in China. Speaking at The New York Times Luxury Conference in Hong Kong last week, Louvet said stores “are crucial for projecting the company as aspirational” which is why Ralph Lauren China is committed to expanding its network despite widespread concerns over an economic slowdown.
“We concluded that we are in the dream business,” Louvet told the conference. “So to some extent, we think we are closer to a company like Disney than we are to other apparel brands … we don’t believe we are just selling stuff, we are selling a dream, a lifestyle, we are offering worlds that customers can be a part of.
“[So] for us to provide those experiences, we need both the digital world and the brick-and-mortar world.”
That is part of the philosophy behind the launch of the Ralph cafe, the brand’s first coffee shop, which opened recently in Hong Kong.
In the latest quarter, Ralph Lauren’s sales in Greater China rose more than 20 per cent, with the mainland growth rate double that.
Ralph Lauren is targeting $500 million in revenue from Greater China within five years.