Luxury brands from Rolls Royce, Piaget and Versace to Michael Kors are tapping into the voracious appetite for brand-name goods among China's upper middle class. According to a 2011 McKinsey report, China officially accounts for about 12 per cent of the global luxury goods market, but that’s without taking into account the country’s unofficial economy. A recent report in the New York Times citing Wang Xiaolu, deputy director of the National Economic Research Institute in Beijing, suggests that unofficially, that figure may be much, much higher. Speaking to the Times’ reporter Didi Tatlow, Wang said that recent studies by the Institute showed that average Chinese incomes “haven’t risen as fast as luxury spending,” before adding that this suggests that luxury spending is being fed by less-official sources. With China’s official share of luxury spending expected to grow to 22 per cent by 2015, it’s no wonder everyone is jumping aboard.
Much of luxury's allure comes from the opportunity to share in the cultural heritage associated with a brand, the McKinsey report found. A revered symbol of good luck and prosperity, the dragon lends itself to bold imagery, most obviously and traditionally in the form of jewellery but extending this year to cars and even coffee makers.
Piaget, for example, created more than 20 watches exclusively for its Dragon and Phoenix line, which honours the dragon and its mythical mate. Items from the collection range from 25,000 USD to north of 100,000 USD for the Altiplano Double Jeu, a 43 mm watch in 18-karat white gold set with 78 cut diamonds, with an enamel dial and a white alligator strap.
Shanghai Tang, the Hong Kong-based luxury clothing empire, which has boutiques in Dubai and Kuwait, has chosen to incorporate the dragon motif in its Nespresso Dragon Collection, which includes a shiny red coffee maker, a box to hold Nespresso coffee capsules and a cup-and-saucer set.
Rolls Royce's Bespoke Team took a simpler approach by incorporating the imagery and colours of the year of the dragon in their designs, to put a fresh spin on its classic Phantom. Priced at USD 1.2 million, the limited edition car sold out within 2 months of being announced.
While most of the lines are available only in Asia, dragon enthusiasts in other parts of the world need not despair. Products including Burberry's Red Dragon Collection and Tiffany's Chinese zodiac charms are available globally.
There's even a market for those who don't have the thousands of dollars to spare most of these special items cost. Cartier has done a line of Chinese New Year stationery with a dragon motif for 75 USD while just 18 USD can get you a Hello Kitty 2012 Year of the Dragon gold compact from cosmetics dealer Sephora.
