Booming fashion brand MCM is to open pop up shops and boutiques in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Saipan for the first time.

 

In extracts from a forthcoming exclusive interview with TRBusiness, MCM Travel Retail Director Nicolas Roptin said that the ‘retail progress’ of the brand has continued strongly into 2014 for the fast growing German luxury brand’s bags and small leather goods.

 

He said the stand out markets have continued to be South Korea, Thailand and China, as the brand’s popularity with Mainland Chinese customers continues to grow very strongly: “We are going to start with two pop up shops in Hong Kong with DFS. These will be in a general merchandise shop in Hong Kong Airport and downtown in Sun Plaza in Tsim Sha Tsui about the end of April.

 

“Also, we are going to do a pop up shop with DFS in Scott’s Walk, Singapore, and with DFS Saipan around mid-year.”

 

Meanwhile, as part of efforts to provide Chinese customers with a high quality shopping experience, MCM has opened a new store that is replacing the previous two locations at the Lotte Main downtown outlet.

 

 

The MCM boutique pictured this year at Incheon International Airport with the Korea Tourism Organisation (KTO).

 

 

MCM: MONTHLY SALES OF $3M WITH LOTTE

Monthly sales of MCM items were exceeding $3m from the previous two stores earlier in the year. The top selling month to date at the time of writing was last October when goods worth $4m were sold in the main store. Backpacks and handbags are also popular, with the average price for MCM items ranging from $700 to $1,000.

 

[According TRBusiness’ recent interviews with senior management at Lotte, MCM’s sales were up 82.8% in Lotte’s downtown stores last year. The brand also accounted for 6% of KTO’s total fashion sales revenue at Incheon International Airport-Ed].

 

MCM is popular in South Korea and rapidly gaining popularity in China, Taiwan, Japan and in south east Asia, supported by brand endorsement from South Korean K-pop and K-drama celebrities. The fast growing brand has 13 travel retail shops and other duty free sales locations outside of South Korea, in addition to opening boutiques in all major downtown duty free shops in South Korea and at Incheon International Airport during the past two years.

 

The brand is also entering Taiwan’s duty free market this year for the first time. Roptin explained that the company has agreements with Ever Rich Duty Free to open a boutique in the new Ever Rich Kinmen island duty free store that will cater mainly to Mainland Chinese visitors. It will also open pop up shops in Ever Rich’s downtown stores in Taipei.

 

“We will open our own shop, a 50sq m boutique, in Ever Rich’s new Kinmen downtown duty free store which they are opening in May. We have just confirmed we are opening mid-year. We are working on our boutique design,” Roptin said.

 

“We are opening a pop up shop in July in Ever Rich’s Mingquan East Road downtown shop in Taipei for three months and then a pop up shop in their new Neihu downtown Taipei store at the end of 2014 for six months. Our target is to have MCM shops and boutiques in all key travel retail locations.”

 

 

The ‘photo corner’ in Dongwha Duty Free’s downtown store in Seoul, South Korea.

 

 

MALE PRODUCTS ARE ALSO POPULAR

MCM’s iconic backpacks and women’s shopper bags are among the most popular travel retail products at present, selling in a range of colours and materials. Small leather goods, including wallets and long purses are becoming popular and sell in canvas designs as well in leather.

 

“We are selling more products for men – some items are unisex, including passport holders, business card holders and belts in different colours. Men also go for our classic design, the Visetos MCM logo design,” Roptin said.

 

Sales have risen in strong double-digit figures in a number of MCM’s key Asian travel retail locations this year, including Thailand where the brand has four downtown and airport shop-in-shop and boutique outlets.

 

Sales figures are understood to have grown strongly in MCM’s China Duty Free store outlet in Sanya on Hainan Island in January and February, while sales in Singapore’s Changi Airport T2 have grown more than three-fold during the past three years.

 

TEN MORE SHOPS UNDER DISCUSSION

Discussions are now underway to open more than 10 new pop up shops, boutiques and other retail positions in various countries during 2015, according to Roptin. In China, for example, talks are underway to extend MCM’s travel retail presence in Beijing and Shanghai, and to enter new geographical markets, including Shenzhen and Guangzhou in Guangdong Province, and Haikou in Hainan.

 

MCM’s next duty free shop opening in China is expected to be a boutique in China Duty Free’s Haitang Bay Store in Sanya, Hainan. Work installing the boutique is due to be completed in time for the outlet to open in August during the peak summer tourist season.

 

“In China MCM is popular everywhere,” Roptin commented. “”Our travel retail presence is well spread and in the domestic market we are looking at second-tier cities.”

 

TOP IMAGE: MCM’s previous crowded boutique in Lotte Duty Free’s flagship downtown Seoul duty free department store. (All photos: David Hayes, copyright: TRB).