China continued to dominate new store openings in 2022, according to the Savills Global Luxury Retail report, which also noted that the wider Asia region increased its global share of new store openings last year.
In 2022, there was an 11 per cent increase in new store openings globally on the previous year. Much like in 2021, China continued to dominate, accounting for 41 per cent of all new store openings, driven by brands’ continued focus on that market, particularly over the first half of the year, as Chinese luxury spend remained largely confined to its domestic market.
However, in quantum terms, China did witness a decline in new openings in 2022, compared to the acceleration in openings the year before and the weakening in occupier confidence in the face of the rolling lockdowns seen in some parts of China throughout last year, according to the Savills report.
In the wider Asia region, the global share of new store openings increased to 12 per cent during 2022, on the back of a relatively fast recovery in luxury spend in the region, helped in part by the return of international visitors. A focus on relatively underserved markets with a growing HNW (high-net worth) population, such as Vietnam, also boosted luxury brand activity in the region, said Savills.
“China is still a very important market for luxury representing around 17 per cent of global sales in 2022 according to Bain,” said Nick Bradstreet, Head of Asia Pacific Retail, Savills. “But, because of Covid and the tight regulations in China, alongside increasing challenges around profile and marketing for smaller and emerging luxury brands, many have come to realise that they need to diversify their portfolios and Southeast Asia is the natural choice for this diversification.”
