Far East rules the roost

A study by US investment bank Merrill Lynch has shown that China and Japan will dominate more than half of the luxury fashion market in ten years' time. Thereby the two Far East superpowers will surpass Europe and the US.

The Merrill Lynch report was unveiled at the "Milano Fashion Global Summit" in Milan last week. It revealed that China currently has an 11% stake in the EUR82 billion luxury fashion market. By the time 2014 rolls around this market will have grown to EUR133 billion, and China will have a 30% stake in it. This will leave Japan in second place with 21%, with Europe and the US following in third and fourth place with 20% and 17% respectively. Russia will come in fifth with 6%, which is the position it currently holds as well.

Chairman of the fashion association Camera Nazionale della Moda, Mario Boselli, urged the fashion industry to prepare "adequate strategies for the new markets and adopt similarly sophisticated policies there as in Europe or Japan." He added that China would not merely be a big outlet for selling everything.