Scotch & Soda gears up for entry into the Chinese market

Amsterdam-based fashion label Scotch & Soda is preparing for its fully fledged entry into

the Chinese market, following the opening of its first store in Hong Kong in Harbour City shopping center in Kowloon.

Scotch & Soda aims to open its second store in Hong Kong this fall in the International Finance center. The Dutch fashion label has partnered up with Asian company Imaginex to establish a network of stores in Hong Kong, China, Macau, Taiwan over the next five years, with is first stand alone store set to open in mainland China later this year.

Chinese consumers have already had some time to become acquainted with the label, as department store chain Lane Crawford, which is part of the same group that owns Imaginex, first introduced Scotch & Soda to China in 2009. Imaginex noted that the fashion label has become one of the best performing contemporary brands in Lane Crawford stores.

“The booming middle class with rising incomes are finding ways to personalize their own style, while also appreciating the details and quality of the brands they purchase,” said Thomson Cheng, Imaginex's managing director to WWD. The Asian company currently has over 510 retail locations, totaling over 800,000 square feet of selling space through the country.