Shinsegae Inter's Imported Fashion Business Thrives Alone

[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] While the fashion industry is experiencing the worst recession ever due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), Shinsegae International is drawing attention for its steady growth in the imported fashion business.

According to industry sources on the 16th, Shinsegae International's imported fashion business has continued double-digit sales growth in the third quarter following the second quarter. This contrasts with domestic major fashion companies such as Samsung C&T and LF, whose imported clothing brands are recording year-on-year sales declines.

A Shinsegae International official said, "Sales of the imported fashion business from April to June this year increased by more than 10% compared to the same period last year, and despite the strengthening of social distancing measures, the sales growth trend in the imported fashion sector continues."

The strong performance of Shinsegae International's imported fashion business is due to luxury brands such as Celine, Chloe, and Maison Margiela maintaining sales growth rates of over 30%, driving overall growth. The company's swift response to online channels compared to competitors was also effective.

A Shinsegae International official explained, "As overseas travel became difficult, demand for imported brands increased," adding, "The number of users of the online mall SI Village has also steadily increased, with sales in the first half of this year more than doubling compared to the same period last year." Riding this momentum, the company recently held large-scale discount events for luxury clothing brands such as Maison Margiela, Alexander Wang, Herno, and DSquared2.

The cosmetics business is also recovering from a slump. Duty-free sales of its own brand Vidi Vici are showing improvement, and the strong performance of the imported cosmetics business has led the overall cosmetics sector to a positive trend. The lifestyle brand Jaju is also increasing new offline store openings.

A Shinsegae International official said, "We are closing underperforming domestic fashion brand stores and aggressively expanding the lifestyle sector," adding, "We also plan to diversify Jaju's distribution channels into specialty stores, shopping malls, and flagship stores."