Louis Vuitton lures China's super-rich with custom leather "art"

Louis Vuitton's rich court of China with one-of-a-kind shoes and bags, it is the brand as unique works of art to his stamp on the exclusive luxury market to get. The French luxury brand, a unit of LVMH, is open to its largest store in China in Shanghai on Saturday, with a spiral staircase and a golden invitation only private floor where the big spenders get to make their hair can all dream of styles, sizes and bags. Said "The concept of made-to-order is the ultimate luxury," Louis Vuitton CEO Yves Carcelle told Reuters during a tour of the store, which the company calls a "home". "It's the same with art. If you are interested in art, the ultimate Commission is an artist, rather than buying a piece that is already done," said Carcelle. Louis Vuitton is consistently ranked among the most admired brands in the Chinese consumer surveys. But ultra-luxury names such as Hermes make inroads, and lead some consumers now look down on Louis Vuitton too common. The company hopes that its status as an exclusive luxury with the new store in Shanghai, the sculptures in steel and has a variety of goods ranging from stylish coats and made hats in bright colors for bags made from python or alligator consolidate. It also sells bags for the tiles used by the Chinese game of Mah-Jong, and custom games for strains of the tea to play. China is the third largest market in the world of luxury goods with a value of at least 160 billion yuan (25 billion). Over the next three years is expected to burn about Japan and the United States to take the lead, with the luxury segment is growing at 180 billion yuan (28 billion). Bad timing? The chic shopping mall Plaza 66, where rival brands such as Chanel and Prada stores, you also have: Louis Vuitton, one of 16 similar stores in the world, is located in Shanghai is for luxury goods. On four levels, with over 100 employees, the store is currently the only one in China, which provides bags and shoes. The company declined to say how much he spent on the memory. "Because in this market, customized needs of demanding customers, what they own, and several bags when not talking about tens of thousands of white bags," said Carcelle. "That is why the fashion leather goods and shoes are important to show ... in China," he said, with the French word for leather craft luxury. "As long as we do not have the space to show our customers in a rapidly changing world, we missed our weapons," he said. Calendar of Louis Vuitton, but it can not be far from ideal. Luxury spending in China is softening as the economy weakens. Economic growth slowed to its lowest level in three years last quarter. Burberry of Britain in the past week, its sales were through the slowdown in China have been hit. Carcelle declined to comment on the status of the Chinese economy and its impact on luxury spending, but said he does not "houses", the opening in the capital Beijing and Hangzhou, a booming business hub in eastern China. He said that Chinese consumers have grown rapidly to become connoisseurs of luxury, and the company needs to respond to two first-time buyers and discerning buyer. "Maybe in the West, the trend has lasted 20 years, but here it takes 5 years after the first purchase to the desire for more sophisticated products and services," says Yves Carcelle. ($ 1 = 6.3729 Chinese yuan)