Chinese fashion brands going global

FOR decades, Chinese consumer brands built their success on manufacturing scale, supply- chain efficiency and digital retail.

Now, a new generation is building brands that can command attention – and premium prices – overseas.

Icicle, a Shanghai-based fashion label, is among those taking on that challenge.

The company is building a globally integrated luxury fashion business – combining Chinese manufacturing capabilities with its design centres in Paris and Shanghai.

“As a global brand, we are only just beginning,” said Ye Shouzeng, co-founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of Icicle.

“But we are ready. We are fully prepared for globalisation.”

Since March 2025, the company has been part of the official presentation calendar of Paris Fashion Week, with plans to join the official show calendar next year, marking a new stage in its push to expand its presence in international markets.

Icicle’s ambition reflects a broader shift among Chinese premium brands, which are increasingly seeking to export not only products, but also design, lifestyle concepts and cultural perspectives.

“We’re seeing a clear acceleration of Chinese brands going overseas across apparel, leather goods and beauty,” said Veronique Yang, managing director and senior partner at Boston Consulting Group Shanghai (BCG).

“The previous wave was represented by companies such as Shein, which competed through an eCommerce model, or Pop Mart, which built a global following through collectible toys.

“This time, premium and even luxury brands are leading the way.”

She said the shift has been driven by the country’s increasingly sophisticated manufacturing capabilities, stronger design talent, rising cultural confidence and digital platforms that allow brands to reach overseas consumers directly.

Brands such as Songmont, which incorporates Chinese architectural and craft traditions into contemporary handbag design, and fragrance brand To Summer, which transforms ingredients such as Longjing tea and osmanthus into modern scents, represent a broader effort to create products with Chinese roots but global appeal.

Beyond exporting products

Many Chinese brands first establish themselves domestically before expanding overseas.

Icicle, however, has taken a bolder approach.

Founded in Shanghai in 1997 by Ye and Tao Xiaoma, both graduates of Donghua University, Icicle was built around their belief that clothing should combine quality materials, craftsmanship and comfort.

The company opened its Paris office in 2012 and established a design centre there the following year.

In 2018, Icicle acquired French fashion house Carven, giving the Chinese company a foothold in the European fashion ecosystem and deeper exposure to international brand management.

Today, its collections are developed through collaboration between teams in Shanghai and Paris.

Ye believes Paris remains a critical testing ground for fashion brands seeking international recognition.

Within a few sq km of central Paris, Icicle now operates four boutiques, placing the brand in one of the world’s most competitive fashion markets.

“If we tried to internationalise directly from Shanghai, the road would be much longer,” Ye said. “France is an important global fashion centre.

“Once we establish ourselves here, entering other markets becomes much easier.”

The company’s journey in Paris has been a slow climb.

Global recognition must ultimately be earned through consumers, said the founder.

“The first thing is whether you can sell,” he said.

“If consumers don’t buy your products, everything else is castles in the air.”

The company has been building its presence step by step.

At Le Bon Marche, one of the world’s most prestigious department stores owned by LVMH, Icicle initially started with only two small display racks.

After strong performance, the space expanded to three times its original size.

“The presence in Paris is like we have set up a camp at the foot of Everest,” Ye said.

“We have not reached the summit yet, but we have built our base here.”

The company has also built a substantial domestic foundation.

Icicle generates annual sales of more than €300mil (US$334mil), growing at a double-digit rate annually, and operates more than 200 stores across 100 Chinese cities.

“For now, in China, Icicle is influential — it is a relatively successful brand,” he said.

“Over the past 30 years, consumers in China know our products are not inexpensive, but have kept choosing us because they see the value.

“We have not let them down.”

Yet Ye remains cautious about the company’s global position.

The company strengthened its international ambitions earlier this year when Kering became a minority investor.

The partnership provides Icicle access to expertise in leather goods, eyewear, jewellery development and international retail operations as the company expands beyond apparel.

Accessories represent a major opportunity.

While accessories can account for a significant share of revenue at many luxury houses, Icicle’s business remains heavily concentrated in clothing, with more than 90% of sales coming from apparel.

“The growth potential for accessories is enormous,” Ye said.

The company plans to build leather goods and accessories factories in Shanghai, extending its vertically integrated model into categories where many luxury brands have traditionally relied on specialised European suppliers.

It has also strengthened its creative organisation, recently appointing former Gucci creative director Sabato De Sarno as creative director.

De Sarno will oversee creative direction across womenswear, menswear, accessories and eyewear, with his first collection expected for the autumn/winter 2027 to 2028 season.

“In the past, Chinese companies often exported products,” Yang said.

“Today they are building global organisations.”

Made in Shanghai

One of Icicle’s biggest differences from many luxury brands is its control over manufacturing.

While many luxury companies rely heavily on external suppliers, Icicle has invested in a vertically integrated production system covering fabric research and development, material sourcing, manufacturing and retail.

More than 80% of its products are manufactured in-house at two production facilities in the Shanghai region.

The company sources premium natural fabrics from Italy, Japan, domestic suppliers and other markets before completing manufacturing and finishing processes in Shanghai.

For Icicle, maintaining control over production is not only about efficiency.

It is about preserving craftsmanship, shortening product-development cycles and strengthening the credibility of the brand.

This approach comes at a time when luxury consumers are becoming more selective.

After several years of rapid luxury growth, the global sector has entered a more cautious period.

Consumers who were previously driven by logos, trends and social visibility are increasingly looking for products with clearer value propositions – including quality materials, durability, design longevity and brand authenticity.

“Many international visitors to Icicle’s Paris stores are less focused on logos and more interested in fabrics, craftsmanship and comfort,” the company said.

Yang of BCG said China’s supply chain remains one of the country’s strongest advantages.

“The global quality gap has become very small.

“The real advantage is flexibility. Chinese companies can respond quickly to market feedback and bring the right products to the right consumers,” she added.

Many Chinese fashion brands frequently adjust their positioning in pursuit of short-term sales growth, Yang said.

Icicle, by contrast, has maintained a consistent philosophy around natural materials, understated design and comfort for more than two decades.

Icicle’s new Five Elements fragrance collection reflects that philosophy.

Inspired by the traditional Chinese concept of metal, wood, water, fire and earth, the collection does not simply translate the concepts into English.

Instead, the company uses Chinese pinyin – jin, mu, shui, huo, tu – preserving the cultural roots while presenting them through a contemporary format.

The “wood” fragrance captures the freshness and vitality of spring, while “fire” represents energy and intensity.

“Perfume is absolutely the language of French perfumery,” Ye said.

“A French person can understand it. But what is inside the bottle is Chinese.”

Long road ahead

Despite the company’s ambitions, Ye said that becoming a global luxury brand remains a long journey.

Yang of BCG said success cannot be measured only by overseas sales.

A global premium brand must also gain recognition from consumers, retailers, fashion media and industry professionals.

A successful global brand, she said, should be able to command premium pricing outside China, enter important retail channels in fashion capitals such as Paris and Milan, and build lasting consumer loyalty.

“Icicle entering mainstream Paris retail isn’t simply about selling more products,” Yang said.

“It shows the local market is beginning to accept the brand.”

The company’s goal is measured in decades.

“We hope that in 10 years we can recreate another Icicle overseas,” Ye said.

“Only then can Icicle become a truly international brand.”

Growth opportunities in China

Meanwhile, German sportswear company Adidas continues to explore opportunities in China and remains optimistic about the country’s ambition to become a sports powerhouse, said a senior company executive.

“We believe strongly in the Chinese market, and we feel that there is plenty of energy in the economy compared with the stagnation we see in Europe,” said Bjoern Gulden, CEO of Adidas, during a recent interview.

“The time when we were designing collections only in Germany or the United States is over.

“We are now designing all over the world and, believe it or not, the creative direction that is coming out of China and especially out of Shanghai is starting to play a more important role because the consumer wants it,” said Gulden.

Adrian Siu, managing director of Adidas in China, said: “Currently, as much as 65% of products in the China market are designed by Adidas’ Creation Centre Shanghai.

“Among the products designed by the Creation Centre Shanghai, 25% are already sold overseas and are very popular.”

Driven by both sports and sports fashion, Adidas views a country’s growing strength in part through improvements in its sporting achievements.

“At the same time, a country’s rising influence in global fashion reflects its growing strength and cultural creativity,” Siu said.

“Along with designing in Shanghai, manufacturing in China is making an impact globally and the company expects to keep contributing to the development of China’s sports and fashion industries,” Siu said.

Attending the recent 38th International Business Leaders’ Advisory Council for the Mayor of Shanghai, Adidas submitted recommendations on how Shanghai can become a leading emotional vitality city at this year’s meeting, which focused on promoting innovation in Shanghai’s service sector.

In its proposal, Adidas called for a new model of urban development that converts positive emotions into consumption growth, community vitality, cultural confidence and sustainable competitiveness.

“In the future, the cities that lead the world will be those that can create emotional resonance, and the company believes emotional vitality is becoming a new source of urban competitiveness,” it explained.

The proposal noted that Shanghai’s per capita spending on sporting goods rose from 922 yuan in 2008 to nearly 4,500 yuan in 2024.

The city’s sports economy has evolved from material consumption to experiential participation, and now towards emotional fulfilment.

Regarding China’s goals for the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026 to 2030) period, Gulden said Adidas sees itself as a contributor to these goals, which also present significant opportunities for the sports industry and related businesses.

“The plan is great. I think there’s a commitment to sports everywhere in China and we will of course support it because it’s in our interest and sports is fun and the more people do it, the happier we will become,” said Gulden.

China aims to build a sports powerhouse by 2030, with detailed goals including providing four sq m of sports space per person, having about 40% of the population participating in sports activities regularly, and expanding the nation’s sports industry to a scale of more than seven trillion yuan.

According to Gulden, Adidas will celebrate its 30th anniversary in China next year, and its new China headquarters at the West Bund in Xuhui district will soon officially open.

“Since 1997, Adidas has witnessed and actively contributed to the city’s dynamic growth.

“Going forward, we will continue working closely with Shanghai to help it develop into an emotional vitality city with global influence and support the city in its efforts to become an international centre for science and innovation, an international consumption centre and a world-famous sports city,” said Gulden.

Siu said this also reflects Adidas’ confidence in the China market.

“This confidence is something we will never change.

“We are confident in China, in Chinese sports, in the Chinese market and in our team in China,” said Siu. — China Daily/ANN