Polo Ralph Lauren in China expansion push

       Polo Ralph Lauren Corp,designer of Chaps and Club Monaco clothing, plans to open as many as 15 stores annually in Hong Kong and China as US sales slow.
       "We are going to come at this business aggressively anyway but now its even more of a reason as the businesses in the US and Europe have flattened,"George Hrdina, president of Ralph Laurens Asian business, said in an interview in Hong Kong.
       Demand for luxury goods in China,the worlds most populous nation, remains unabated, according to a survey published last month by communications consultants Ruder Finn Asia.
       New York-based Ralph Lauren has been changing its strategy to operate more of its own shops as it seeks to compete with LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA and Gucci owner PPR SA.
       "The Chinese market for luxury products is still growing very well," Shaun Rein, the Shanghai-based managing director of China Market Research Group,said in a phone interview yesterday."The consumers in China are still spending money, although some are hit by the financial crisis."
       "We're probably a little behind the other luxury retailers in entering this market," Hrdina said.
       "The company's new stores in China will probably be in Beijing, Shanghai and surrounding regions," he added.
       The clothier is taking back the Asian distribution rights for its Polo and Ralph Lauren brands from Dickson Concepts (International) Ltd on Jan 1. The move is part of the company's efforts to retool its image in Asia, moving away from selling products in department stores to focusing on setting up its own retail outlets.
       "So we will now control the product,the quality, the branding," Hrdina said,as the company seeks to change the perception of Polo and Ralph Lauren from casual sportswear labels to luxury brands.
       "The brand has also been hurt by piracy," he said.
       "I dont think they did a very good job at marketing positioning and store development for the Chinese market, and they also probably were hit fairly hard by piracy," China Market Research Group's Rein said."The problem for Polo, people don't know what's real and what isn't."
       "Luxury brands, facing ageing populations in Europe and North America are turning to Asia," Joe Wong, managing director for PPR SA's Gucci Group in Hong Kong, China and Macau, told an industry meeting on Aug 28.
       "Asia, particularly China, is possibly the solution," Wong said. China has a very big base of consumers and lots of up- and-coming young executives and middle class.
       Ralph Lauren ought to be cautious about growing too fast because they dont have the brand positioning, Rein said."While Chinese consumers are still buying luxury goods, they're looking for better value, they're starting to buy products like bags that can be used everyday rather than a shirt that can be worn once a month."