Market Insights on China’s Fashion Transformation with Schulich Alumnus Andrew Wu
As part of the Dean’s Signature Lecture Series, Andrew Wu (MBA ’89), LVMH (Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton) Group Greater China President, recently presented, “An Update on China’s Fashion Transformation”. More than 330 students, alumni, faculty, and staff registered for the event in the Robert McEwen Auditorium at Schulich. Wu’s lecture was informative, with statistics and visuals, including entertaining Hollywood movie titles for his slides in the order of Speed, Forever Young, Catch Me If You Can, Risky Business and Tomorrow Never Dies.
“Fashion is not just what fashion models represent,” said Wu. “Fashion has become everybody’s business and people in China, young people in particular, have become more and more fashionable.”
Wu discussed behavioural shifts that impact how we market, for example, in e-commerce, highlighting the accessibility of international items through online shopping. Wu also mentioned China’s strong cross-border connections, active “daigou” activities, and progressive fashion influences from Hong Kong, Japan, North America, Europe, and K-pop over the last few decades. He also shared interesting facts about the rise in Chinese pet ownership, with a recent surge of registered pets creating a booming market for import pet products.
During the Question-and-Answer period, Wu engaged with students, responding to questions on his Schulich experience as well as addressing his perspective on business development and consumer trends in China.
Born and raised in Shanghai, Wu is a leading authority on Chinese consumer trends and a globally influential professional in the luxury goods industry for the region. After living in Canada from 1980-1993, he returned to head the Dior cosmetics operation in China for LVMH, pioneering local luxury marketing and retailing between 1993-2000. He then joined Sony Music Entertainment between 2000-2005 to help with the commercialization of Chinese artists in Greater China; and then re-joined LVMH in 2005 as Group Head of Greater China, overseeing the rapid business development of LVMH’s multi-brand portfolio in the Chinese marketplace over the past 19 years. Wu has also become a well-respected promoter of Chinese culture and heritage, gaining a high degree of social recognition in China.
The Dean’s Signature Series Lecture was created to showcase and celebrate some of the School’s most accomplished alumni, members of Schulich’s Global Alumni Network with over 35,000 alumni strong in more than 90 countries.