SHANGHAI — Galeries Lafayette, the French department store chain with three retail outlets in China, is ready to scale up with a joint venture with Hong Kong-listed real estate operator Hopson Group.
Under the terms of the agreement, Galeries Lafayette will open a total of three new stores this year, in Shenzhen, Chongqing and Macau, with a goal of reaching 10 stores by 2025, it said in a statement on Thursday.
The deal marks the end of Galeries Lafayette’s decade-long partnership with Hong Kong retailer I.T, which began with a Beijing store that opened in 2013 and a Shanghai location four years later.
Hopson Group will take over the I.T-operated stores starting this month, but I.T will continue to operate shop-in-shops for around 10 brands including Comme des Garçons, Simone Rocha, Off-White and Palm Angels within Galeries Lafayette’s Shanghai and Beijing stores.
Galeries Lafayette and Hopson Group will hold equal shares and voting rights in the joint venture. According to Galeries Lafayette, the strategic partnership will become effective over the next few weeks.
The French retailer will be able to leverage Hopson Group’s property portfolio that spans high-end urban complexes and shopping centers, as well as “its profound knowledge of the Chinese market,” the statement said.
“Our group has always enjoyed close and unique ties with China,” said Nicolas Houzé, CEO of Galeries Lafayette and BHV Marais.
“This partnership illustrates our shared ambition of accelerating the roll-out of our brand and creating a major retailer capable of responding to generational trends and the strong potential for growth in domestic consumption between now and 2030,” he added.
Lucas Loh, co-president of Hopson Development Holdings Limited, co-chairman and president of Hopson Commercial Group and president of Hopson Real Estate, said the partnership will help Hopson “enhance our brand connotation in new consumer areas.”
At the end of last year, Hopson launched Moho Mall, its first high-end retail shopping center on the outskirts of downtown Shanghai.
“Consumers can enjoy the original French shopping experience but also enjoy the innovative Oriental culture and unique local services,” Loh added.
This story was reported by WWD and originally appeared on WWD.com.
