BIAGIOTTI’S CHINESE CASHMERE DEBUTS
Byline: Samantha Conti
MILAN — Laura Biagiotti is enthusiastically sewing the “Made in China” label into her new line of cashmere.
Called Laura by Laura Biagiotti, the cashmere knitwear line produced under license entirely in China, made its U.S. debut at this week’s Fashion Coterie in New York.
One of the first Western designers, and the first from Italy, to march into China, Biagiotti makes no secret of her faith in the country’s purchasing — and manufacturing — potential.
“I love China, its people and its traditions, and I’ve always wanted to manufacture there. My dream is to blend Italian creativity with Chinese productivity. This license has allowed me to realize that dream,” Biagiotti said.
Laura by Laura Biagiotti is the product of a three-year licensing agreement with YZIT, a Chinese company that manufactures for Japanese and American department stores.
“We’ve accumulated a lot of experience in China, and we’ve found just the right partners,” said Eros Catalano, Biagiotti’s general manager. “Our manufacturer covers the entire cycle of production, spinning the cashmere into yarn and then weaving or knitting it all with Italian textile machinery. The quality of the product is superior.”
The line, made up of some 60 pieces, is designed for the over-30 working woman who may — or may not — be in the best of shape.
“We have some slim silhouettes for the younger customer, and some oversize, forgiving ones for baby boomers who want to look good but feel comfortable too,” said Susan Greenstadt, who owns a showroom under her own name in New York.
Greenstadt admits, however, that when potential customers hear that the collection is made in China, some are concerned about the quality.
“But when they see the quality and the finishing, they don’t care where it comes from,” she said. “They also realize that because we manufacture in China, we can offer a high-quality product at a competitive price.”
Wholesale prices will range from $87 for a short-sleeved T-shirt from the basic collection to $332 for a long tunic dress. Greenstadt said distribution will be limited to about 100 department and independent retailers nationwide in the first year.
The collection, which borrows and adapts the ideas of Biagiotti’s signature collection, is roughly divided into five segments: basic, ruche, optical, cable and tartan.
The basic collection includes track suits, bodysuits, short-sleeved shirts and varsity cardigans. The other collections boast oversize capes, elongated tunics and cardigans, dresses and trousers. Colors range from neutrals to primary shades. All of the cashmere is two-ply or more.
The line, which will bow for fall, will be distributed in China, the Far East and the U.S. It is expected to generate $5 million at wholesale the first year, $10 million the second and $14 million the third.
This year, the U.S. is expected to make up 40 percent of sales. Catalano said that percentage should increase to 50 to 60 percent over the next two years.
Laura Biagiotti already has a history in China.
She staged her first show there in 1988 — five years before Valentino and Gianfranco Ferre were invited by the Chinese government to show at the country’s first apparel fair. Biagiotti also has a freestanding boutique in the center of Beijing.
After a few false starts with Chinese licensees, Biagiotti finally signed an agreement in June to produce the Laura line. YZIT is an Italian-Chinese joint venture that spins, knits and weaves cashmere and silk. The company, located between Shanghai and Nanking, turns out one million units per year.
Catalano admits that Laura Biagiotti has a long road ahead of it in China. It was the dream of Gianni Cigna, Biagiotti’s late husband and business partner, to build a solid business there. He was the one who started working on the Laura by Laura Biagiotti license.
“Our business in China is a minuscule part of our global turnover, and we realize 10 years will pass before the Chinese start buying luxury goods seriously. But that doesn’t matter,” said Catalano, adding that the company’s next project is to start producing Biagiotti kids’, jeans and casual sportswear lines in China.
“We are investing in the future, and China is the future.”
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