Hong Kong’s luxury retail sector likely to regain ground lost to protests, pandemic in 2024 as high-end brands make a return
- Luxury lifestyle brands such as Sotheby’s and The Macallan are taking advantage of cheaper rates for premium space
- ‘The rising demand for luxury brands, and other brands, will have a positive impact on rent,’ says Oliver Tong of JLL
Industry observers, however, remain split about the pace and scale of recovery.
Hongkong Land, the biggest commercial landlord in the main business district of Central, is particularly optimistic that brands and tenants are finding new impetus to expand their presence. Luxury lifestyle brands such as Sotheby’s auction house and The Macallan, a whisky brand, are taking advantage of the cheaper rates for premium space that have become available.
“Luxury brands view Hong Kong as an indispensable market, with the recent Louis Vuitton and Pharrell Williams show and Christian Dior’s upcoming plans to bring their fashion show to the city, demonstrating this,” said Alexander Li, chief retail officer, Hongkong Land.
“Our Central retail portfolio is a global, brand-defining destination and we are seeing several of our tenants eyeing expansion and innovation. We will be announcing exciting plans to innovate and optimise retail space in the Central portfolio in the first quarter of 2024.”
The developer has seen a 15 per cent increase in footfall in 2023 compared with 2022, while Christmas promotions are tipped to boost sales by 20 per cent during the festive period, Li added.
