LONDON — In 2026, luxury retail in China is about making choices.
Take Beijing, for example, where the openings of a slew of flagships — including Louis Vuitton, Dior, Tiffany & Co., Loro Piana, and Alaïa at the Northern District at Taikoo Li Beijing — come at the cost of some of the underperforming stores being shuttered in the city.
Dior quietly exited the Finance Street Shopping Center, a high-end shopping mall that reached its peak in the early 2010s. Louis Vuitton, meanwhile, closed its Terminal 3 store at the Beijing Airport.
The Louis Vuitton store in the Northern District at Taikoo Li Beijing.
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In Shanghai, with Plaza 66 and HKRI Taikoo Hui going head-to-head on Nanjing Road, Réel Mall became the biggest victim, losing several key luxury tenants on the ground floor in the past year. The corner space that used to host Gucci — unoccupied for 10 months — is now being turned into a Chanel beauty pop-up.
Nationwide, brands are retreating from lower-tier cities and allocating their resources to a handful of locations in top-tier cities, in a bid to keep up with the mega flagship trend that’s taken off post-COVID-19 globally.
According to a Bernstein report, outsized flagships induce “shock and awe” in consumers, which boosts their perception of intrinsic brand value.
“It’s the right thing to do: in a world where you can do everything on your phone, the store has to become exceptional to be worth a visit,” the report concluded. “More importantly, these large stores do not represent a sacrifice for the income statement, but — on the contrary — thanks to the accompanying investments in communication, they are also very profitable, with turnovers of several hundred million euros, and high margins.”
In China, these giant stores can be most often found at Taikoo Li, China World Mall, and SKP in Beijing, and Plaza 66, IFC, and HKRI Taikoo Hui in Shanghai.
Taikoo Hui Guangzhou, Hangzhou Tower, Deji Plaza in Nanjing, Dennis David City in Zhengzhou, SKP and Wushang Mall in Wuhan, SKP, IFS and Taikoo Li in Chengdu, MixC in Shenzhen, and Shenyang are popular options as well.
Giorgio Armani’s new flagship in the China World Mall, Beijing.
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Last year, Giorgio Armani closed its Beijing flagship of almost two decades at China Central Place and opened an 8,400-square-foot, three-floor flagship within the China World Mall. Valentino, Bottega Veneta, Versace, Max Mara, and Rolex upsized their retail footprint in the mall as well.
At Taikoo Li Beijing, Hermès is one of the few brands that has yet to officially unveil its stand-alone flagship.
But the momentum of this hot location is set to go beyond 2026, as its developer, Swire Properties, earlier last year demolished the boutique hotel Opposite House within the complex to make space to host more luxury brands. Chanel is said to be a key tenant that Swire is courting for the new location.
The Chanel store in Shanghai’s Plaza 66.
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Speaking of Chanel, the brand is a firm believer in bigger is better in China.
Last September the brand became the first tenant in Pudong’s IFC Shanghai to take up three floors of retail space for its expansion. Two months later, the brand reopened its landmark store in Shanghai’s Plaza 66 after an 18-month renovation.
The boutique, which is 32,000 square feet, is almost twice the size of its previous space. The flagship stands out as Chanel’s first location worldwide that offers the complete ”Chanel ecosystem,“ which encompasses fashion, watches and fine jewelry, Les Ateliers, Les Salons Privé, and beauty and fragrances boutiques.
One metro stop away from Plaza 66, LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton brands have been actively exploring new retail concepts with Swire Properties’ HKRI Taikoo Hui and the adjacent Zhangyuan, which provide more flexibility and historical charm.
With the success of the boat-shaped retail, exhibition, and hospitality three-in-one, one-of-a-kind experience that’s called The Louis, it’s been reported that Dior is in talks to also open a store at HKRI Taikoo Hui as early as 2027.
Were it to happen, Cha House, the Baroque-style villa with a British twist that until Janurary was used as Harrods’ private members’ club, The Residence, could be an ideal location for top-tier luxury players like Dior to create a brand experience in the city.
Louis Vuitton’s latest retail landmark, the boat-shaped “The Louis” in Shanghai.
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Increasingly, luxury brands prefer to work with developers with a proven track record of building and running successful luxury malls in China, and from 2026, a slew of ambitious and colossal luxury retail complexes from these developers are set to enter the market.
The luxury retail landscape in many of their respective cities is set to be reshaped in the long run as a result.
In Hangzhou, Plaza 66’s sister mega project, Westlake 66, is looking to challenge its neighbor Hangzhou Tower’s decades-long leading position. It offers over 1 million square feet of retail space, five office towers, and a Mandarin Oriental hotel, and has signed a 20-year lease with Baida Group for the North and South Towers at Hangzhou Department Store, which is right next to Westlake 66, for future expansion.
By the end of 2026, Qiantan Place, the second phase of the luxury-filled Taikoo Li Qiantan, will add around 2.87 million square feet of prime retail space to Shanghai, while the third phase of ITC in the heart of Xujiahui, run by Sun Hung Kai Properties, the same developer behind IFC, will also offer around 2.47 million square feet of quality retail space in the period.
Rendering of Westlake 66 in Hangzhou.
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In Wuhan, SKP will unveil its full form in October when all of the 44 properties that have been repurposed for major brand takeovers on K Avenue open for business.
Last month, Louis Vuitton opened a three-story store spanning 9,500 square feet at SKP Wuhan. It is one of the first Vuitton locations in China with dedicated fragrance and makeup sections.
