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bof: china is mcm’s biggest customer base. who is the mcm customer in china? what are they buying ?
after licensing mcm in 1991, she bought the german brand from a swiss financier in 2005. on her business cards, she calls herself mcm' s chief visionary officer .
mcm, we are a german born brand. from munich 1976, heritage craftsmanship combined with our exploration of the world is the unique alchemy that created us. mcm is on a global journey .
following the brand’s first runway show in beijing, two weeks ago, bof sat down with sung - joo kim, chairperson of mcm holding ag (mother company of mcm) and mcm products ag, to talk about wooing the chinese customer, building the brand beyond its logo and going west .
mcm makes around 60 percent of sales in asia and the rest in europe, middle east and america .
mcm ag' s chairperson and chief visionary officer sung - joo kim says she has been on a mission since her college days ‒ to empower herself and other women. her success to date with mcm demonstrates what can be achieved .
started out well in 2014 fast paced a lot of opportunities over very exciting time. was so excited to work for mcm .
' in asia the young generation are the movers and shakers' … mcm chief visionary officer kim sung joo. photograph: bloomberg via getty images
bof sits down with mcm’s sung - joo kim to talk about wooing the chinese customer, building the brand beyond its logo and going west .
almost 10 years later, mcm is set to hit 2014 sales of $ 650 million, according to figures provided by the company, and has built a network of 300 stores in over 35 countries. forty of these stores are in china, mcm’s fastest growing market, and the company plans to open 30 more by 2015. indeed, a significant part of mcm’s turnaround can be attributed to the brand’s popularity with chinese consumers .
bof: in recent years korea has emerged as cultural leader in asia. do you think this has helped propel mcm’s expansion in china in particular ?
never mind hermès and louis vuitton: mcm is the it bag for 21st - century global nomads everywhere. hannah marriott traces a success story from germany, via south korea
if anything, she says, mcm is
a global baby incubated out of a korean cradle
. which, as a narrative goes, is incredibly 21st century .
unlike many european brands, for example, mcm' s image and style is not led by one star designer, but developed by an in - house team of stylists .
another example of mcm' s success in the west was its appearance in the american television hit, gossip girl, while a triumph was having beyoncé and rihanna carry the bags .
according to maude churchill, an editor on streetwear site highsnobiety, mcm burst on to the scene a few years ago and has since been seen in the hands of the right celebrities and in credible collaborations with designers and artists .
mcm crosses the boundaries of streetwear and high - end fashion ,
she says .
it' s luxurious but kitsch .
sung - joo kim' s view is that the rejuvenated mcm brand has touched the heart of asians because of the authenticity of its european heritage melded with the small details - not the traditional luxury stereotypes - needed to communicate with the asian consumer .
you can sum it up in one german word: zeitgeist. that is very mcm ,
she said .
mcm is about unique luxury — we represent youthful luxury. many old school european houses have great craftsmanship and heritage, but are becoming boring and too conservative for the emerging consumers in asia. in asia today it’s all about the young professionals who are the next generation of consumers. they have different needs and a new perception of luxury. that’s what mcm is feeding on .
mcm, whose prices are around the same level as brands such as louis vuitton and celine, now makes around $ 700 million in annual sales — putting it on par with the likes of versace .
our logo is a reflection of our rich heritage. mcm' s beribboned laurel leaves pay tribute to king ludwig i' s passion for all that was neoclassical, as well as representing the greek symbol for victory. our diamonds symbolize value, strength and durability without compromise in beauty, inspired by the diamonds of the bavarian flag entitled
weiss blauer himmel
. each mcm piece continues to be personalized with a unique number engraved on the iconic brass plate, a craftsmanship tradition that continues to this day. like a treasured heirloom, this signature detail is the finishing touch to every mcm product, making every item iconic .
in germany and was doing very well in asia. but the original founder had some personal problems and the brand suddenly disappeared. it was then sold to new owners in switzerland who didn’t have much experience in the luxury segment. at that time korea was feeling the effects of the asian financial crisis, so i restructured my company and sold most of my licences except for mcm. by 2005 we had helped to re - grow mcm to a 100 million dollar business in korea alone. we were still paying high royalties, so we decided to take on all operational aspects of the brand and acquired mcm holdings and ownership of the whole global market .
in fact, mcm does have a story – and a compelling one at that. the company was founded in 1976 in germany, named after its founder as michael cromer münchen. with a hint of louis vuitton about its repetitive patterns, the bags were popular in the 1980s, when diana ross used its suitcases on tour, while trunks were carried by obsequious porters on dynasty as a signifier of wealth and success. by the 1990s, mcm had more than 250 stores across the world and its advertising campaigns, shot by herb ritts, featured cindy crawford naked but for an mcm bag. in the noughties, however, the business floundered, becoming mired in financial problems. its founder was investigated for alleged tax evasion, fakes flooded the market and the brand' s designs lost their appeal. for more than a decade, mcm was barely mentioned in western fashion circles at all .
our customer goes beyond income level, age group, beyond east or west, man or woman. it’s very much about convergence: what’s strong about mcm is that the product combines european heritage with asian needs and taste .
looking at one of seoul' s mcm stores - and the shops tend to have different personalities according to the district and the clients - i could see a switch from the glitzy, over - the - top embellishment that had once been the brand' s dna. that was when the us global tv sensation
dynasty
set the tone for 1980s style and joan collins' s character, alexis carrington colby, travelled the world with mcm luggage .
south korea is home the world' s biggest duty - free market with about $ 8 billion in 2015 sales, and in such shops, mcm is the second - biggest fashion brand by sales after louis vuitton, kim said .
she elaborates ,
mcm customers are the movers and shakers, because they are so well informed by digital media they are very trend conscious, brand conscious, and they are high income earning professionals or have affordable free income from wealthy parents. the way this young generation relates to luxury is different from what we experienced before .
she believes that mcm knows
exactly what asian customers want ,
and strong sales in the asian market suggest she is right .
but sung - joo kim is not just basking in asian fame. she has new lands to conquer in june 2016, when mcm takes part in london collections: men. this will be another step towards giving the brand global recognition .
even if sung - joo kim were not clutching a super - sized leather rabbit and running up the stairs of her mcm store to reach an installation of a space station, you would have to warm to this dynamic, enthusiastic south korean entrepreneur .
mcm' s salvation came from south korea, one of the few places it had remained prominent, when the company that had licensed the brand – sungjoo group – acquired the business in 2005. then, mcm' s global sales stood at $ 100m (£60m). after changing the name (it is now known as modern creation münchen) and hiring adidas global creative director michael michalsky to create sporty, dynamic, youthful designs, it boomed. in 2011 sales were reported as $ 400m; by 2013, $ 500m. this year, sales are forecast to hit $ 650m, with the company considering a stock market launch and projecting sales of $ 1. 5bn within three or four years. asia is the main market, by quite some stretch – china, korea and japan each contribute almost a third of mcm' s revenue – but europe is ripe for expansion, as the opening of a dedicated 105 sq m mcm boutique at harrods last month, and a planned opening in bond street next year, attest .
mcm plans to open forty new stores in china in the 2014 - 2015 fiscal year, and it has also seen strong gains in europe and the united states. new stores have been opened in france and germany, and, in america, the brand is being distributed in luxury department stores saks fifth avenue, bergdorf goodman, and neiman marcus. an mcm boutique opened in soho, new york city in january this year, and the company plans to launch its global e - commerce effort out of new york .
mcm, the brand owned and run by one of south korea' s best - known female entrepreneurs, sung - joo kim, aims to more than double sales to $ 2 billion within five years, tapping into shoppers' growing appetite for niche luxury brands .
in 2005, korean entrepreneur sung - joo kim, who made a fortune licensing european luxury lines in asia and had owned the licence for mcm in korea since the late 1990s, stepped in and acquired the entire business for an undisclosed amount. after changing the brand’s name to mode creation munich, ms kim (nicknamed
genghis kim
for her drive and ambition) spent the next few years rebuilding mcm’s image from scratch, shutting down the company’s global operations and refocusing her efforts solely on asia, particularly in korea and china .
it seems that sung - joo kim has a different strategy from the global luxury houses, from dior to givenchy, that surround the mcm store on upscale cheongdam - dong, the heart of seoul' s
gangnam style
, promoted by k - pop singer psy .
sjk: at the time when i bought the brand, in europe mcm was tarnished in terms of its distribution channel and product quality. i knew that in order to recover its luxury positioning i had to clean it up. we closed down most of our wholesale accounts and made the global market zero [ by closing down stores in many countries and terminating local licensing operations ] except for korea. i always recognised that the future market for mcm was asia, so we began securing prime locations in top cities. we eventually opened our first boutique in china in 2010 .
in korea. mcm approached me and we took the first overseas licence to distribute the bags in korea and produce bags for the korean and american market. by 1996, however, the brand was experiencing problems — it had nothing to do with its success, as it was more popular than
but sung - joo kim, 59, is not one of those icy figures striking fear across the boardroom. she strode in - white shirt, mannish jacket and narrow trousers ending in immaculate sneakers - and immediately showed me the video of the fashion show that mcm had recently held in china .
among the flashing lights and k - pop soundtrack by the south korean - chinese boy band exo, mcm filled the huge arena of phoenix tv' s international media centre in beijing with scores of male and female models. this video showed me why korean style is the fashion ideology of china .
seoul, south korea — mcm, the german accessories brand owned and run by one of south korea' s best - known female entrepreneurs, sung - joo kim, aims to more than double sales to $ 2 billion within five years, tapping into shoppers' growing appetite for niche luxury brands .
kim concedes that the notion of luxury goods is affiliated with europe .
european companies are dominating the luxury business, because they have a long history, several hundred years of art, music and architecture. in the fashion industry we cannot ignore that they are definitely still the dominant power .
kim realized that mcm' s strength lay in its brand name that had been built and solidified over decades. armed with the knowledge of branding power, she forged ahead into the fashion arena to reinvigorate it .
mcm is about a dynamic, functional, innovative and empowered lifestyle ,
kim stresses .
. a recent internal study by ac nielson found that the chinese perceived mcm in the same tier as brands like chanel and prada. that being said, we are now elastic in terms of price range — we have lines at a higher price point but also more global lines in the affordable product range .
in the late nineties, kim states that she learned from the fashion house gucci how
a chaotic brand can turn around within three to five years .
invited to be a member of the strategy team responsible for re - launching gucci as a more fashion - forward brand, kim recognized the importance of branding .
i learned how a brand can turn around in a very dynamic way. i learned restructuring, and rebuilding brand power from gucci. i had also learned, early enough through the licensing business with mcm, how to manufacture. combining the two, i applied what i learned to rebuilding mcm ,
kim asserts .
sjk: definitely. like i said, the chinese have their own mind - set, but it’s closer to the korean thinking than that of europeans or americans. they understand the korean market, which is well exposed to european luxury. so while mcm is german, it’s also about asian tastes and details that they can relate to .
if you haven' t heard of mcm, you have probably seen it somewhere. on celebrities ranging from cristiano ronaldo to beyoncé to rihanna, maybe, or on the backs of fashion students. in general, customers tend to be young: bloggers posing for photographs outside fashion shows, rather than the old guard of editors on the front row .
mcm blossomed on the heels of a cultural renaissance of modernism, novelty and progressivism. dubbed “the glamorous and legendary years of munich”, it was an era of rebellion, marked by a generation of creative visionaries, musicians, jetsetters, entrepreneurs, and stars and starlets alike. it was the start of a new era of nightlife and daily life where anything was possible .
to have taken a word that has never found a precise translation in any other language, yet to distill its essence to asia, is mcm' s success story .
our life is just a journey ,
sung - joo kim continued .
we are constantly moving, not only physically but mentally, so that we can assist the needs of the new 21 st - century generation .
i realised how nuanced the approach to the local market has to be when we visited another store in seoul' s myeong - dong shopping area downtown, where the mcm letters shone brightly from a metal shop front and lettering on the windows announced
space odyssey
. the inside was even more full - on: a space capsule poised for take off, and a moving rail with perspex baubles encasing the bags .
during the past couple of seasons, however, a new breed of it bag has emerged. it might be golden brown, cobalt blue or fondant fancy pink. it could be adorned with metal rivets or covered with menacing - looking spikes. whether cross - body, bucket - shaped or a thick - strapped backpack, it is likely to be covered, unashamedly, with a repeated logo: a laurel, a diamond and the letters mcm .
we want to be different from the rest in the fact that mcm has origins in germany, but has had this great success in asia ,
said the ceo .
we understand the tastes and needs of young people, which is the key that everybody else hasn' t been able to figure out. the young generation are born with computers, so they expect brands to be interactive and for luxury to be functional ,
she explained .
now that mcm is installed in china, sung - joo kim' s aim is to achieve something not yet seen in the luxury market: for the brand to return to its roots in europe and early popularity in america via its pan - asian success .
with this strong base in asia, we could go back, while everyone else has followed the reverse path ,
she said, referring to the usual global progress from europe or america to asia .
to observers, kim' s mission to rebrand a globally recognized luxury name seemed very challenging. she admits that acquiring mcm was courageous .
when i bought the brand in 2005, it was a brave move. i was a medium - sized company owner, without much money or resources, not even much human resources, but what i learned from gucci is that when something' s messy, try not to add, try to clean up first .
kim believes the success of the company' s rucksacks backs up her theory about the new
global nomad
consumer .
it' s ironic that a handbag business is [ selling so many ] hands - free bags ,
she says ,
but it makes sense from a socio - economic view. the backpack is practical and mobile .
it is also unisex, a crucial element; in china, for example, one of the first markets to embrace mcm backpacks ,
more men are buying luxury than women
.
mcm' s rapid growth in the asian market thrills kim, but she emphasizes that she wishes to keep the growth moving at a manageable pace. qualitative, not quantitative growth remains her mission .
i told my team,' slow down a little bit, it' s a bit too fast, because a small company running on a global scale, competing with the global giants is not an easy job. now, it' s time to grow more sustainably. it' s a dynamic brand, we have mileage to expand .
this entrepreneur' s back - story is also intriguing, and not only in her strength of character in breaking the glass ceiling in a way that initially shocked her family but ultimately impressed them. rather, i was fascinated that she had worked at gucci when, in her own words ,
they turned around from being such a traditional italian company to being the most edgy, chic and modern brand
. the fact that she had also worked with the late marvin traub, the legendary retail impresario of new york store bloomingdale' s, is another clue to mcm' s retail success .
youth - sweeping trends are nothing new, but mcm' s ubiquity is surprising given that its prices veer so far beyond student - loan territory – think £380 for a small messenger bag, £530 for a roomier tote and, at the top of the line, £1, 735 or even £3, 135 for a limited edition snakeskin backpack. beyond in - the - know fashion and streetwear circles, most uk consumers are unfamiliar with the brand. this is a tricky proposition in luxury leather goods, a market built on heritage; whether it' s louis vuitton equipping the maharajas with travelling trunks in the 1920s or grace kelly using hermès bags as a shield from paparazzi in the 1950s, history and narrative are everything .
at the heart of our products is our craftsmanship: a heritage and tradition that unites hundreds of years of excellence in german manufacturing and engineering design. every piece we make is the work of fine craftsmen and women who assemble each element and item with the utmost care and attention to detail. we ensure that our products are crafted by the most knowledgeable and skilled of artisans to meet the same rigorous quality standards we established decades ago. mcm' s unparalleled commitment to perfection, paired with the finest in fabrics, leathers, materials and finishings create pieces that will stay with you over generations. and while we look to our heritage for technique, we continue to innovate for the future, infusing cutting edge technology with fresh design—the perfect evolution between of the old school and the new .
back in south korea, kim started her own business licensing luxury designer brands for the korean market, including sonia rykiel, yves saint laurent, gucci, and mcm, as well as british retailer marks & spencer. she credits the 1988 seoul olympics for stirring the interest of western luxury brand retailers in asian markets. though interest and demand were present, she recalls the difficulty of setting up a business in seoul in the eighties .
i had only a telephone and a desk. financing micro - businesses in korea, especially toward women, was nonexistent at that time. no bank wanted to lend me money ,
she explains. however, through a negotiated joint venture between american businessmen and her father, and a family reconciliation, she secured a loan from her father. when asked what could be done to aid her, she replied ,
lend me money, because no banks want to lend me money .
the brand, founded in munich in 1976 and known for its colorful $ 700 studded canvas backpacks, plans to expand in markets such as japan and europe and is looking to open outlets in major shopping hotspots including paris, kim told reuters .
we have not even explored the japanese market yet, we are just starting there ,
she said in an interview on the fringes of the conde nast luxury conference in seoul .
its collection is also heavily loaded with logo - embossed products, whereas many brands such as prada and gucci have recently been selling more logo - free items .
asked whether she would consider taking the company public, kim said she was not interested .
money dictates money, i' m (a) more value - driven person ,
she said .
its sales grew about 14 - 15 percent at constant currency in 2015, and kim expected them to grow about 20 percent in 2016 .
the youngest daughter of south korean magnate kim soo - keon, kim built her businesses from scratch. she gained experience in luxury working for us department store bloomingdale' s and developing gucci' s south korean business .
kim, who champions women' s rights and is head of south korea' s red cross, said luxury shoppers were embracing mobile e - commerce and estimated that within five years, 15 to 20 percent of the brand' s total sales could be generated online .
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today our house codes are reborn in berlin, germany’s engine for fashion & visual culture. from german expressionism and the birth of bauhaus to politico - punk and industrial techno, the capital has been celebrated as a bohemian refuge, where creativity is defined by volatility and the underground meets the mainstream. berlin today is a city in perpetual flux, representing freedom, innovation and multiculturalism whose ability to reinvent itself can be attributed to its diverse history .
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please provide a better working environment for your team. as well as a fresh new uniform. last but not least. this employee discount needs to go up ...
take the time really review who you hire. i agree with most of the post. management is so worried about gossiping and being friends they can' t run the store properly. stop creating a negative environment and then blaming others. stop showing favoritism towards certain members of your staff. stop helping certain employees make their goals by giving them sales. stop changing or breaking rules and when it goes bag, blame the management team under you. stop gossiping about members of your staff when they are not around and expect those people to respect you or the person your talking about. and be open to listen to someone else' s voice other than your own all the time .
there' s lots of opportunities to learn and grow as an entry level worker. the work is very hands on in a fast - paced environment, which forces you to catch on quickly and find efficient ways of working. although you can feel overloaded at times, you can gain twice the amount of work experience compared to working at other companies. company benefits are nice too, with free coffee and lunch at the cafeteria .
the korean top - down work culture can be difficult to accept and adjust to if you come from abroad. internal processes are often inefficient and rigid, and some leaders often abuse their authority. some examples of this culture / abuse of power include, not being able to leave work until your boss leaves, not being transparent with the team and withholding key information for personal gain, unnecessary overtime, etc .
overall team management needs improvement, with more leaders who care about creating a healthy, collaborative team environment and looking out for the well being and growth of his / her team. i think my experience would' ve been more positive if more leaders helped motivate individuals to achieve their own career goals and strive to guide them along the way .
you need to be president friend or used to work at the same company to move up, without that u will never get a promotion! also, u can do whatever u want if u are friend with president, e. g. never show up at work, bill the company for family vacation, being drunk at work everyday, etc
too many to list. no communication, no teamwork, very toxic environment with infighting across corporate and store teams. very high turnover due to shocking interpersonal relationships. hr is not at all educated or skilled with criteria necessary for job .
develop a culture, provide some support, share information. don’t blame, end cronyism, be fair across the board .
they' re trying out a lot of cool, new things esp. with marketing initiatives
many people i started with have left some very good talented people especially in management. not good they offered a lot
take care of your people you say you do but you really don' t words are spoken actions speak a lot louder .
you don' t know everything. take the time to listen to others opinions
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12 days accrued vacation per year, i believe you get 5 personal and 5 sick days, 401k matches 4% and the 1% every 2% you put down after 5 .
great company match, pto needs help, great holidays and health is very good .
list based on reports from current and former employees. it may not be complete .
he words
designer handbag
conjure up a certain image: a moneyed parisian sitting in a 6th arrondissement cafe with a chanel 2. 55, perhaps, or a celebrity striding through los angeles airport with a
still, kim does not see the brand as south korean or asian, but as resolutely german. she points out that design and production are mainly run from germany and italy, and that many other brands perceived as european – from mulberry to escada – happen to be owned by asian companies .
all the major brands may have some asian elements coming in, even chanel, especially gucci, with gold, crystals, white and colour. they know their growing customers are rich asians and russians ,
she says; designs are becoming more globalised .
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anyone who can take a fading german travel - bag business (originally michael cromer munich) and turn it into a thriving accessories company grounded in seoul, but sold across the world, deserves respect .
the fashion tycoon' s other day jobs include being president of her country' s branch of the red cross. and on her office wall, with its panoramic views across the re - constructed city, ringed by mountains, there is a citation from 2015 by queen elizabeth ii declaring sung - joo kim an honorary officer of the order of the british empire for services to humanity .
to have a powerful business position and a strong sense of corporate responsibility is exceptional. to reach this position as a woman, in a country where her own father originally rejected her strong, independent stance, is an impressive achievement .
before i had time to absorb the 3 - d graphics and fashion - as - theatre vision from the beijing show, the screen was filled with a video of exo - asia' s top boy band. when the k - pop stars made an appearance at a recent opening of a seoul store, 11, 000 fans showed up, sung - joo kim said .
we had a lot of fun shooting this series! it' s because in asia the young generation tends to lead the luxury market. they are very exposed, firstly from the internet, to what' s going on with all the brands. secondly, they are very brand conscious. they are born with a computer and the way they relate to luxury is so different from the traditional way .
on my visit, the shelves of the seoul store had some swarovski bling and bold logos, but the merchandise has certainly developed since sung - joo kim, the long - term license holder, bought the brand in 2005 when its total annual sales were around $ 70 million. a decade on, i was looking at cute, make - you - smile bags that suggested robots, bug - eyed insects and rabbits. but there were also smooth, plain bags in sleek céline and ysl style. they were the fruit of a newly established production base in italy, expanding the reach of a brand whose sales rose to $ 650 million in 2014 through 300 stores in 35 countries .
this seemed in stark contrast to the story that sung - joo kim was telling me, about how she convinced harrods, london' s classic department store, to stock unisex, luxury backpacks as intrinsic to practical modernity .
it' s streetwear and high - end; luxury and kitsch ,
she said of the brand' s offering .
even though we will need to adjust our marketing and product offer, we are reviewing our collection because of the great success we are having in america ,
sung - joo said .
we launched our e - commerce in america in february and it is doing very well. we are learning a lot because communication with the final customer provides a lot of information to fine - tune our offers and make them even stronger .
i felt exhilarated by sung - joo kim' s enthusiasm and the sense that this was a brand with a fresh, youthful take, in spite of its germanic roots and the fact that most of the bags' decoration - such as the fendi - style furry characters - looked familiar .
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headquartering a global brand in asia was considered a handicap before, but suddenly it became a strength. the plan was to emphasise the brand’s german heritage and italian craftsmanship while maximising its popularity in asia, especially korea and china .
sjk: in the middle of the 1990s, our price point was higher than louis vuitton and we were positioned in a top luxury tier. because the korean business started with licensed product we had more affordable prices, but that doesn’t mean we are positioning ourselves with
sjk: china is interesting in that it’s different from japan, korea and even the rest of asia. the chinese have a very independent mind - set. defining our customer profile has been interesting because they are not rich, poor or middle class — it’s about the emerging global nomad. it’s doesn’t just appeal to the young generation, but young - minded people .
at the moment our major product group is backpacks. when we made the backpack into a luxury product people thought it was outrageous — but this really portrays this new lifestyle we are creating. it’s also unique in that both men and women can carry it .
sjk: globally, logos are no longer a status symbol, so we plan to minimise the logo and create what i call ‘brand art’. we approach the logo from a new perspective — pop art is a big trend and the more serious the world is becoming, the more people like to be playful and dynamic, so our logo products will cater to them .
at the same time, we have to service the needs of professionals, so we can’t have logos everywhere. as such, we have built a production base and creative centre in italy, to allow us to tap into the best leather tanneries and production factories to produce top tier collections like our gold line. it’s priced much higher and is aimed at the more discerning customer looking for high quality .
sjk: china has so many different economies within one country, so we’ve had to learn how to cater to semi - mature, mature and infant markets, all under one economy. the trick is to keep a cohesive brand identity and to merchandise and cater to those specifics. it’s also vital to secure our top luxury positioning without compromising. the market grows so fast and so many new cities are emerging, with huge opportunities to set up points of sale in new malls. however, our strategy for growth is about quality rather than quantity. by next year we will have 40 boutiques in china, and that’s growing too fast .
sjk: for the past nine years we have witnessed tremendous growth every year — more than 30 to 40 per cent. in the korean travel market alone, which is worth 7 billion dollars, we just became one of the top three brands. we are bigger than chanel and second only to louis vuitton .
although asia is important, our international expansion is already underway. we have opened several stores in europe this year, including paris and germany, where we launched stores in munich, frankfurt and berlin. in america we distribute the line through luxury department stores like neiman marcus and
. we plan to open our soho store in new york this december and launch our global e - commerce out of new york next year. more stores will follow in key us cities .
when we have set up in key locations, it will be time to consolidate our management, infrastructure and quality of production in italy, while building a global team out of germany .
sjk: i want people to know that we are not just a european brand, but a truly global brand. as a brand owner i have always wanted to make social responsibility one of our core values: it’s not just about growing, but serving every market and society that we go into. i hope the spirit of the brand also carries a message of sharing in society. it’s all about balancing exclusivity, high quality design and craftsmanship, while still creating an aura of inclusiveness .
the entire world is watching fashion. so what do we want them to know ?
for global fashionistas, and those admittedly less chic ,
luxury fashion goods
evoke images of monogrammed logos designed by european fashion houses, most of which have been, and still are, headed by european men. thus, sung - joo kim' s acquisition of german luxury brand modern creation munich was both a surprise and a break from the norm for the fashion world .
the company recorded sales of slightly less than $ 70 million in 2005, the year it was acquired by kim. it is now active in 35 countries with 365 stores, and generated sales of over $ 500 million in 2014. with thirty years of entrepreneurship and business savvy under her belt, kim was recently invited to join a select group of leaders at this year' s world economic forum in davos at credit suisse' s
women of impact dinner .
she shared the story of her success with us .
kim' s appeal stems not only from her business sense, but also her personal narrative. though she was born into one of the richest families in south korea, she inherited none of her father' s wealth. her father, a gas and energy tycoon, wished his daughters to marry prosperous men, not enter the realm of business. after her father' s death, her brothers inherited billions; she inherited nothing monetarily, but was gifted with his mind for business .
it seems kim was going to follow a different path from the start. she took a non - traditional route by leaving south korea as a teen to study at amherst college, the london school of economics, and harvard university. then, contrary to her family' s traditional, confucian - prescribed way of life, she married her college sweetheart without her parents' consent, which led to her immediate disinheritance. with no money for her tuition, she was forced to drop out of harvard after one year and obtain a job .
she secured a position as a project manager at the iconic bloomingdales department store in new york city, working under the mentorship of the company' s
godfather of fashion
, chairman marvin traub. three years later, kim' s drive and
cut - throat training
propelled her back to korea, taking with her all the knowledge of the fashion industry she had garnered at her time working in the luxury sector with bloomingdales .
she attests that the asian market today includes large numbers of young professionals who have
different needs and a new perception of luxury .
kim defines new school luxury as multi - dimensional: economic power moving from the west to the east, unisex, family money, and the dynamic, growing markets of china, japan, korea, and southeast asia. new luxury represents the
dynamism of the vital and youthful mindset
kim explains .
despite more than half a billion dollars in sales and a workforce that is 75 percent women, kim refuses to sit on her laurels .
as a brand owner i have always wanted to make social responsibility one of our core values. it' s not just about growing, but serving every market and society that we go into. i hope the spirit of the brand also carries a message of sharing in society. it' s all about balancing exclusivity, high quality design and craftsmanship, while still creating jobs and opportunities through inclusiveness .
entrepreneurs that run their own businesses are not the only people who demonstrate entrepreneurial thinking. many successful business leaders may not consider themselves to be entrepreneurs in the typical sense, yet clearly demonstrate an entrepreneurial spirit in the way they think and behave as decision makers. understanding the motivations that drive this mindset can help everyone harness the power of such thinking and to make change happen in the world around them .
switzerland has always had a lot of entrepreneurs. small and medium - sized enterprises (smes) from switzerland are globally active and look beyond their borders to find customers, inspiration and growth. we asked some entrepreneurs for the secret to leading a swiss sme to success on the world stage and their thoughts on what swiss quality means to them .
private equity is evolving. as this asset class gets larger and more versatile, companies have a surprisingly diverse menu of private capital options when it comes to finding finance. as private equity evolves, what are the key trends changing the nature of the deal ?
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mcm worldwide is a leather luxury goods brand founded by michael cromer and bought out by sungjoo group in 2005 . the brand ’s signature logo-printed material , called cognac visetos , appears on many of its products . its brass plate insignia is found on all heritage collection bags , and most products ; each brass plate is identified by a unique number at the bottom . mcm sells its products through wholesale accounts , franchises and directly operated stores . 
mcm worldwide is a leather luxury goods brand founded by michael cromer and bought out by sungjoo group in 2005. the brand ’s signature logo-printed material, called cognac visetos, appears on many of its products. its brass plate insignia is found on all heritage collection bags, and most products; each brass plate is identified by a unique number at the bottom. mcm sells its products through wholesale accounts, franchises and directly operated stores.
mcm worldwide is a leather luxury goods brand founded by michael cromer and bought out by sungjoo group in 2005. the brand ’s signature logo-printed material, called cognac visetos, appears on many of its products. its brass plate insignia is found on all heritage collection bags, and most products; each brass plate is identified by a unique number at the bottom. mcm sells its products through wholesale accounts, franchises and directly operated stores.