Machine-A exits China to reevaluate positioning

Two years on from opening its first store in China, British multi-brand retailer Machine-A is now set to exit the region as it looks to reevaluate its positioning.

In mid-2022, during the Covid-19 pandemic, Machine-A revealed it was to set foot in Shanghai, its first international location where brands such as Mugler, Charles Jeffrey Loverboy and Raf Simons, for which the store was also the first D2C outlet in China, were offered.

While the company already had an established consumer base in the region that it engaged with through local apps like WeChat and Alipay, its physical presence came at a “complicated time”, founder and buying director of Machine-A, Stavros Karelis, told WWD.

Speaking to the media outlet, Karelis said: “We are reevaluating the ways of being present in Shanghai as a brand that makes more sense to us and the direction we are taking.”

He noted that the global market was going through a challenging period during the pandemic, particularly in China, which faced strict months-long lockdowns and later a resulting decrease in consumer disposable income.

Karelis remained optimistic, however, adding: “The experience [in China] has been an extraordinary one and I am so grateful to have been able to achieve this, which was so important to us as an appreciation to an audience that has hugely supported Machine-A from early times.”

Machine-A will continue to retain contact with customers via WeChat that will remain as an active sales channel for which requests will be fulfilled from its London base.