In Hong Kong, the French luxury giant of the group of Bernard Arnaud LVMH, plans to close one of its Louis Vuitton stores located in a high-end shopping center, regularly targeted by pro-democracy demonstrators.
By Luxus Plus
The Louis Vuitton store in question is located in the commercial district of Causeway Bay and is owned by Wharf Real Estate Investment Corporation.
They refuse to lower the rent for the brand, the South China Morning Post said on Friday. A monthly rent that would amount to about 5 million Hong Kong dollars (575,990 euros), according to consultants.
The two parties declined to respond to requests for comment from the AFP.
The Hong Kong executive accuses the pro-democracy demonstrations, which have regularly degenerated into violent clashes between the police and the protesters, of being behind the drop in tourist numbers and the desire to consume.
The latter recorded its tenth consecutive monthly decline in retail trade in November, a decline of more than 23% compared to the previous year.
Jewelry, watches, clocks and luxury gifts are the most affected category, with a drop of 43.5% over one year.
Protesters regularly held rallies in the mall, during which they paraded and chanted slogans, with the aim of forcing stores to close, thereby putting economic pressure on the government.
In fact in Hong Kong luxury brands are highly dependent on wealthy tourists.
According to the latest figures released by the Hong Kong Tourism Council, only 2.65 million people visited Hong Kong in November 2019, down 56% from the same period last year.
