The Kooples launches in Greater China

Luxury French fashion brand The Kooples will enter Greater China under distribution by Swire Resources. Its flagship store is opening in high-end Hong Kong shopping mall Pacific Place this month.

Branded as accessible luxury fashion for Parisian street chic and androgynous designs, The Kooples was founded by brothers Alexandre, Laurent and Raphaël Elicha in 2008. Its name is a French slang term for couples; and most of the brand's campaigns feature real-life couples. The brand even launched a chat app The Kooples Blackout in 2015 which has a feature that blocks out other phone activities during conversations. 

Laetitia Mergui, CEO Asia, The Kooples, said the brand will open its store in China next year. The brand currently has a retail corner at Beijing's Galeries Lafayette besides selling on ecommerce platform JD.com. Its other Asian presence includes Singapore, South Korea and Thailand. 

On Swire's decision to include The Kooples into its portfolio of brands, Richard Sell, director of trading and industrial at Swire Pacific, said in a statement: "We see huge potential for this self-styled, spirited, exciting brand on the back of the impressive growth it's achieved in the accessible luxury segment since its inception in Paris less than a decade ago."