Luxury outlets lure Chinese at Lunar New Year

A Louis Vuitton outlet is seen in China World Shopping Mall in Beijing, Feb 6, 2014. [Photo / dfic.cn]

The primary target of the French department group's new outlet is foreign tourists, especially wealthy tourists from emerging markets such as China.

Chinese customers account for about 20 percent of Le Printemps' revenue, according to the group's chief executive, Paolo de Cesare.

"It used to be Japanese and Russian customers. But now the Chinese have clearly become the number one customers," de Cesare was quoted by media reports as saying.

Le Printemps also held celebrations for the Lunar New Year featuring dragon and lion dancing at the new store, as well as its flagship store on Boulevard Haussmann.

Chinese tourists spend an average of 1,500 euros ($2,000) on shopping per person, more than double the figure for Japanese tourists, according to the Paris Tourist Office. More than 1.2 million Chinese tourists travel to France each year.

The French capital sees London and Milan as its main rivals as many Chinese tourists will also travel to other parts of Europe to shop for luxury goods.

Hiring Chinese-speaking staff and providing Chinese shopping guides and brochures have become common sales strategies for luxury brands and department stores in Europe.

"We have hired six employees who can speak Chinese. Chanel has developed many loyal customers from China who fly to Paris to shop every year. That's why we need to make sure we have very good communication with our clients," said an assistant manager at Chanel's outlet at French department store Galeries Lafayette.

French luxury bakery and sweets producer Laduree has also seen an increasing number of Chinese customers.