Why China Is the Next Big Market for African Brands: Insights from Development Reimagined’s CEO
An interview with Hanna Ryder
Some weeks ago I wrote about Asia being a rising frontier for African fashion, following Canex X Tranoi Tokyo and Development Reimagined’s initiative Africa Reimagined at Shanghai Fashion Week.
For its first edition this April, the Africa Reimagined event introduced 22 African fashion designers to the Chinese market with the goal of expanding their reach beyond the US and Africa.
I had the opportunity to recently interview the platform’s founder Hannah Ryder about her work and why China offers a major opportunity for African businesses.
Key insights
China is a diverse market that’s open to different forms of style and expression.
African brands should view China as more than a sourcing hub but a thriving consumer market with immense potential.
Brands must learn about the Chinese market, where unique aspects such as e-commerce dominance and live streaming shape consumer behaviour
Based between China and the UK, Hannah, the Kenya-born former UN ambassador and economist, began her career in the environmental and climate change sector before joining the United Nations Development Programme China office as deputy country director. A journey that transformed the trajectory of her career. “Through that experience I decided to open Development Reimagined (her China-based consulting firm),” she explains over Zoom from America.
A few days later we would meet in person in Johannesburg where she’s part of South Africa’s G20 Presidency special advisory committee.
AFD: How do you integrate your background in policy and economics with fashion?
HR: We are very good at research and networking. We researched heavily which fashion brands to reach out to from across the continent. Curating it was a case of finding great luxury brands that think of China as a market.
AFD: Asia is a tricky territory to navigate. China in particular presents a uniquely structured market, heavily influenced by long-standing Western brands that have led consumer preferences over time. What was the response to African designers at Shanghai Fashion Week?
HR: I think you’re right. In pretty much every consumer goods sector in China, it’s Western brands which have dominated, and over time Chinese brands have started to emerge. However, what’s different about China compared to Japan for example, is that Japanese brands have always been very strong alongside Western brands. The Japanese have a strong idea of what they want and brands have to fit into that framework.
China has a different kind of model in which they integrate the international with their interpretation. And that’s where the opportunity is because it has a diverse and open market. There’s space for foreign brands. It’s not the same kind of constraint you might face in Japan to keep to very specific styles or colours for example. China has a vast range of dialects, agricultural commodities, and traditions and I think that matches so well with our own diversity on the continent.
The response was incredible. We had 1201 media clippings, PR value of RMB 3.95 million, and over 12.7 billion media impressions. And some of the brands received buyers. In addition to the amazing reception, designers also felt like they were getting to see the future.
AFD: How so?
HR: (…) A future in which online is more important than in person. We took the brands to a live streaming market and they got to experience Chinese KOL’s selling out products in real time, on livestream.
We wanted brands to understand that it's about structure and building a complete ecosystem. That’s why we are also launching a China-based e-commerce store. It will provide a more affordable and easier way for designers to enter and manage their businesses in China.
AFD: A lot of brands pre-COVID-19 were not fully invested in developing an online presence…
HR: (…) This is the time to do it. Trade tariffs are going up in so many different places. If our businesses are going to survive we have to diversify our markets so we can’t just rely on the US, Europe, the continent or our home countries. We need to make the most of all the markets in terms of sourcing, production, and reaching new consumers.
We have to take it step by step but do it in a way that can still allow development. That’s another reason China is so important because it shows you what scale really means and how we should be envisioning growth.
A different version of this interview also appears in the latest (June) edition of Your Luxury Africa magazine where I lead the publication’s Pan-African reportage for fashion and style across print and online.
Thanks for reading this edition of Africa Fashion Decoded.
