Chinese etailer Vipshop partners with London Fashion Week

In a bid to promote British fashion to the increasingly important Chinese consumer, London Fashion Week has signed a deal to make online discount etailer Vipshop the official e-commerce partner for the event.

As part of the agreement Vipshop will relay information about the brands and products shown to Chinese consumers, stage a customised show with exclusive fashions, designers, skin care and hairstyling, and fashion art exhibitions will also be staged in Shanghai among other initiatives.

Vipshop will also use the opportunity to raise awareness of Chinese brands and designers on the global stage. "We plan to cooperate with more international brands and fashion weeks this year, building a fashion industry that covers culture, intellectual property, brands, designers, consumption and services," Vipshop vice president Huang Hongying told China Daily.

Vipshop was founded in 2008 and offers a range of consumer products to Chinese customers at significantly discounted prices. It is seeking to up its fashion credentials with its customer base, which is said to be 80% female. The business was listed in the New York Stock Exchange and is China's third largest online retailer behind JD.com and Tmall.

This is the second initiative with a Chinese e-commerce giant that the British Fashion Council, owner of London Fashion Week, has agreed in recent months. Back in September it signed a deal with China's largest retailer JD.com to sponsor the BFC/Vogue Fashion Fund which is effective from this month. Up to three designers will have the opportunity to share the £200,000 prize fund to aid the development of their business.