Luxury brand Mulberry (LON:MUL) has announced plans to launch a deal with Onward Global Fashion, a Japanese brand.
Together, the well-known companies will form a 50:50 venture which will be called Mulberry Japan and headed in Tokyo. The news comes soon after Mulberry struck a similar deal in Greater China.
in recent months the luxury brand has attempted to expand internationally to boost sales. It has also marketed itself as a more affordable luxury brand, pricing some goods at a lower scale.
In a statement Mulberry chief executive, Thierry Andretta said that the group saw “significant growth opportunity in Japan”. He said he will continue attempts to tap into the “key international luxury markets while continuing to refine its positioning in the UK”.
Last month Mulberry saw rising full-year profits, which were helped by an increase in tourists shopping in the UK to take advantage of the weak pound. In the year to March the brand’s pre-tax profits rose by a fifth to £7.5 million.
“The data from the ONS indicate that the sharply weakened pound is encouraging more visits to the UK from abroad and more spend by visitors,” said Howard Archer, chief UK and European economist at IHS Markit on the ‘Brexit tourists’ taking advantage of the weaker pound.
“This is especially true of North America, which ties in with the pound’s fall being most pronounced against the US dollar.” he added.
“I am pleased to announce our partnership with OGF in Japan, a market where we see significant growth opportunity for Mulberry. In OGF we have a partner which has extensive luxury goods experience and a robust infrastructure which will enable us to advance our international retail and omnichannel strategy in this key market,” said Andretta.
Mulberry and OGF plan to invest a total of £2.8 million in developing the distribution network and building their new presence in Japan.
During mid-morning trading, Mulberry shares were down 24.50p at 1,055p per share.