X-Bionic, the Swiss brand of functional under- and outerwear, has opened its first single-branded point of sale at Shin Kong Plaza, the prestigious shopping mall in Beijing on 15 square meters. According to Patrick Lambertz, the company's chief administrative officer, the shop reached a turnover of more than 10,000 yuan (€1,185-$1,586) in its first month, which is more than the double the CNY 5,000 minimum that the mall's operator required. X-Bionic made it into the Chinese market last year and showed at Ispo Beijing last week for the first time. Lambertz pointed out that there will be a special focus on marketing the brand's new line of asymmetric underwear (X-Bionic calls it “decision layer”) for golf players. Lambertz sees a huge potential for high-end golf apparel in China's fast-growing upper class, while he is cautious when it comes to bike wear. According to him, cycling is emerging, but currently not the focus of his brand development in China. There, X-Bionic currently has some 50 points of sale, which are expected to grow in the next years. However, Lambertz feels no pressure to expand the retail network at high speed. For a high-end brand, Lambertz said, the quality of the retail customers is by far more important than their number.

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