Luxury outlet operator Value Retail has opened more than 30 "first shops," referring to debut outlets and flagship stores for international brands, in Suzhou, east China's Jiangsu Province, as part of its latest expansion.
The project, completed on April 22, makes Suzhou Village the largest site in the Bicester Collection, a portfolio of 12 luxury shopping tourism villages in Europe, the United States and China. Value Retail currently operates two of these villages in China, located in Suzhou and Shanghai.
"Over here, a little further along, we see a first flagship. Up here, we see a first off-price store in China. Again, first off-price store in the sports category," said Mark Israel, co-chairman of Value Retail China, while showing reporter around at the newly opened area, where over 30 stores are "first shops."
Among the new openings, nine are the first outlet shops in China and 22 are debut stores or outlets in Jiangsu Province. The expansion reflects the Bicester Collection's strong performance in recent years, positioning Suzhou Village as a key growth driver.
"While some areas of the market are declining, we're actually growing faster than we were at any time since before COVID-19," said Mark Israel.
"It's segmenting more. I think all people at times could be driven just by price and convenience. We see, particularly if we think of sports, active lifestyle, healthy lifestyle, kinds of things, people are more focused on that. They're willing to spend for the best when it comes to that category. I don't see any fundamental change in that," he continued.
The Value Retail China co-chairman has been living in China since 2013. He said that one thing that has always remained strong in China is the people's willingness to consume.
"They're not afraid to spend money, but they want to make sure they're getting value for the money, and they want to make sure they're getting value for the time that they're investing in order to spend their money," he said.
China's retail sales of consumer goods, a major indicator of the country's consumption strength, expanded 2.4 percent year on year in the first quarter of 2026, official data showed.
The momentum has pushed global retail giants to expand their supply to Chinese consumers.
Luxury outlet operator Value Retail expands Suzhou Village with 30 'first shops'
