Selling fresh meat to flog luxury watches

When the representative of a venerable Italian brand crossed paths with a star, he knew he had struck pay dirt

When Bulgari, the 133-year-old Italian jewelry brand, chose the Chinese singer and actor Kris Wu as its spokesman last year, questions were raised about how exactly this chemistry would work.

Antoine Pin, managing director of Bulgari Greater China and Australia, recalls that when he first met Wu the singer was wearing an exaggerated high-jewelry sunflower brooch with a tuxedo, an act he pulled off effortlessly.

"It was like 'Wow!'," Pin says. "It was edgy but cool in a smart way. It could have been stupid or ridiculous on many people, but he has the taste and the feeling for it. It was a very nice encounter. He's got this edge. When you've got this crazy piece of jewelry it's not something classic. You have to be edgy and creative."

Perfect pick

A year has passed since that meeting, and Pin waxes lyrical about Wu, saying he is the perfect pick for the brand. He is widely regarded as a xiao xian rou, literally little fresh meat, or heartthrob, and the brand expects him to have some staying power.

"There is a crazy trend about him, but it's more than that," Pin says. "He's not just 'little fresh meat', he's 'fresh meat' with a future. ... He can be very good aging meat. ... It is your capacity to smell what's going on and to understand the consistency in his character. He's an interesting person, very young and mature for his age. He's in control of who he is and what he does. He's passionate about plenty of things. He's very social, very talkative and at the same time very respectful of anyone. He has the balance of maturity, considering the craziness around him, and the composure."

As the face for watches, Wu is also a way for the brand to approach a wider audience. The world of watches can appear as a little too serious and boring sometimes, Pin says, and Wu has made it more approachable.

"It's a way to energize the world of watches. You can be young, you can be edgy and you can still like watches. He has totally achieved the task. It has actually made older people look at Bulgari jewelry with a fresh perspective and boosted us in a very interesting way."

Wide audiences

While the brand is looking to wider audiences, it is also holding on tight to its heritage. It held the Heritage Collection Exhibition in Beijing SKP recently, with more than 110 pieces on display, including 40 pieces of precious heritage jewelry from the 1920s to today.

Highlights included an Indian-influenced set worn by the actress Keira Knightley on the red carpet at the 2006 Oscars, jewelry featuring coins from ancient Rome that Elizabeth Taylor, Andy Warhol and Grace Kelly and other celebrities are known for having worn, and a high jewelry platinum tiara adorned with diamonds made for divas.

"Not everyone has the chance to travel to Rome," Pin says. "We are taking the opportunity to bring a bit of Italy to China. The idea is to give people a flavor of the Italian spirit. We allow them to feel, to touch, to try and to experience. ...We are inviting people to get into the intimacy of the brand and to get behind the scenes."

The luxury market in China has been under pressure for the past several years, and Pin says Bulgari will continue to invest in the country because it is still one of the most important markets.

"What we try to do is to go beyond the good and bad moments and continue what we do. There is not a good or bad moment; there is the continuous moment.

"We need to talk to people, we need to romance them, educate them. That's what we do right now. We ask our team to engage and take more care of the customers."

Strong character

In China the signature Serpenti collection has been very successful because its recognizable and symbolic design appeals to the strong character of the women here, Pin says.

"In China, women are considered as strong. We have lots of business partners who are women. Many women keep their own names while in Europe women take their husbands' name. They pick the pieces themselves. It's a strong design, and it fits with the strong character of Chinese women."

The brand is going to open the first Bulgari Hotel in China in Beijing in November. It will open another in Shanghai next year. This follows the opening of the Bulgari Residences in Shanghai last year.