Lux in flux
flux/flʌks; flʌks/n[U] continuous change or succession of changes; unsettled state连续的改变;接连不断的变化;不稳定的状态:Organization of the company was then in a state of flux.当时公司的编制正处於不稳定状态.
High-end retailing
MILAN
Luxury-goods firms can no longerrely on China to propel growth
ITTAKESat least a month to wash, comb,spinand otherwise prepare finemohairto becomecloth that is stitched into suits byErmenegildo
Zegna, a 107-year-old Italian brand. InTrivero,anAlpine villagewest of Milan, 150 artisans in an elegant factory work atcarding, dying,weavingandwarping. Aslooms
rattle,bespectacledwomenstretchcloth overilluminatedscreens and check for imperfections. Others use arack crammedwith driedSpanishthistlesto remove excess hair fromfabric.
Spin：[I] engage in the occupation or pastime of spinning thread纺纱（为业或消遣）:I enjoy spinning.我喜欢纺纱.
mohair/ˈməuheə(r); ˋmoˏhɛr/n[U](cloth or thread made from the) fine silky hair of the Angora goat安哥拉山羊毛;马海毛;安哥拉羊毛线;马海毛织物;马海毛呢: [attrib作定语]a mohair sweater马海毛毛衣.
Trivero：意大利特里韦罗市
cardv[Tn] clean or comb (wool)
with this（用硬刷或梳子）刷,梳（毛）.
Weave: [Tn, Tn.pr]~ sth
(from sth)make (fabric, etc) by passing threads or strips crosswise overand under lengthwise ones, by hand or on a machine（用手工或机器）编,织（织物等）:a tightly
woven piece of cloth织得很密的布
warp /wɔːp; wɔrp/n the warp[sing] (in weaving) the threads on a loom over and under which otherthreads (theweftorwoof) are passed to make cloth（纺织中的）经纱. =>illus atweave
loom1/luːm; lum/nmachinefor weaving cloth织布机.
rattle/ˈrætl; ˋrætl/v[I, Tn] (cause sth to) make short sharpsounds quickly, one after the other; (cause sth to) shake while making suchsounds（使某物）发出一连串的短促而尖利的声音;（使某物）颤动出声:The windows were rattling in the wind.风刮得窗户格格作响. *Hailstones
rattled on the tin roof.冰雹落在铁皮屋顶上发出砰砰声. *The wind rattled
the windows.风把窗户刮得颤悠悠地格格作响.
bespectacled/bɪˈspektəkld; bɪˋspɛktəkld/adjwearingspectacles戴眼镜的.
illuminatedSomething that is illuminated is lit up, usuallyby electric lighting.
...an illuminated sign...
rack1/ræk; ræk/n(often in compounds常用以构成复合词) framework, usu with bars or pegs, for holding
things or for hanging things on（放东西或挂东西用的）架子:a `plate-rack盘碟架*a `wine-rack,ie for holding wine bottles酒瓶架*a `toast-rack面包片架*a `hat-rack帽架.
cram/kræm; kræm/v[Tn.pr, Tn.p]~ sth (into sth/in)pushor force too much of sth into sth将某物塞进某物中;尽力塞入
thistle[ˈθɪs(ə)l]n.〈植〉蓟
Zegna,run by its fourth generation of family owners, is distinctive in manyways.Bigcorporatesuccesses arerareinItaly,which tends to nurture smallerfirms. Sales fromZegna’s500-oddshops world-wide, plus earnings from selling to other producers, amount to anannual €1.2bn ($1.3bn) or so. It controls its entire supply chain, which isunusual even in an industry that cherishesrawmaterials. Three years ago it bought a 6,300-acre farm with 10,000 sheepin Australia.AspokeswomanbragsthatverticalintegrationatZegnaruns“fromsheeptoshop”.
brag/bræg; bræɡ/v(-gg-)[I, Ipr, Tf]~ (about/of sth)talk with too much pride (about sth);boast吹嘘（某事物）;自夸:Stop bragging!别吹牛!
The company is also unusual becauseit hasstayedindependent of thefewswaggering giantsthatbestridetheluxury-goods world, of which the biggest isLVMH,BernardArnault’s 30-year-oldconglomerate; itincorporates LouisVuitton,Dior andmany other brands. Other groups includeKering,also based in Paris and the owner of Gucci, andRichemont,a Swiss specialist inwatches
and jewelry. (The luxury sector isalsoreplete with minnows,of course—singlebrands with revenues of just a few hundred million euros, such as Versace andMissoni.)
bestride/bɪˈstraɪd; bɪˋstraɪd/v(ptbestrode/bɪˈstrəud; bɪˋstrod/,ppbestridden/bɪˈstrɪdn; bɪˋstrɪdn/) [Tn] (fml文) sit or stand with one leg on each side of
(sth)两腿分开跨着坐或站在（某物）上
Bestride:To bestride something means to be the most powerful and important
person or thing in it.
conglomerate/kənˈglɔmərət; kənˋɡlɑmərɪt/n(commerce商) large corporation
formed by merging several different firms（通过合并若干企业而组建的）大公司,企业集团:a mining,
chemical, etc conglomerate矿业﹑化工等企业集团.
背景补充：
1.Kering:成立于1963年，中文名是开云集团是一家国际控股的法国公司，旗下拥有一系列国际知名品牌
2.历峰集团（Richemont）是瑞士奢侈品公司，它由南非亿万富翁安顿·鲁伯特(Anton
Rupert)于1988年建立。公司涉及的四个商业领域是：珠宝、手表、附件以及时装。从2004年以来，按营业额计算，它是世界第二大奢侈品公司，排名在路易·威登(LVMH)和巴黎春天(PPR)之间。
replete with：be full of
But in otherways,Zegna is typical of the luxurybusiness. European manufacturers dominate this €250bnindustry,accounting for around 70% of production. AndZegna’spast growth and present challengesareshared by firms of all sizes.Luxury firmshaveprospered in thepast byforging intonew markets:firstJapan, then America, then China, notes Armando Branchini oftheEuropean luxury-brands association in Milan. Jean-Christophe Babin, theboss of Bulgari,an Italianjeweler,saysit wasthespread of high-end,beautiful malls in Asia that did most for growth. Inparticular,status-hungryChineseconsumers propelled luxury’s recent long expansion. Olivier Abtan of the BostonConsulting Group in Paris describes ever-richer Chinese consumers, with anutter “lack ofinhibition” in displaying theirwealth, as the best possible boost that the luxury industry could imagine. Theboss of one of theconglomeratesrecalls how difficult it was to balance rapid expansion of his brands againstlosing a perception ofexclusivity.Heresolved the dilemma by taking the theory of the“Veblen good”—oneforwhich demand soars as it becomesmore expensive—to an extreme,slappingever-largerprice tags on thefirm’sposhhandbags and otheritems.
forge/fɔːdʒ; fɔrdʒ/v[Tn] (fig比喻) create (usu a lasting relationship) by means of much hard work（靠艰苦工作）建立（通常为长期关系）:forge a bond, a link, an alliance, etc建立同盟﹑联系﹑联盟等*a friendship forged by adversity患难中建立起来的友谊. Cf参看weld.
Status-hungry:Eager to acquire higher social status.
inhibitionInhibitions are feelings of fear orembarrassment that make it difficult for you to behave naturally.
slap sth on sth(infml口) add (an extra amount) to the price of sth在某物原价上加（额外的价）:They've slapped 10p on the price of cigarettes.他们把香烟价钱加了10便士.
posh/pɔʃ; pɑʃ/adj(-er,-est) (infml口) (a) elegant or luxurious; smart精美的;豪华的;漂亮的:a posh car, hotel豪华的轿车﹑旅馆*a posh wedding隆重的婚礼*You look very
posh in your new suit.你穿上新衣服漂亮极了. (b) (sometimes
derog有时作贬义) upper-class上等阶层的:a posh accent上等人的腔调*They live in the
posh part of town.他们住在高等住宅区.
ThisChinese boom isover.In the pastfour years Xi Jinping,China’sauthoritarianleader,has cracked down on politicalrivals suspected of corruption, discouragedostentatiousdisplays of wealth and turned Chinese tourists offshopping abroad by levying
heavier duties on those who return witharmfulsof Hermès bags.Worse,because itcould be a permanent shift, firms report changingtastesamong Chinese consumers. Theyhavebeenshunningbig, shinylogos and—likeWesternshoppers—arenow mixing cheapfast-fashionitems withfewerluxury pieces. Lastyear,estimates suggest,China’shuge luxurymarketshrank(seechart).
ostentatious/ˏɔstenˈteɪʃəs; ˏɑstɛnˋteʃəs/adj(derog贬) showing or liking ostentation夸耀的;炫示的;夸示的;卖弄的:ostentatious jewellery 招眼的珠宝*dress in a very ostentatious manner穿着非常显眼.
armfulAn armful of something is the amount of it thatyou can carry fairly easily.
He hurried out with an armful of brochures.一抱
shun/ʃʌn; ʃʌn/v(-nn-)[Tn, Tg] keep away from (sth/sb); avoid避开,回避（某事物[某人]）;避免:shun temptation, publicity, other people避开诱惑﹑避免出风头﹑躲避别人
shrink[ʃrɪŋk]vi., vt.shrank, shrunk或shrunken, shrinking（由于受热或水的作用）缩小，使变小；短缩
Solid economic growth in America inthe pastfew yearshas helpedsustain sales: stock-markets and appetite for luxury goods reliably rise instep. Some retailers do report a recentuptickinChinese demand over thepastsixmonths.Yetno one expects a returnto the glorydays.Terroristattacksin Europe, slower growth in air traffic and lower spending in theregion’sairports are also hurting luxurysales. Thewatchbusiness has beenparticularly hard hit (see next story). In Milan the chairman of a famousItalian fashion brand warns of saturated markets. Adding new shops in
China is not viable, he says, when“you already have 200 retailers selling every sort of luxury item”. He expectsthis year to be much like 2016—flat.
upticka rise or improvement in business activity, inmood, etc.
Mr Abtan foresees years of modestglobal growth, perhaps of around 3%. A spokesman at Guccisaysthat the overall market is growing at“perhaps 1-2%, so the pie is not getting bigger”. The challenge at Gucci, headds, is to achieve more “salesdensity”
fromexisting shops. Which kind of firm is best placed to deal withslower growth: giants,minnowsor medium-sizedfirmslikeZegna? The advantages ofbeing aconglomeratein luxury include havingmore muscle to secure brandsfavoredspotsand lowerrentsinside shoppingmalls. Luxury groups can also multiply the effect of their marketing and shareback-officeservices.
minnown.a companyor sports team that is small or unimportant:These
two companies are both minnows in the international market.
Back Office后勤部门后勤支持部门负责处理交易的结算、交割、记录保存及监督程序等工作。参见Front Office (前线部门)和Middle Office (中后勤部门)。
Anewargument for independent firms such asHermès or Prada to join the big groups isthe imperative to go digital.Luxury firmswereslowto adopt sophisticated digital strategies so long as thegoingwaseasy.Only8% of total personal luxury-goods salestakeplace online, compared with 16% for the rest of retail (excluding itemssuch as petrol and groceries). But now the industry wants that tochange.
going/ˈgəuɪŋ; ˋɡoɪŋ/n1.[sing] act of leaving a place; departure离去;离开:We were all sad at
her going.她一走我们都很难过. 2.leave a place or stop doing sth while
conditions are still favourable or while it is still easy to do so趁情况有利时离开;急流勇退;及时脱身:Life here is getting more difficult all the time let's go
while the going's good.这里的生活越来越困难了--趁现在好走,咱们还是走吧.
Michele Norsa, a former boss ofSalvatoreFerragamo,an Italianmaker of shoes, notes that new online habits are being led by young consumerswho account for a growing share of luxury spending. Onlinemarketshave appeared for second-handsales; fancyfrockscan be hiredforafewnights from websites such asRent theRunway.The big firmsarethinkingof how to profit fromsuchnewmarkets—somethingthatsmallfirmsmightstruggletodo.
fancy2/ˈfænsɪ; ˋfænsɪ/adjnot plain or ordinary; unusual有装饰的;不寻常的;精致的:That's a very
fancy pair of shoes!那是一双非常别致的鞋!
frock/frɔk; frɑk/ndress worn by women or girls连衣裙;（小女孩的）整身衣裙:All my frocks are
for the summer.我的连衣裙都是夏天穿的.
AnItalian lawyer who has been involved in several big deals in the luxury sectorexpects more consolidation, and not only because the industry is slowing. Inthe online world, firms especiallycravefine-graineddataaboutthe most attractive customers—for example, on the “superspenders”,theminorityoftheultra-wealthywhoaccountforanoutsizedshareoftotalspending.
crave/kreɪv; krev/v[Ipr,Tn]~ (for) sthhave a strong desire for sth渴望;渴求某事物:I was craving for a drink.我非常想喝一点.
Fine-grained:Dense or compact in structure or texture,
as a wood composed of small-diameter cells.
outsizedadj.larger than normal for its kind特别大的
Until now, brandswithin groups have jealously guarded customer information from each other. But conglomeratesmay start sharing. Next month LVMH will launch a common digital platform forits brands that will yield new sorts of data. It will compete with rival luxurysites such as Net-a-Porter, and promote the idea of “omni-channel” shopping(combining online and in-store purchases). A decade ago established brands“didn’t see online platforms as even compatible with luxury products,” saysJosé Neves, the founder of Far-fetch, an online seller of luxury goods. Nowthey see that having their own online presence is essential, he says.
Mr Abtan of BCGsaysthe big groups are probably best placed to go down suchdigital avenues. They can invest and buy expertise to push traffic fromwebsites to shops.Firms ofZegna’s
sizealso need to bring in skills and should be able toaffordit. But theminnowsmaystruggle.The next challenge for luxury-goods firms will be about more than controllingsupply chains and colonizing
posh malls. They willhavetounderstand as much as they can about consumers and theirdigitalhabits.From“sheep to screen”will soon matter at least as much as“sheep to shop.
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