Giordano International

Giordano International Limited is a Hong Kong international retailer of men's, women's and children's apparel and accessories founded in 1981 by Jimmy Lai. Established in 1981, Giordano now employs over 9,100 staff, with over 2,100 shops operating in more than 30 countries and regions worldwide.[5]

Giordano International Limited
TypePublic
SEHK: 709
IndustryRetail
Founded1981 (1981)[1]
HeadquartersHong Kong
Key people
Peter Lau (Chairman & CEO)[2]
ProductsApparel
Brands
  • Giordano
  • Giordano Junior
  • Giordano Ladies
  • G-motion
  • BSX
  • Beau Monde
  • Lowe Alpine
  • GIORDANO Timewear
RevenueDecrease HK$ $4.852 billion (2019)[3]
Decrease HK$397 million (2019)[3]
Number of employees
~ 14,100 (2014)[4]
Websitegiordano.com
Giordano International
Giordano, NE Pacific Mall, Cabanatuan City, Philippines
Chinese佐丹奴

Its head office is in the Tin on Industrial Building, Cheung Sha Wan, Kowloon.[6]

History

Giordano was founded in 1981 by Jimmy Lai. Lai said the inspiration for the company's name came during a business trip to New York City. Lai found himself at a Manhattan pizza shop by the same name and woke up the next day to find a napkin printed with the Giordano name in his pocket. He decided this name would work well as it would conjure up visions and feel of Italian fashion in the consumer's mind.[7]

The company now operates globally in a number of markets, including Hong Kong, Philippines, Taiwan, China, Macau, South Korea, the Middle East, Brunei, Singapore, Malaysia, Mauritius, Thailand, Bangladesh, Australia, Canada, Russia, Japan, Indonesia, Myanmar, Vietnam, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Mongolia, India, Georgia, France, Zambia, South Africa, Cambodia. Jimmy Lai's association with the company ended in 1996. Dr. Peter Lau Kwok Kuen is the company's current chairman and CEO.

China

Giordano entered the Mainland Chinese market in 1992. The first two stores were opened in Guangzhou in September 1992. Starting in the Pearl River Delta area, Giordano gradually expanded its retail network in China. It now operates over 945 stores in all major cities, with flagship stores including Nanjing Dong Lu in Shanghai and Lijiang in Yunnan.[8]

Hong Kong

Giordano was founded in Hong Kong in 1981. The company now operates 73 shops in Hong Kong, including a 2-storey flagship store in Tsim Sha Tsui.[9]

Taiwan

Giordano opened its first retail outlet in Taiwan in 1988. As of March 2015, Giordano operates 197 shops in Taiwan, including 3 flagship stores; namely: the Songjiang Store in Zhongshan, Taipei; the Wufu store in the Sinsing District of Kaohsiung and the Central Square Store in Taichung North District.[10]

South Korea

The first retail outlet in South Korea opened in 1994. The company operates over 208 shops in the country. Giordano's most prominent stores include those in the Lotte Department Stores in the Pyeongchon and Garosu-gil districts, as well as its flagship stores Gangnam and Myeong-dong.[11]

Middle East

The first retail outlet in the Middle East opened in 1993 with the outlet at Bur Juman Centre, Dubai. The company operates 240 stores in 23 countries across the region.[12]

Giordano is one of the top five clothing retailers in the Arab region.[13] The average size of Giordano stores in the Middle East is between 1,000 square feet (93 m2) and 2,000 square feet (190 m2). The brand also operates flagship stores of over 7,500 square feet (700 m2) in key locations such as Deira City Centre and Dubai Mall in the UAE.

Its regional offices are located in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Forced sale of Giordano by Jimmy Lai

Founder and original owner Jimmy Lai was forced to sell Giordano in 1994 following comments that Lai made in his Next Magazine where Lai criticized Chinese Communist Premier Li Peng.[14] Lai was quoted in The New York Times in 2015 as having said of the matter that:

I was naïve. Not that I expected something like this was going to happen, but neither did I expect it was going to be smooth sailing for my career in China, if I really treated business like a businessman, I wouldn’t have done what I have done — opposing China. No businessman in their right mind would do this, because you know that there will be repercussions.[14]

Brands

Giordano Men & Giordano Women

Launched in 1981, Giordano's house brand has been the core brand of the company from the outset, offering both men's and women's casual apparel and essentials.[15]

Giordano Ladies

Giordano Ladies caters to women. Launched in 1997.[15]

Giordano Junior

Giordano Junior offers children's wear.[15]

BSX

First launched in 1999 as a value-oriented basics brand, Bluestar Exchange was re-branded as BSX in 2007.[15]

Beau Monde

Beau Monde is one of Giordano's newest brands, offering basic everyday clothing at reasonable prices. Launched in 2014, Beau Monde stores are primarily located in residential and shopping districts in China and Taiwan.[15]

It also owns G-Motion, GIORDANO Timewear, GIORDANO Travelgear, GIORDANO eyewear, CONCEPTS ONE, etc. brands.

In 2022, Acton Institute, an American think tank released a documentary titled The Hong Konger: Jimmy Lai's Extraordinary Struggle For Freedom that featured Giordano and chronicled the life of founder Jimmy Lai.[16][17][18]

References
  1. Giordano Australia – Company Info Archived 20 February 2008 at the Wayback Machine
  2. Giordano Corporate Information Archived 8 February 2008 at the Wayback Machine
  3. Annual Report 2019 (PDF) (Report). Giordano International. Retrieved 23 August 2020 – via Hong Kong Exchange.
  4. Giordano Hong Kong The Company Archived 14 July 2015 at the Wayback Machine
  5. "Giordano". corp.giordano.com.hk. Retrieved 1 May 2018.
  6. "Contact Us". Giordano. Retrieved 18 January 2020. Mail address: Giordano Limited, 5th Floor, Tin On Industrial Building, 777-779 Cheung Sha Wan Road, Kowloon, Hong Kong
  7. Goldstein, Jacob (19 July 2019). "Planet Money". Hong Kong. No. Episode 928. National Public Radio. Planet Money. Retrieved 24 July 2019.
  8. "China Shop List". Giordano. Archived from the original on 14 July 2015. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
  9. "Global Footprint". Giordano. Archived from the original on 14 July 2015. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
  10. "Taiwan Shoplist". Giordano. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
  11. "South Korea Shoplist". Giordano. Archived from the original on 14 July 2015. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
  12. "Middle East About Us". Giordano Middle East. Archived from the original on 22 April 2015. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
  13. Meghna Pant (17 December 2012). "Chairman – Giordano Pushes For 15% ME Marketshare". Gulf Business.
  14. Gough, Neil (12 January 2015). "For Jimmy Lai, Hong Kong's Rebellious Tycoon, Next Battle May Be in Court". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 26 May 2023.
  15. "Family of Brands". Giordano. Archived from the original on 14 July 2015. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
  16. Smith, Kyle (18 May 2023). "'The Hong Konger' Review: Jimmy Lai's Moral Heroism". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 26 May 2023.
  17. "The Hong Konger Documentary Is a Lesson on Freedom". National Review. 8 June 2022. Retrieved 26 May 2023.
  18. "Watch The Hong Konger, about Jimmy Lai, Whose Trial Looms". National Review. 2 December 2022. Retrieved 26 May 2023.
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