On the morning of 21 December, after the deep sound of the “Big Ben” bell had rung, a ribbon-cutting ceremony for House of Fraser was held and chairman of Sanpower Group Yuan Yafei announced the official opening of House of Fraser in China’s number one shopping destination in Xinjiekou, Nanjing. This is the first store of House of Fraser (hereafter referred to as HOF), a well-known British retailer, in China.

In recent years, domestic brick-and-mortar retail has been going through a “wintery” spell, encountering difficulties and therefore seeking transformation. Some retailers have hitched a ride on the coattails of the Internet and some have been innovating their business models, while yet others have been actively introducing an advanced foreign model. The opening of House of Fraser in China is an achievement of Nanjing Cenbest, a company of Sanpower Group, in bringing in advanced foreign models, as well as an embodiment of Sanpower Group’s vision for brick-and-mortar retail 4.0. The opening ceremony was held at the same time as the Retail Innovation and Transformation Summit, so a large crowd and a number of summit guests witnessed the opening.

On 21 December, House of Fraser played host to a number of classic British activities: there were foreign performance artists in traditional Scottish costumes took photos with visitors to mark the occasion, traditional Scottish bagpipe players produced their wailing tones and a British royal honour guard made for an impressive presence. When a British-style mechanical clock in the very image of Big Ben in London, which adorns the roof of the House of Fraser building, rang, a “guardsman” in British royal brass band dress called out the time in turn along with the bells. This creative clock also adds a new city landmark to Nanjing. It was as if these novel British elements had taken the customers present time-travelling back to the home of HOF.

It is understood that HOF was founded in Glasgow, Scotland in 1849. As one of the most famous brands in British retail, HOF is a department store that has been honoured with a warrant from the British royal family. Currently, HOF has 61 stores and more than 17,500 employees worldwide. Among the stores, Jolly’s, which is located in the city of Bath, UK, is famous for having once been the “Queen’s dressing room”. In 2014, Nanjing Cenbest, a listed company subordinate to Sanpower Group, acquired 89% equity in HOF and became its majority shareholder, setting the ball rolling for HOF’s entry into China’s domestic market.

As an achievement of Nanjing Cenbest’s strategy in “bringing in”, House of Fraser also represents an approach to the transformation and upgrade of brick-and-mortar business in Nanjing. The General Office of the State Council issued its Agreement on Comprehensive Pilot Reforms in Domestic Trade and Circulation System in Nine Cities including Shanghai in August 2015. Nanjing became one of the cities in which the pilot will be carried out. It is said that pilot work in Nanjing so far has seen initial success. Nanjing brick-and-mortar businesses have taken four approaches to transformation and upgrade, which are: transformation through online and offline integration, transformation through domestic and foreign trade integration and development, transformation through owner-operated retail and experiences and transformation through whole industry chain services. Nanjing Cenbest’s “bringing in” of HOF represents the owner-operator and experience transformation.

In contrast to domestic “concession”-style department stores, HOF runs its own brands, owning nearly 20 exclusively designed house brands covering men and women clothes, accessories and home furnishing among other fields. In addition, HOF also has a strong buyer team cooperating with leading global fashion houses. Relying on acute sensitivity to the market and fashion, the team buys in fashion products from around the world to meet the individual needs of consumers. Throughout 2015, HOF’s house brands and buyers’ system contributed 50% of the company’s sales.

House of Fraser currently has over 300 brands in total, of which British brands account for 34% and international brands account for 97%. Among those brands, 16 house brands are making up the first batch to enter the Chinese market.

The CEO of HOF China Kong Jun explained that House of Fraser targets the new emerging middle class in the city and to meet the fitness needs of this group, House of Fraser has opened the largest Nike Beacon store, which features the latest product displays and fitness trainers, of the department stores in China. House of Fraser is also going to develop the House of Fraser shopping centre together with other two adjacent international brands, which are the first Chinese flagship stores of Hamleys, 256-year-old British toy shop, and Brookstone, an American novelty chain store.

Kong Jun said that business was not only about selling stuff; House of Fraser is more about building a new lifestyle, something which can give Nanjing and Chinese consumers better experiences. To provide a more British-style service, House of Fraser has is promoting authentic English afternoon tea and personal shopping advisers and has brought in the famous London restaurant, glo London. Making the most of the large stream of people who come to the “number one shopping destination in China” in Xinjiekou, Nanjing, House of Fraser is building a family-friendly social environment and a place for non-material spending for “families with children” and “family shopping” based on house brands and buyer brands, a link up with Hamleys and Brookstone, and the integration of experience and scenario-based sales. The store also utilizes the Internet and feeds in the strengths of the group’s work in financial services to develop precise services and ecological chains. House of Fraser is also a physical manifestation of the brick-and-mortar retail 4.0 model proposed by Sanpower Group.