As I tour various showrooms during SHFW, this design pivot to spiritual or traditional jewelry becomes a familiar tale. The Chinese luxury jewelry market has soared over the last five years, amid the guochao (or “China chic”) movement, which celebrates Chinese heritage and encourages locals to buy into domestic brands. China’s luxury jewelry market, which incorporates fine and costume offerings, grew 46% to $7 billion from 2020 to 2025, with a combined annual growth rate of 7.1%, despite rising costs in gold and silver following Trump’s tariffs. In response to market growth, showrooms across Shanghai, which underpin the city’s fashion week, are upping their jewelry games. Not Showroom displayed eight jewelry brands this season, up from five for FW25, while Tube Showroom dedicated an entire room to its growing cohort of jewelry labels, to make it easier for buyers.
In the big leagues, as brands from Cartier to Van Cleef & Arpels meet regional headwinds, domestic jewelry labels are soaring. Key players include Chow Tai Fook ($11.6 billion), Lao Feng Xiang ($6.8 billion), Chow Tai Seng ($1.9 billion) and Luk Fook ($1.8 billion), with revenue figures based on data from Visible Alpha, shared with Vogue Business earlier this year. The majority of these labels favor more classic designs, but relative newcomer Laopu — launched in 2016 — has disrupted the market, blending 24-karat gold and diamonds with silhouettes and patterns inspired by Chinese tradition. The brand is projected by Morgan Stanley to reach $2.8 billion in sales by 2025. (For comparison, Cartier is expected to reach $1.5 billion in the same period.)
Traditional and nomadic
Laopu, like many newer Chinese labels launched in the last decade, has leaned into craft and traditional styles. And across brand showrooms during SHFW, it became clear that spiritual, traditional or playful jewelry is thriving, as it allows Chinese consumers to escape from the economic downturn of the last few years.
As I approached Japanese brand En Sage’s area in Tube Showroom, with beaded or string necklaces and silver animal pendants in the shape of leaves, horses or shark teeth, I imagined it was a modest business, based on artisanal craft. I was mistaken. En Sage has 150 stockists, with the vast majority in China, where there’s an appetite for the “nomadic style”, says the brand’s founder, who goes by Jello. Jello launched the brand in 2020. “[Customers] in China always like this style,” she says. “We like to explore philosophy, living according to the rhythm of nature.”
