Kering Fosters Chinese Design Innovation with New Craftsmanship Residency

Kering and Shanghai Fashion Week are teaming up to launch a new initiative: Kering Craft, which stands for Creative Residency for Artisanship, Fashion and Technology. It is a creative residency for craftsmanship, fashion and technology that aims to “empower local Chinese designers to project themselves globally.“

The initiative was announced Wednesday at the opening of the Kering pavilion at the China International Export Expo (Ciie), which runs through Nov. 10th in Shanghai. In the midst of a trade war between the United States and China, Kering claims that this initiative is a further step in its “collaboration with the Chinese fashion and creative industries”.

A jury of international industry leaders and experts will select “promising Chinese designers” who will participate in a residency program spanning Milan, Paris and Shanghai, organized by Kering. The aim is to build an immersive experience that combines craftsmanship, design and entrepreneurial vision.

The residency aims to “empower the next generation of Chinese creative talent” as well as “foster dialogue and exchange between China and Europe on design, craftsmanship, innovation and business models.“ Kering thus aims to create synergies with future Chinese fashion houses that have the potential to expand globally.

An international jury will select the participants, “promising Chinese designers” who will travel to Milan, Paris and Shanghai

Kering CEO Luca De Meo has hailed China as “one of the most dynamic centers of innovation in the world”, with “extraordinary creativity and speed”. Its union with the Shanghai Fashion Week aims to strengthen the group’s role in the “international exchange in the field of business, culture and innovation”.

Shanghai Fashion Week organizing committee director Ji Shengjun advocates the “integration of local and international visions” and believes the platform “will empower local designers to project themselves globally, foster creativity and strengthen their brand development capabilities, expanding the fashion ecosystem.“

With the arrival of De Meo at Kering, the company has been immersed in a profound restructuring process. It has started with Alexander McQueen, one of the smallest brands in its portfolio, which will cut 55 jobs at its London headquarters, around a third of the workforce. The news came against the backdrop of Kering’s third-quarter results, which continued to decline with a 10% drop in sales. The group continues to lag behind the market, in a context of global luxury slowdown.

The adjustments at McQueen are the first visible move of a broader plan that De Meo will detail in spring 2026, but which is already in the implementation phase. In September, the executive warned that the holding company would have to “reduce debt, cut costs and, where necessary, rationalize, reorganize and reposition some brands”.