After the 2019 Marilyn Monroe and 2021 Audrey Hepburn collaborations, legendary Japanese fashion designer Yohji Yamamoto has launched another cinema icon collab. For the first time, the latest co-branded collection is inspired by an Asian star – none other than the Chinese actress Fan Bingbing.
The collection includes several garments such as dresses, shirts and jackets, as well as a tote bag. Portraits of Fan Bingbing painted by Japanese painter Suzume Uchida also features prominently on the Yohji Yamamoto clothes. The key visuals were captured by Japanese photographer Takay, styled by leading stylist Tsuyoshi Noguchi and modelled by Fan herself.
Fan Bingbing has been focusing on “going overseas” (出海) with her brand. Fan brought her cosmetic brand Fan Beauty Diary to Lazada in Malaysia and Singapore in May and to TikTok in July, aiming to crack the Southeast Asia market. However, it has recently been reported that her TikTok account has only gained around 2,000 new followers, growing from 54,900 to 57,200 in just over three months since launch. Her first post for the account quickly amassed over 500,000 views but has only grown 10,000 views in the following three months.
Meanwhile, Fan Beauty Diary, also only completed 21,800 orders since launch, making approximately 91,820 USD. The TikTok shop rarely features Fan and only has 2,878 followers. In comparison, Fan Beauty Diary has been much more successful at home, with its gross merchandise value (GMV) reaching over 1.1 billion RMB (154.42 million USD) in 2023.
Pundits find that Fan’s star power outside the Chinese community is currently not strong enough to make an impact overseas. People outside China might know about her from her films and Fashion Week appearances but are not necessarily her fans. Meanwhile, some consider her content not powerful enough for short-form video platforms.
With more event appearances across the globe, several films in the pipeline and this latest collaboration with Yohji Yamamoto, it is likely Fan Bingbing will further build her international fanbase. However, how effective it is for her beauty brand remains to be seen.
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