As China’s economy continues to decline and consumer spending rapidly decreases, luxury brands are facing increasingly severe sales downturns in China. On August 31, French luxury giant Louis Vuitton (LV) will cease operations at its only store in Guizhou – the Lixing Center store in Guiyang. LV’s stores in five southwestern provinces including Sichuan, Chongqing, Guizhou, Yunnan, and Tibet now only have three remaining.
On August 20, Tencent News’ original deep entertainment and social cultural column “Guīquān” reported that LV is accelerating its retreat in the southwestern region of China, with the Guiyang Lixing Center store announcing its closure starting from August 31.
A local consumer in Guiyang told “Guīquān,” “In 2025, luxury brands such as Cartier and Gucci have already left Lixing Center one after another, with LV becoming the ‘last fortress’ of luxury goods in this mall. Now, even this fortress is retreating.”
Regarding the reasons for the closure of the Guiyang store and any plans for new store openings in the Guizhou market, an LV official customer service response stated, “There is currently no specific reason and information regarding the closure of related stores.” When asked how post-store closure consumer after-sales service and VIP benefits will be ensured, the customer service representative mentioned, “We have online repair services available, and applications can be submitted online if needed.”
Cheng Weixiong, a brand strategy consultant in the footwear and apparel industry and founder of Shanghai Liangqi Brand Management Co., told the “Guīquān” column, “The withdrawal of the LV store in Guizhou is the result of multiple factors stacking up, essentially abandoning inefficient locations and redirecting resources towards core markets.”
He further analyzed, “From a macro perspective, the overall consumption environment is under pressure, and alternative categories have also diverted much of its potential customer base; secondly, the urban commercial landscape is evolving, with the value of originally prime business district locations shifting, and some store locations no longer hold advantages; at the channel level, as online channels mature, in regions like Guizhou, online platforms can meet demand, making opening physical stores not cost-effective.”
LV’s withdrawal from Guizhou is not an isolated case but rather a reflection of a systematic retreat in the southwestern market.
According to “Guīquān” column statistics, within just six months, LV has successively closed three key stores in the southwestern region of China. In February this year, the Kunming Jingge Department Store, which had been in operation for over 15 years, officially closed its doors; in mid-June, the Chengdu Tianfu International Airport store, which had only been open for five years, also announced its closure. With the closure of the Guiyang store, the number of LV stores in the five southwestern provinces has been more than halved, with only three still in operation.
The report mentioned that the contraction in the southwest is just one aspect of LV’s overall strategic adjustment in China. Over the past two years, LV’s “trimming” of its store network in China has been systematic, with the pace of contraction clearly accelerating.
Prior to this, LV also announced the closure of its Beijing Capital International Airport store. The closure of these stores covers various types of formats including core commercial districts, transportation hubs, and concept stores. This also indicates that this wave of store closures is not only targeted at the southwestern region but is a nationwide retail network optimization initiative.