"[I.T chairman Sham] Kar-wai and I have been hoping to build a global brand," I.T vice chairman William Lo Wing-yan told The Standard .
By the end of this year, I.T will have franchised stores selling its second-largest in- house brand "b+ab" in Australia.
As of spring next year, its largest in-house brand - http://www.izzue.com - will be introduced to the French market as the company's partner Galeries Lafayette has agreed to sell izzue in 10 department stores in France. I.T already has stores in Saudi Arabia, Thailand, Macau, Taiwan and China.
"Japan, however, is a difficult market for us to compete in because our products are similar to those available in the domestic market," said Lo. "Instead, we are looking for opportunities in Singapore and India."
While eyeing opportunities worldwide, the company's focus in the near-term will remain the mainland. "China will be our focus in the coming two to three years. After all, it is still the fast-growing economy in the world," said Lo.
I.T plans to open 20 to 30 stores in the mainland this year, most of which will be in Beijing and Shanghai, while some will be in top second- tier cities such as Nanjing.
Starting from the middle of 2010, it will also open high-end apparel department stores in Beijing through the joint venture with Galeries Lafayette.
