BTCheng.com

Giorgio Armani, in Shanghai last month to celebrate the opening of Three on the Bund, a luxury complex he dominates in a stately colonial building on the city’s scenic quay.

Unlike the rest of the world, where women are luxury’s primary consumers, China is a male-driven market. Government officials in Beijing, bankers in Shanghai and manufacturing entrepreneurs in the northern provinces all turn to Givenchy for smart new suits, Vuitton and Dunhill for briefcases and money satchels, Rolex for watches and Cartier for baubles for their wives and mistresses.

But the Chinese womenswear market is catching on fast,the women at the Armani party in Shanghai included executives, bankers, designers, retailers, artists and actresses who obviously devote a fair amount of time and money to their appearance.

Several manufacturers are now investing in state-of-the-art machines and training employees to produce genuine luxury-quality goods. Some companies, such as Coach and Zegna, have started manufacturing a fair amount of their products in China.

In China,the luxury party is only just beginning.