Michael Kors launched its Jordi bag in China in late September. The leather tote bag is marketed as the “Little Lazy” bag (小懒包) for its casual and easy-to-wear nature, especially the function of being folded and put away, due to its softer leather choice. On 27 September, the brand took over the EME Cocktails bar on Yulin West Road in Chengdu, Sichuan, to create a “Michael Kors bistro” with an exclusive menu containing a mix of tea and alcoholic drinks.
In the relaxed spirit of the “little lazy” bag and the city of Chengdu, the bistro offers “tea in the day and alcohol in the evening”, which is the lifestyle, or, in the brand’s words, philosophy for the collapsible tote owners. The brand, however, plays on the words and replaces the “哲” (zhe) in philosophy (哲学) with “折” (zhe, lit. to fold), referencing the collapsible nature of the Jordi bag.
Open until 13 October, the pop-up bistro is adorned in Michael Kors’ eye-catching red, with traditional bamboo chairs, in the style of Chengdu teahouses strewn across the porch. A giant Jordi installation provides a “check-in” (打卡) point outside the bistro while an interior wall is also decorated with bags. Several tea blends and cocktails have been created exclusively for the pop-up and are served in traditional “gaiwan” (盖碗) lidded bowls. Visitors can also play dice games to win merch or drinks.
For the tote bag’s launch, Michael Kors recruited its Asia-Pacific brand ambassadors actress Yang Zi, who attended the opening of the bistro, and Tan Jianci, who appeared at the brand’s livestream event. On Weibo, China’s Twitter equivalent, the topic “MK Little Lazy bag” (#MK小懒包#) got a moderate 3.87 million views. From 26 September, Jordi-themed pop-ups will be travelling across the country, before landing in Chengdu on 14 October, a day after the bistro closes. It’s not the first time Michael Kors has taken over an existing establishment for its pop-up. In April, it collaborated with BAsDBAN to launch a time-limited Michael Kors bakery in Shanghai. By teaming up with local cafés and bars, Michael Kors can more easily localise and capture the spiritual essence of the city. The café/bakery in Shanghai and bistro in Chengdu are great examples of the hyper-localisation.
