Year of the Dragon: luxury brands embrace the auspicious, mythical creature ahead of the Lunar New Year
- It is a Chinese tradition for people to give gifts to families and friends during the Lunar New Year and brands are getting into the holiday spirit with dragon-themed designs
- The Peninsula, the city’s oldest hotel, is offering gift boxes and hampers with dragon designs, and Swiss watch brand Swatch has launched five dragon-themed watches
Luxury brands such as The Peninsula Hong Kong, Armani Beauty and Swatch are among the hundreds of merchants that have embraced the dragon, incorporating it into their product designs as corporations eye business opportunities ahead of the Lunar New Year.
The Peninsula Boutique, the retail arm of The Peninsula Hong Kong, the city’s oldest hotel that was established in 1928, has always used zodiac animals for its Lunar New Year products, and this year, it has offered a wide range of gift boxes and hampers with dragon designs.
“The dragon is definitely the superstar and is the most popular of the 12 zodiac animals,” said Guy Riddell, managing director of Peninsula Merchandising, in an interview at the hotel’s shop. “Everybody loves the dragon as it represents power, prosperity and strength.”
The dragon is the only mythical creature in the Chinese zodiac cycle and it is inspiring creative ideas.
“From a product design perspective, it is so much fun to play with and create designs and products related to dragons,” said Riddell. “We have spent a number of months working on designs on some incredible packaging and products that really just capture the spirit of the dragon.”