Hermes has opened its first boutique for its new brand Shang Xia — a bold strategy that highlights China’s growing importance to luxury goods companies.

“We are very moved — this is like the birth of a child,” Hermes chief executive Patrick Thomas said ahead of the inauguration of the shop in Shanghai.

The store, a picture of minimalist chic, offers clothing, home furnishings, shoes and tableware — a collection inspired by tea, and made from traditional Asian materials such as bamboo, cashmere and porcelain.

Luxury department store, Harrods is currently negotiating the possibility of launching its first branch outside the UK in Shanghai’s Bund area.

However, if the talks resulted in a partnership with Shanghai’s municipal government, it would take around two-and-a-half years to finalize the project.

“China is the most probable [option for a foreign branch], but we would have to do a lot of work first”, Harrods managing director, Michael Ward said.

The Ritz-Carlton Pudong opened June 21 as the latest luxury hotel to hit Shanghai, occupying the top 18 floors of the city’s giant International Finance Center South Tower.

The hotel offers 285 rooms designed by Richard Farnell, ranging from 50 meters squared to 400 meters squared for the Ritz-Carlton suite.

The rooms offer a modern interpretation of 1930s Shanghai art deco, a tribute to the restored Shanghai Bund (of which the hotel offers sweeping views).

Following Chanel’s much-talked-about resort showcase in Saint Tropez, Dior presented its cruise collection for 2011 in Shanghai.

The Chinese metropolis further manifested its status as fashion hotspot by hosting another event of this scale, after Chanel chose Shanghai to show its Maison d’Arts collection last year.

But while the latter drew on Chinese tailoring, Dior was all about Parisian chic, featuring pastels, florals, and ruffles paired with big 1960s-inspired hair.

Despite its name, Dior’s cruise collection displayed a striking lack of practical, laid-back clothes that would actually be fit for cruising.

Marion Cotillard is back for the latest installment of the Lady Dior campaign titled Lady Blue. For this fourth chapter, Cotillard has been taken to Shanghai.

The short film follows a teaser clip that was released a few weeks ago, where Marion Cotillard, dressed in black, recites a poem penned by David Lynch, and dances with her blue Lady Dior bag.

Directed by David Lynch, the short film is a love story full of mystery. “It’s about memory, […] And then, when you remember, it’s different” Lynch said.

Chinese news portal People’s Daily Online has compiled a list ranking China’s 10 Most Luxurious Cities.

The criteria? Living standards of the city’s elite, “internationalness”, designer shopping, and infrastructure.

Not surprisingly, Shanghai, long known as the “Paris of the East”, has come out on top.