Through a partnership with JD.com, international soccer icon and China Super League star Tim Cahill is entering the China fashion market with his Cahill+ brand.
The Tim Cahill fashion range will launch in the online store, which will be its first sales outlet in China.
Since his days in London playing for Premier League club Everton, Cahill has worked alongside fashion icons such as Georgio Armani, where he was brand ambassador for eight years. In New York, while playing for the city’s Red Bulls soccer team, he conceptualised a “sport-luxe” fashion brand.
“Being a professional footballer since I was 18, my experience in fashion has evolved from being a consumer to now a brand owner,” he says, describing the brand as being inspired by a footballer’s lifestyle with elements of sportswear, designer fashion and menswear designs he would love to buy and wear for himself.
JD.com apparel and home-furnishing business unit president Lijun Xin says Chinese consumers are increasingly focussed on quality and style, and there is a huge opportunity for emerging brands like Cahill+ to build on this trend.
During the special kick-off celebration and fashion show in Shanghai, several of Cahill’s sporting colleagues like footballer Chen Boliang and Chinese racing driver Ma Qinghua modelled Cahill+ styles. The event was also live-streamed on the JD.com’s Cahill+ store.
“When my family and I moved from New York to live in Shanghai and be a part of the China Super League, the next major plan for me was to launch Cahill+ in the China market,” says the football star.
Already the brand is finding success in the Australian and North American markets through such retailers as Culture Kings & Boys Co, Glue Store, Myer Department Stores and Topman.