China President Xi Jinping showed up at the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony on Friday, to many people’s surprise, in what appeared to be the same cobalt blue parka from Arc’teryx that he wore last year when he was inspecting the 2022 Winter Olympics and Paralympics site.
The Canadian outerwear brand Arc’teryx has been owned by China’s largest sportswear brand Anta since 2019.
Xi has demonstrated good ties with Anta, the official sponsor of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, for some time.
His endorsement of the brand sent Anta’s shares soaring by 9.4 percent the day when he first wore the Arc’teryx parka.
Following his appearance Friday night in Beijing’s National Stadium at the opening ceremonies, the same style he wore, priced at a 9,000 renminbi, or $1,418, seemed to have immediately sold out everywhere online in China, according to multiple screenshots of online chats recorded between the brand’s sales associates and eager buyers on Weibo.
Source: WWD