The Kardashians Take Asia: Business, Fashion and a Very Kardashian Family Holiday
There are few families in the world capable of turning an overseas trip into a global event quite like the Kardashian-Jenners.
Over the past few weeks, Asia has provided the backdrop for exactly that. From Kim Kardashian’s growing fashion business and the arrival of NikeSKIMS in some of the region’s biggest cities, to a family trip through Shanghai that included luxury hotels, restaurants, pandas and Disneyland, the Kardashian presence in Asia has been about considerably more than a few glamorous photographs.
For Kim Kardashian in particular, Asia represents something increasingly important: business.
SKIMS has been on an enormous international expansion, and China, Japan, Hong Kong and South Korea are becoming increasingly significant parts of that story. The timing of Kim’s recent travels makes that particularly clear. Her trip to Shanghai coincided with the opening of the first physical NikeSKIMS retail destination in China, while she then travelled to Tokyo as the NikeSKIMS Fall ’26 collection arrived in Japan.
Credit - @skims instagram.
The Shanghai space at HKRI Taikoo Hui marks NikeSKIMS’ first physical retail destination in China, bringing the collaboration between Nike and SKIMS into a market with enormous potential. The temporary space combines the collection with fitting rooms, personalised services and product experiences, turning what could have been a conventional retail launch into something much closer to an event.
And, naturally, Kim was there.
The timing is no coincidence. SKIMS has already become one of the most talked-about celebrity-founded fashion businesses in the world, and its international expansion is becoming increasingly ambitious. The brand has opened its first European flagship in London, while permanent locations are planned for other major international markets. Hong Kong and Seoul are also preparing for permanent SKIMS stores, with the Seoul location expected to become one of the brand’s first permanent Asian flagships.
But while the business side of the trip was impossible to miss, the Kardashian approach to Asia has also included something much more familiar: tourism.
Kim, Khloé Kardashian and Kris Jenner recently travelled through Shanghai with the next generation of the family, bringing Kim’s daughter Chicago, Khloé’s daughter True and Rob Kardashian’s daughter Dream along for what was, in many ways, a very elaborate family holiday.
They stayed at the J Hotel Shanghai Tower, one of the most spectacular hotels in the city. Occupying floors high inside the 632-metre Shanghai Tower, the hotel is already a destination in its own right, with sweeping views across Pudong and towards the Bund. The property is home to several dining concepts, including Heavenly Jin, which holds the distinction of being the world’s highest restaurant inside a building.
It is perhaps the most Kardashian way possible to arrive in Shanghai: check into one of the highest hotels in the world, look out across one of Asia’s most recognisable skylines and then head out to explore the city.
The family were spotted dining at Yizuoyiwang, a Yunnan restaurant known for its regional cuisine and already accustomed to high-profile international guests. Their visit quickly became a talking point on Chinese social media, with local users attempting to identify what the family had ordered.
Then came the wildlife.
The Kardashians spent time at Shanghai Wild Animal Park, where Kim shared moments from the family’s visit to the giant panda exhibit. Rather than simply moving between fashion events and luxury hotels, the trip gave the family the chance to experience some of the attractions that make Shanghai such an appealing destination for international visitors in the first place.
And then, naturally, there was Disneyland.
Shanghai Disneyland is celebrating its tenth anniversary this year, making the timing particularly good for a family visit. The resort has become one of the city's major tourism attractions, combining Disney’s familiar worlds with a distinctly Chinese setting and a number of experiences unique to Shanghai.
For a family whose lives are normally documented almost minute by minute, there was something rather relatable about seeing the Kardashians doing some of the things that millions of other families do on holiday. Just with considerably more security, designer luggage and cameras following them.
Kim’s relationship with Asia has also extended beyond this particular trip.
Her recent visit to Tokyo has been closely connected to NikeSKIMS, with the brand launching its Fall ’26 collection through a major Harajuku pop-up. There is even a NikeSKIMS Café, serving matcha and hojicha alongside Japanese sweets, giving the launch a distinctly Tokyo identity rather than simply importing an American retail concept into the city.
Yet Kim has also embraced the city away from the obvious business commitments.
In an interview with Vogue Japan, she highlighted some of the places she enjoys visiting in Tokyo, including luxury vintage destinations CASANOVA VINTAGE and AMORE. She also spoke about KAWAII MONSTER LAND in Harajuku, where she reportedly visited with her children, and TeamLab’s immersive art experiences, which she has returned to on previous trips to the Japanese capital.
That is perhaps the most interesting part of the Kardashian presence in Asia.
For years, celebrity travel has often been presented as a procession of hotel suites, private jets and expensive restaurants. The Kardashian-Jenner family certainly have access to all of those things, but their recent Asian travels show something slightly different. They are also becoming part of the tourism story themselves.
When Kim Kardashian visits a vintage shop in Tokyo, people pay attention. When she visits a theme park with her children, the location becomes a talking point. When the family eat at a Shanghai restaurant, Chinese social media users want to know what they ordered. When they visit a panda enclosure, millions of people see Shanghai through the lens of the Kardashian holiday.
That influence is enormously valuable.
For Asian destinations, having one of the world's most recognisable families spending time in a city creates a different kind of exposure. It places luxury hotels, restaurants, attractions and neighbourhoods in front of an audience that may otherwise have little connection with them. And for the Kardashians, it creates an opportunity to make their brands feel genuinely global rather than simply American businesses travelling overseas.
There is also a fascinating generational element to it.
Kris Jenner has become something of a phenomenon in China herself, with Chinese social media users embracing her and giving her the nickname “Lady Luck”. Kim has also joined Xiaohongshu, the Chinese social media platform, during the family's Shanghai visit, quickly attracting hundreds of thousands of followers.
Credit - @krisjenner instagram
That move may ultimately prove just as important as the photographs from the trip.
The Kardashian empire was built on understanding attention. What began with reality television became social media influence, then beauty, shapewear, fashion, fragrance, private equity and an increasingly sophisticated collection of businesses. Entering Asian social platforms and markets is simply the next evolution of that strategy.
And the family seem to understand that the best way to sell a destination is not always to tell people to visit it.
Sometimes, you simply show Kim Kardashian wandering around Tokyo, Kris Jenner enjoying Shanghai and the next generation of the family experiencing Disneyland.
Suddenly, everyone wants to know where they went.
Asia has long been a destination for luxury travellers, fashion insiders and Hollywood names. What feels different about the Kardashian-Jenner presence is the scale. Their businesses are expanding into the region at the same time that the family themselves are becoming increasingly visible there.
The result is a particularly modern form of celebrity travel, where a family holiday, a fashion launch, a restaurant visit and a billion-dollar business strategy can all exist within the same itinerary.
For the Kardashians, Asia is no longer simply somewhere to go.
It is becoming somewhere to do business, build influence, make memories and, inevitably, turn the entire experience into content.
Credit - @krisjenner instagram