Skechers, the US-based athleisure company, will invest up to 1.8 billion yuan ($279 million) to expand its distribution facilities in Taicang, Jiangsu province, in the third quarter of this year.

The expansion will help Skechers to meet surging market demand in China. In late December, the company set up a distribution center in Taicang by investing 1 billion yuan, said Willie Tan, CEO for the company's operations in China, South Korea and Southeast Asia.

Chinese consumers now have strong purchasing power, he said. The signing of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership agreement and the upgrading of e-commerce businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic have introduced a new market dynamic. Skechers found that its current operational capacity will no longer meet the increased market demand.

"Therefore, it's necessary for us to raise investment to build the second phase of our distribution center in Taicang," he said, adding that building advanced distribution and logistics facilities is key to competing with other established rivals such as Nike Inc, which is also building similar facilities in China.

As Taicang has a well-developed container port and Customs office, as well as a convenient location to connect many eastern Chinese cities, the Skechers distribution center will further enhance the company's overall supply chain competencies.

The expanded Taicang facility will play a key role alongside the company's other businesses in building a more comprehensive logistics network in China and other markets, particularly in the Asia-Pacific region, the company said.

Tan said his team is studying the policy details of the RCEP and hopes to boost two-way trade of its products between China and the markets of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.