The redesigned website forms the central plank of an integrated campaign, fronted by Hong Kong pop idol Nicholas Tse, launched to take the brand out of its Zhejiang province home base to the national stage.
The concept of the site is to use it to showcase Semir's clothes but without turning it into an online brochure for the company like jcrew.com or gap.com.
As such, visitors to the site can choose from sweaters or pants from Semir's collection and drag the picture of the clothing item over the model.
The website was revamped by OgilvyOne. Johan Vakidis, OgilvyOne's creative director at its Shanghai office, said the website "looks very much like what the consumers sees when they're in the store".
Vakidis said the team used video footage for three quarters of the content, including shooting models in different poses on which visitors would use to try out Semir's clothing items. With two new collections coming out every season, Semir wanted to be able to photograph its latest lines and update the company's website itself.
Advertising for the new site has been limited to inserting its web address in print advertisements and at the end of television spots. However Semir is planning to launch an online advertising campaign on Sina.com, one of China's largest portals. The seven-year-old Semir has more than 500 retail outlets throughout China.