Over 120 million Chinese went abroad and spent over $104.5 billion in 2015 and more are projected for 2016. But for young Chinese people, their spending isn’t all about shopping in tax-free shops. As Leo Lin Song, chief of staff of TripAdvisor says, Chinese travelers are becoming more sophisticated: they’re reaching to further places and want to have more distinct cultural experience and not afraid to explore the unknown. Yet compared to western travelers, Chinese tourists are still special. They like to read pictures and need clear guidance—and that’s where TripAdvisor chips in.
Coffee in China: A New Beverage for a New Age
In the past two decades, coffee has been making significant in-roads in China. Although it might not be a staple for workday breakfast yet, for young people in urban areas, it has become a status symbol and something that says about their style and taste. Coffee, says Esteban Liang, Managing Director of Costa, Asia, is an “affordable luxury.” In the interview with Liang, he discusses how coffee became so popular and what Costa Coffee has experienced in the Middle Kingdom so far. Attempting to ride the middle-class wave, Costa aims at becoming a “strong number two” in China with better environment, product and service.
China’s Middle Class, the Middle Minority
The emerging middle class is the starting point for many discussions on China’s economy and society. But who are these people that, as Professor Luigi Tomba puts it, are “going to be at the epicenter of every social change that is going to happen” in China? And more importantly, where do they come from? The terms applied to them are misleading. Locally they are something of an economic elite, and even so have not reached the wealth of their supposed Western counterparts – in other words, they are not the “middle” of anything. They are also far from uniform.
VANCL: China’s Clothing Giant Stumbles Back From the Brink
China’s apparel market is now one of the fastest growing markets in the world. Euromonitor statistics show many foreign brands doing well: Uniqlo currently holds 1.6% of the market for specialist apparel; and Danish company Bestseller Fashion Group China, which operates brands like Only, Jack & Jones and Vero Moda, is holding 2.3% of the market share. Where are the local apparel brands? VANCL, a Chinese ecommerce clothes retailer, is almost a forgotten name. It used to have a 4.5% market share in 2011, but its dream of IPO lie in ashes—how did the once mighty retailer become China’s diaosi (loser) brand?
Torben Pheiffer on Chinese Consumer Behavior in a Rapidly Changing Market
Chinese consumers have changed faster than consumers in probably any other market. Increasing exposure to international media and social media is changing the expectations of Chinese consumers. On top of that, the broad economic slowdown and brand saturation in China has ratcheted up competition to new levels as the days of easy money disappear. For both multinationals and Chinese companies, the changing market dynamics present challenges they have never seen before. In this interview, Torben Pheiffer, Managing Director of SapientNitro, China, explains how companies need to adapt their branding strategies.
Chinese Consumers Up Their Vanity Spending
Just how much time and energy would you spend pondering over which dustbin to buy next? Chances are, not a lot. But for some consumers in China, even seemingly mundane things like trashcans have started to become significant from a social status point of view. More and more Chinese consumers are shifting their consumption of even routine everyday things to more premium categories. They are often influenced by their own experiences or those of their peers, travels abroad, foreign movies or social media. But increasingly now there are a whole host of services that are geared towards exposing Chinese people to newer things—and making them buy.
Design and Business: A Conversation With IDEO China’s Charles Hayes
For nearly 25 years now, IDEO has stood at the cutting edge of the possibilities of design. Founded in Silicon Valley in 1991 by David Kelley, an early popularizer of the design thinking methodology, IDEO has grown into a diverse global organization, with experts on tap in disciplines ranging from behavioral service to software engineering. Thirteen years ago, IDEO opened an office in Shanghai. Charles Hayes, a partner at IDEO and Managing Director of IDEO China, talks about the evolution of IDEO China, IDEO’s approach to design thinking in a Chinese context and evolving Chinese business and consumer cultures.
The Second Hand Market in China: Old is the New New
In China second hand is the latest in thing. Perceptions of greater acceptance for gently used goods is reflected in investors’ enthusiasm for the many start-ups that are now aiming to become the premier national platforms for used goods, ranging from cars to phones, to luxury items and even Han dynasty antiques. Diverse as these markets are, they are all reputation-based businesses where success requires mechanisms to guard against users trying to pass off bad goods as good-as-new. So what is fuelling the growth of second hand markets in China? And how are sellers dealing with the critical issue of creating and maintaining consumer trust?
Ctrip Goes on a Round the World Trip
Leading Chinese online travel company Ctrip now faces the dual challenges of overseas expansion and stronger competitors
Making Sense of the Chinese Consumer Revolution
Michael Zakkour, co-author of China’s Super Consumers, on what makes the Chinese consumer tick, brand loyalty, targeting and lessons from local brands.
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