Consumer

Building brand relevance and fostering customer loyalty in China’s dynamic consumer market requires a nuanced understanding of evolving consumer behaviours and strategic engagement across various platforms. This article delves into key strategies, including emotional marketing, connecting with more cautious consumers, targeting niche consumer segments, and leveraging social commerce, to effectively connect with Chinese consumers. Emotional marketing: Connecting beyond the product In recent years, the importance of building emotional connections with …

On 30 January, CBBC hosted China Consumer Scotland 2025 at drinks brand Edrington’s Glasgow headquarters. The event focused on Scottish consumer brands in China, with a strong presence of whisky makers and luxury clothing companies in the audience. CBBC’s Director of Consumer Economy, Antoaneta Becker, welcomed attendees and introduced the state of the Chinese market in the Year of the Snake. She highlighted that while challenges exist in operating within the Chinese …

Also referred to as the Spring Festival travel rush, chunyun is the world’s largest annual human migration Chunyun (literally “Spring transport”) refers to the 40-day peak travel period around Spring Festival (aka Lunar New Year), which this year falls on 29 January. Millions of people take advantage of the extended time off from work and study to travel back to their home regions and spend the important festival with family. …

This year at FOCUS, Paul French has interviewed the author of a different new book on China. From history to economics, business case studies to geo-politics – the successful business person in China needs to grasp all these elements. So as the year comes to a close, here’s our round-up of those books, ranging in topic from Chinese urbanism to Deng Xiaoping’s legendary Southern Tour. Click the book titles to …

These days, male Idols are a standard part of the advertising toolkit across Asia and in China – in fashion magazines, shopping channels, adverts, and online sales channels. It may be a rarely seen phenomenon in the West, but rest assured that it is huge in China. Put simply, male idols are able to sell more magazines and more product than female idols – largely because of their enormous and …

The Chinese market for plant-based foods is growing as environmental, health and ethical concerns increase among Chinese consumers. While vegetarianism has deep roots in China, a number of modern trends are transforming the market for plant-based foods and the food and beverage market as a whole Historical background of plant-based diets in China The consumption of vegetarian food in China is not a modern phenomenon. Buddhism, which entered China around …

The British Library recently hosted a landmark event to inaugurate the collaboration, which exemplifies a commitment to bridging the UK and China through innovative cultural exchange. The event was supported by the China-Britain Business Council. This special gathering brought together authors, scholars, publishers and digital innovators to celebrate the transformative power of literature in a globalised, technology-driven world. Setting the Stage The event, held in the British Library’s iconic conference …

It’s safe to say that many are amazed (and rather jealous) of the apparent success of China’s e-commerce market and the internet businesses that thrive within it. But how did they do it? New book From Click to Boom (Princeton University Press, 2024) asks that very question – how did the world’s largest e-commerce market highlight a digital path to development? Paul French caught up with its author, Lizhi Liu, …

Double 11 2024 (also known as Singles’ Day or 11.11) came to a close at the beginning of this week. The three-week online shopping event saw a resurgence in consumer engagement, setting new benchmarks and highlighting a shift in consumer behaviour, writes CBBC’s Celine Tang For UK businesses aiming to succeed in China’s competitive e-commerce landscape, here is a closer look at the key trends, data, and insights from Double …

In a groundbreaking cultural collaboration, the British Library and Chinese online publishing company Yuewen are launching a three-year partnership to explore and celebrate the rise of internet literature in the digital age The British Library x Yuewen partnership reflects the dynamic and growing world of Chinese internet literature, which has redefined the relationship between authors and readers, attracted hundreds of millions of devotees, and produced countless adaptations across various media. …