Trading down is the name of the current game – Shaun Rein

 

Shaun Rein

China’s consumers are becoming more cost-sensitive, and that means a profound change in the country’s retail, says business analyst Shaun Rein at CNBC. “The name of the game for Chinese youth in 2024 is trading down. Instead of Starbucks, youth are buying Luckin coffee,” Rein says.

CNBC:

Chinese young people are increasingly shopping and dining at the basement units of malls, a trend the social media has labeled the “B1B2” economy.

The basement floors — B1, B2 — typically house low-cost gift and souvenir shops, apparel outlets, the supermarket, and other relatively affordable consumer product stores like Miniso and Luckin Coffee.

“Landlords try to put anchor tenants like LV, Apple or Starbucks on pricier real estate on the ground or first floor,” says Shaun Rein, managing director of China Market Research Group. Historically, higher-end shops have attracted more footfall, but China’s weak economy means the cheaper brands are now drawing the crowds, he adds.

The hashtag ”#Young people only go shopping at B1B2″ has been trending recently on Chinese social media platform Weibo.

The reply to a Weibo user’s post on how she and her peers usually go straight to the basement floors for shopping captures the mood of the Chinese youth: “Everything we can afford is underground!”

Anything not in the basement floors is considered to be “in heaven,” signaling it’s out of reach.

“The name of the game for Chinese youth in 2024 is trading down. Instead of Starbucks, youth are buying Luckin coffee,” Rein says.

More at CNBC.

Shaun Rein is a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. Do you need him at your meeting or conference? Do get in touch or fill in our speakers’ request form.

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China’s youngsters: charity moving to the metaverse – Arnold Ma

 

Arnold Ma

China, and especially its youngsters, are paving the way into the metaverse, says innovation expert Arnold Ma, founder of Qumin, in Techround. For example, when it comes to funding of charities, he adds. “China’s younger generations are highly receptive to emerging technologies, so a metaverse version of an initiative like 99 Giving Day, powered by WeChat or a future platform, would be a powerful way to attract more funding.”

Arnold Ma:

“A lot of discussions this year have been around how the metaverse is dead and ChatGPT is king. But the scene in China looks different. Zhongguancun, which is like the Silicon Valley of Beijing, released a white paper earlier this summer calling Web3 and the metaverse an ‘inevitable trend for future Internet industry development’. Far from just being a fleeting commercial opportunity, the metaverse is clearly at the heart of China’s vision for a world-leading digital economy.

“Part of what sets China’s approach apart is the emphasis placed on harnessing Web3 innovations for common prosperity, which means putting technology to work to make society more equal. Tencent has already been driving forward a new era of Internet-based philanthropy in China with its long-running flagship initiative 99 Giving Day. This gamified version of donating, which allows people to support their favourite charities easily via WeChat, has helped lower the barrier to entry in philanthropy and unlock millennials and Gen Zers as active contributors.

“There is massive potential to migrate this approach to a metaverse space. China’s younger generations are highly receptive to emerging technologies, so a metaverse version of an initiative like 99 Giving Day, powered by WeChat or a future platform, would be a powerful way to attract more funding, and at the same time kickstart the process of integrating Web3 into wider society.”

More in Techround. 

Arnold Ma is a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. Do you need him at your meeting or conference? Do get in touch or fill in our speakers’ request form.

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China’s young consumers unsure about their future – Ben Cavender

 

Ben Cavender

Unlike in the past, youngsters in China are unsure of what the future brings, and they have become more frugal, says Shanghai-based consumer analyst Ben Cavender, executive director of the China Market Research Group (CMR). to Reuters.

Reuters:

This newfound frugality, reinforced by social media influencers promoting low-cost lifestyles and sharing savings tips, is a threat to the world’s second-largest economy, which narrowly avoided contracting in the second quarter. Consumer spending accounts for more than half of China’s GDP.

“We’ve been mapping consumer behavior here for 16 years, and in all that time I’ve seen young consumers the most concerned,” said Benjamin Cavender, executive director of the China Market Research Group (CMR).

China’s “zero-COVID” policy — including strict lockdowns, travel restrictions and mass testing — has weighed heavily on the country’s economy. The government’s crackdown on big tech companies also had an outsized impact on the young workforce…

Stability has been the key issue for China’s policymakers this year, experts say, as President Xi Jinping prepares for a third term as head of state at next month’s congress of the ruling Communist Party.

“In the past, when there was an economic slowdown, consumers tended to feel that government policy would solve this problem very quickly,” said CMR’s Cavender. “I think the challenge right now is interviewing younger consumers who really don’t know what the future holds.”

More at Reuters.

Ben Cavender is a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. Do you need him at your (online) meeting or conference? Do get in touch or fill in our speakers’ request form.

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How does the fan economy works in China – Ashley Dudarenok

 

Ashley Dudarenok

The economy of fans, of idols, celebrities, and influencers, works in China very different from elsewhere in the world, explains marketing guru Ashley Dudarenok on her Vlog. Very big in China among Gen-Z, she says.

Ashley Dudarenok is a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. Do you need her at your (online) meeting or conference? Do get in touch or fill in our speakers’ request form.

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Singles and especially women dominate China’s consumption – Ashley Dudarenok

Ashley Dudarenok

Decision-makers in China’s consumption are increasingly singles, with women becoming another major force to take into account, says marketing expert Ashley Dudarenok at the state-owned broadcaster CGTN. Mostly women decide on the purchase of a house, at the end of 2021 likely to be 82% of the deciding purchasers.

Ashley Dudarenok is a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. Do you need her at your (online) meeting or conference? Do get in touch or fill in our speakers’ request form.

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Youngsters: more nationalistic - James Roy

James Roy

American companies and stores like KFC and Apple faced angry crowds after an international court ruled against China on its South China Sea policies, even smashing their iPhone's. A protest that went even too far to China´s government. It is mostly the younger who are more nationalistic and patriotic, says retail analyst James Roy to AP.

AP:

"This is not the right way to express patriotism," the state-run Xinhua news agency wrote on Wednesday. The slightly more independent China Daily called the device smashing "jingoism that does a disservice to the spirit of devotion to the nation." 

"The Chinese public, as optimistic and positive as they are, are deeply patriotic and nationalistic, especially people who are younger," said James Roy of the research firm China Market Research Group. Apple is one of the brands that is "just very closely associated with the United States, and you are seeing people picking the closest symbol they can think of to demonstrate against," according to Roy.

More in AP.

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