A new report on the Chinese luxury goods market by CLSA Hong Kong on 19th January 2011 states that by year 2020 Chinese consumers will account for 44% of the global luxury goods industry.
Is your brand already in China ?How to build brand equity in China ? Westerners should not build their marketing on the brands and their reputation because they will fail.Most brands names are not known in China before being introduced into the Chinese market.Being in Hong-Kong, does not mean being in Mainland China.What is the profile of a good Chinese partner ?
How to successfully enter China, the good way, with an understanding of Chinese culture?How can a Brand leader understand Chinese consumer?What Chinese name for my Brand?Will China continue its Westernization?There are so many things you should know about China before thinking of developing your brand there, it will take more than one editorial to share my experience about entering luxury brands into the Chinese market.
China counts a population of 1.3 billion with over 120 million middle class consumers, 300 million netizens1 and 700 million mobile phone usersForty seven satellites tv channels and 2000tv stations sending around 6000 tv channelsGeographically China is as big as Europe with a much larger population.
Like Europe China is divided in many distinct regions similar as our countries, with distinct geographies languages and different levels of development going from tiers 1 to 4*As Europe, each Chinese Region has a distinct government ruling them, custom and clearance could be easier in some region than others.Also Chinese from Beijing will never invest in Shanghai and Chinese from Shanghai will never invest in Beijing, that makes development very difficult for European companies without the right partner.
It is interesting to understand the difference between Hong Kong and Mainland China. Many brands are blocked in Hong Kong as they signed an exclusivity contract with some Chinese partners in Hong Kong but will never go to deep China. They will enter Macao, Taiwan but seldom they will access Shanghai and Beijing and be accepted by the real Chinese. Why? Chinese from Hong Kong and Chinese from Mainland are different and don’t like each others. Chinese from Hong Kong are considered by Mainland Chinese as outsiders and Chinese from Mainland are considered by Hong-Kong Chinese as peasant, non educated Chinese.
*Tiers 1 to 4 is the ranking of cities going to the most urban developed ones with the highest luxury goods consumption level to the most rural cities with lower consumption.Only Tier 1 to Tier 2 are of interest to us for the moment and includes 41 cities. Tier 1, the big four, with Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou and Shenzhen (this two last one are suffering from Hong Kong tax free system.The 3 most luxury cities are ranking in top position of the 37 cities in Tiers 2: Hangzhou, Dalian and Chengdu. Wealthy people are enjoying life, not living in a busy city but in nice surrounding: ex: Hangzhou twin city with Nice for its “promenade des Anglais” aside to the beautiful lake.
What is the profile of a good Chinese partner ?A right partner for a brand willing to develop in China, is an investor with the right network, meaning having partners in the top luxury Chinese big cities and good network including people in federal government and in governments of every cities. A right partner is also someone powerful in China, not an isolated individual but a large group respected and honored by Chinese society and Chinese government.This will secure your funding and development but also the fact that no one will dare to copy you or steal your know how, as your partner is powerful enough and will defend his own interest.A good partner will build the Chinese team to develop the brand in ChinaHe has a deep knowledge of retail in China and owns a large real estate portfolio to develop flagships. He also owns medias: TV and magazines and invest in new medias.
How to start entering China the good way with the right understanding of Chinese culture?
How can a Brand leader understand Chinese consumer?How can we all have a better understanding of each other?The understanding of Chinese mind seems very difficult for European though westerners should be use to understand cultural differences: everyone is use to the difference making business with American, French, Italian, Swiss or German. In front of Chinese people, everyone seems to get lost and need some help to get a better understanding.Guided by Chinese thinker Confucius born on 551BC, Chinese society social value and behavior are defining everyone role from mother to business partner and consumer.Respect is one of the most important value for Chinese.Respect, trust and face are the best friends, if you have respect, you will trust the other not to make you loose face.
The understanding of face is very important in China where no one will do something to someone they do not want to get for themselves.
To maintain face we need the respect and consideration from other people.
There is many things to know before meeting your future partner / investor in China.First you should forget all your past experiences as you cannot conquer China the way you conquered other markets. If you do, you will fail.In China NO brands are known before entering in China, forget your fame and start from the beginning. It could be frustrating at the first thought but it is a brand new experience for you and your partner will trust you enough to give you all funding to make it happen the Chinese way.The reason why China is so successful today is because their way of thinking and specially the way they can adapt themselves to all situation, not stopping in front of an obstacle but contouring it.They know where they are, they know where they go, and no matter which way they will go to get there. The most important is to succeed.Never forget that your goal is to develop your brand in China and to win part of market. Flexibility will be your highest quality.Chinese are aware it takes 3 years of hard marketing after opening the 3 first flagships in Shanghai, Beijing and Hangzhou, they know this and they will invest massively in marketing. As you have no time to learn how to become Chinese or to behave politely in China to succeed you will need a guide and you will need to accept to be guided.As China development is going very fast and as many companies are expecting to find the right partner and factually there is less opportunities than brands, you definitely need help.
 | |||
| Gianluca Gargantini, CEO Casa del Bianco New York, and Li Yuan group Chairman |
1. The way of presenting you and introducing your company.
The presentation of the company is very important and needs to be made totally differently from the other countries. The mission of the brand. The benefit the brand will bring to the Chinese society, the visibility the brand has on Baidu* are the most important.
Another important element is that the owner, CEO or the person representing the brand must have his own history. He needs to have a background and honors. If you want to go to China, you cannot send your development manager to meet the Chairman of the Chinese Group, this will show a lack of respect and you will break the brand image.
As at the emperor court you will be introduced solemnly to sit at the right of the Chairman. Your sitting place will be given to you and to each person of the group before the emperor will enter in the room
Very impressive as the room is always huge, empty except large clubs coach along the walls. After the chairman will introduce himself and give you some polite greetings, you will be invited to introduce yourself.It is very rude to interrupt the presentation.* Baidu is the equivalent of Google in China. Our Google as many European websites are not reachable from China.
2. The way to participate to a dinner ceremony.
These dinners are very important in China as before doing any business Chinese needs to honor you in giving a dinner for you
they will never take you in public place. Eating in public place like western restaurant never occur in china. All restaurants have small private dinner rooms. Rich Chinese does not show off in front of other Chinese eating and drinking expensive wines. This is again the difference between Chinese from mainland and Hong Kong Chinese’sYou are not oblige to eat duck tongs if you do not like it, but you should drink with them to good ideas and show enthusiasm, pleasant person to be with.Don’t forget, you will have to spend a lot of time and share moments with your partner and its team.Chinese are not creative; they will give everything, funding, and team; but they need you and your team to bring the input and the creativity.
Trust and respect are the two major criteria to build a prosperous future with your Chinese counterpart. These dinners are important for them to see how you are as a person.
3. The way of presenting brochures and brand in a world wherea word, a number, a color or a picture could ruin your image.Chinese communication is very different than Western communication.You cannot take the risk going to China with a presentation brochure made for England or US. Beside of the Chinese code of communication, there are a lot of things to know before communicating in China.Chinese are very superstitious, numbers, colors… do not present any brochure before going to a specialized agency.Pictures are very important in China as their own communication is pictures, Chinese characters are ideogram and each one is seen by the brain as a picture.
The respect and opinion from other people are as important to a brand user as his or her own feelings.
In other words a brand may also loose face. Advertising in China is more the message the brand will give than the brand by itself. A logo does not ran anything if not convey by a message. Therefore if your brand is high end good for health, it will bring happiness and to succeed in China, you should say it.
Brands cannot loose face but also cannot make the others loose face
Therefore all kind of jokes in advertisement should be seriously analyzed. When humor comes at the expense of another person it makes this person to loose face. This is unacceptable in china where humor is never taken 2nd degree.
What Chinese name for your Brand?
If you plan to enter the Chinese market another thing you need to adopt is a Chinese name for your brand.It is interesting to look at brands you know as example:
BMW: Precious horse
Mercedes: Running
Johnson and Johnson: Strong Life
IKEA: Suitable for home
Pampers: Helping baby's comfort
If you don't have a Chinese name that convey a feeling adding something to Chinese well being you will have less chance to succeed in Mainland China. Also if you choose a name not fitting right to the product or if the product mission is far different from the name you may have a signature campaign against the Chinese name. The best way is to ask your partner to find it for you. It will clearly express the way Chinese will perceive the brand.
Following the influence of Confucius. Chinese will never exhibit themselves as individualist, they will always work in team and make low profile giving the success of their effort to the company, the group and their social circle.Promoting a brand in China should really reflect this concept and profit should not be only for the brand but give a plus value to the Chinese society.
The success of an hero has to contributed being channeled into a collective success.
In China you can only be a hero if you are low profile. Self sacrificed hero associated to the brands make a brand successful.
It is not enough to advertise a logo a brand you need a story a message
First the message second the brand.
A brand advertising the wrong way will risk its popularity and its credibility.
Chinese consumer wants to be individual but not to be alienate from the people around him.
Will China continue its Westernization?
China has an ancestral culture and this understanding is very important for brands willing to enter the market. The ability to change fast to understand the culture and to understand we should not always impose our culture. Are we really an example? The addition of our Luxury expertise to their brilliant culture should really give the brands the possibility to come to China with a real creativity potential given to adaptation to the Chinese culture. This has to be planned, as today Chinese consumer wants the best we have and later they will come back to their very deep root.This will happen by itself, smoothly, not by imposing them a designer coming from Hong-Kong or Europe, not by pretending yourself knowing their culture.*If today the Chinese consumer is looking for European Luxury, tomorrow he will ask the European luxury and high end quality adapted to its culture. A good European luxury brand leader will need to understand this adaptation and trust his partner enough to let him choose the real Chinese designer for the continuity of the development of the brand in China.Don’t forget that nothing stays the same way, and Chinese are showing us the way to go with the wind and adapt ourselves to changes. Flexibility is the key of success in China and also a wise teaching to apply in each situation. Be ready for changes.*http://www.tmrcresearch.com/2010/12/a-luxury-brand-assumes-a-chinese-identity-%E2%80%93-how-will-this-go-down-with-consumers/
More info: www.creezy-theagency.com
Bubble
Snake
Pacman
Jeu de briques
Ajouter un commentaire