Let Them Drink Champagne

“China is the new United States. It’s why we have to promote champagne in China — to make them happy and peaceful. They are going to lead the world for the next 200 years.” -Pierre-Emmanuel Taittinger, Chief Executive, Taittinger

Have the Americans been benevolent despots because of ample bubbly? Or is our purported aggressiveness and ruthlessness the result of less fabulous intoxicants? What sort of hegemon is bred on baijiu?

Anyway, Taittinger is just one of countless luxury brands working to gain a slice of China, the sweetest, biggest cake in the market.

随着世博会如火如荼地举行,中国的各个方面都吸引着全世界的眼球。

As the Expo goes on, China gets more attention and the luxury market seems ever more enticing. Some brands like Dior, Hermes and Levi’s have even started new brands exclusively for the Chinese market.

Chinese customers are going brand mad with luxury sales growing fantastically. China is gradually changing from a never-ending factory to a landscape of a thousand identical luxury shopping centers. The growing demand is nice for the luxury brands, but the complex bureaucracy means one needs – yawn – “guanxi”.

Or so Reuters and Guardian are saying again.

随着世博会如火如荼地举行,中国的各个方面都吸引着全世界的眼球。而中国的奢侈品市场也逐渐被各大品牌比如 Vivienne Westwood, Burberry, La Prairie还有Bulgari看好,Dior, Hermes å’Œ Levi’s这样的大牌也都特意为中国市场开创了新的品牌。不知为何,中国消费者们有点像是得了品牌崇拜症,上海重庆广州等地方的奢 侈品销量持续飙高,让各大品牌纷纷急红了眼,想要在中国分一杯羹。法国香槟Taittinger的董事长Pierre-Emmanuel Taittinger甚至说:“中国就像是新的美国。我们要推销我们的香槟,让中国人感到高兴和满足。中国会在这未来的200年领 先全球。”
不过,一些国外品牌对于如何习惯中国复杂的官僚主义和怎样和当地政府搞好关系感到头疼。不 同城市不同地区的要求和限制更是不同,他们甚至觉得打入中国这一个国家的市场像是要努力进入不同国家的市场一样繁琐。极高的关税也是 另一个障碍,比如兰博基尼跑车在中国的价格几乎是在意大利的两倍,即便这样去年他们还是在中国卖了80辆车,并且很有信心 在2010年卖出100辆。总之中国市场这块大蛋糕不是那么容易就吃的,一方面消费者对于品质的要求日渐增加而且中西方的审美差异可 能也导致中国消费者对于某些品牌并不买账;另一方面中国官方的各种限制也给各大品牌设置了种种难题。中国的奢侈品市场日后 如何更规范更全面地发展,让我们拭目以待。
更多请看来自 Reuters 和 Guardian 的报道。
Contribution by Yu Wu (吴俣)

Nels Frye is a freelance writer, photographer, consultant and stylist, based in Beijing. Focuses are on street style, other consumer trends, and broader social issues.

Comments are closed.