China Speakers Bureau: February 2009

Global China Chat on consumer confidence in China

Group purchases turn to cars - Sam Flemming

Internet users organize themselves already for years to get offline better deals, even to get their cars through "group purchase". Sam Flemming reports on his weblog about his colleague making this big ticket purchase with 55 others.
His colleagues describes how potential buyers force the prices down:

The last step is to meet at a predetermined time at the car dealer to pick up the cars. At the dealer, the members of the group finally meet each other face-to-face for the first time.
It may seem that the group car purchase has ended, but in fact though the purchase process is over the after-purchase communication between the members is only just beginning.
Through the group purchase process, group members become familiar with each other, and, as they are all owners of the same kind of car, they tend to interact even more than normal netizens. Many group purchase group members continue to visit their QQ group, sharing their experiences with their new cars. Group members will often organize together again to purchase accessories and upgrades, or meet for offline activities. Once the group purchase is over, the group leader’s leadership position and influence continues on. When group members encounter problems with their cars, they often out of habit seek out the group leader, and future group purchases and offline activities are often organized by the group leader.

A "must know" lesson for anybody who wants to sell in China.

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Sam Flemming is also a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. When you need him at your conference, do give us a call.

Chinese collectors push up value artists - Rupert Hoogewerf

Rupert Hoogewerf by Getty Images via Daylife

The Chinese artist Zhang Xiaogang has become the country's more valuable artist, says China Rich List producer Rupert Hoogewerf in Bloomberg:

Works by Zhang, known for his somber, gray-hued paintings of Chinese families, fetched a combined $44.1 million at art auctions last year, followed by Yue’s $30.5 million and Zeng’s $30.1 million, according to Rupert Hoogewerf, Hurun’s Shanghai- based publisher. Works by the top 50 artists on Hurun’s list sold a combined $410 million at auction last year. Artists on the list averaged 57.5 years of age.

While in the past mainly foreign collectors determined the art market in China, now also the Chinese investors have started to move, says Hoogewerf. That interest might possibly help this Chinese market from dropping too fiercely, along with the global financial crisis.

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Rupert Hoogewerf is a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. When you are interested in having him at your conference, do get in touch.

Retail sales of luxury good in Shanghai strong - Paul French

Paul French by Fons1 via Flickr

Retail sales of luxury products in Shanghai have remained strong, tells retail analyst Paul French the Financial Times in an article about the Japanese shopping mall Takashimaya, who decided to open stores in Shanghai, despite the global economic crisis.
Paul French:

“There are still a lot of people that want brands,” he said, noting that the Takashimaya store will target the top end of the market.
“Valentine’s day was massive this year,” he said, noting that the combination of Christmas, the Chinese new year and Valentine’s day had helped sustain luxury sales.

French mirrors an optimism on consumer sales, that was also part of Shaun Rein's story yesterday, indicating the 60 percent of the Chinese consumers expect to spend more in 2009 compared to 2008.
But setting up a foreign department store in Shanghai is certainly not an instant success, Paul French warns as he recalls earlier failures.

But making a success of department store retailing at the top end of the market can be difficult in China, Mr French notes, pointing to the failure of Lane Crawford, the Hong Kong luxury retailer, which closed its flagship Shanghai store two years ago. Marks and Spencer, the UK mid-market retailer, has also struggled with its new Shanghai store, the first M&S on the mainland.

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Paul French is also a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. When you need him at your conference, do get in touch.

Most consumers expect to spend more in 2009 - Shaun Rein

Shaun Rein by Fons1 via Flickr

Sixty percent of hundreds of Chinese consumers interviewed in six cities by Shaun Rein's CMR expect they will spend more compared to 2008. That is one of the conclusions Shaun Rein will share during the Global China Chat on consumer confidence on Monday. That could mean that 40 percent is not spending more.
Consumers do make an exception for their expenditure on cars and real estate: those industries seem to have a problem.
Consumers, Shaun Rein says, would rather delay purchases, because they expect prices might go down, from an overall decline of consumer confidence seems no reason.

More details in the press release on the Global China Chat by the China Speakers Bureau.

CSB newsletter for February is out

Image via Wikipedia

Today we published the February 2009 newsletter of the China Speakers Bureau. Of course with the latest on the Global China Chat with Shaun Rein next week, the list of most-sought speakers and useful tip on how to select the best possible speaker.
If you are not yet subscribed, you can read the newsletter here.

Global China Chat on consumer confidence in China

Shaun Rein by Fons1 via Flickr

Monday 2 March at 5 PM Beijing times (6 PM Tokyo time, for Europe, 10 AM CET) consumer analyst Shaun Rein of the leading research bureau CMR will participate on the first Global China Chat, this time on consumer confidence in China by the China Speakers Bureau.
Shaun Rein is one of the leading voices on China's emerging middle class and with him we will discuss how the current economic crisis is affecting the Chinese consumers.
Register at our event reminder to get timely access to our China Global Chat.

Climate changed on climate change - Charles McElwee

Charles McElwee by Fons1 via Flickr

The visit of secretary of state Hillary Clinton to Beijing has profoundly changed the climate on climate change, writes environmental lawyer Charles McElwee, one day after the visit on his weblog. He quotes Clinton:

Now, historically, as you know, the United States had the largest carbon footprint. But in the last year, China has surpassed us, and that is because of your growth. And I laugh with some of your officials. The United States, and certainly the Obama administration, we want China to grow. We want the Chinese people to have a very good standard of living. What we hope is that you won’t make the same mistakes we made, because I don’t think either China or the world can afford that.

And McElwee's take on this:

The cooperation stuff is great; the more cooperation the better. There needs to be a second track, however, that is getting down to the brass tacks with China about the commitments the US and China will make at Copenhagen. There were some hints that these discussions have begun or will begin soon. At a online chat yesterday moderated by Tsinghua University Professor Qi Ye, Clinton said that “we hope to work together in the lead-up to Copenhagen at the end of this year, with a new climate treaty.”...
Time is of the essence. Certainly the issue of climate change has been raised to a top agenda item on the US-China discussion list. Perhaps it is seems ungrateful to express any concern at this point, but I just hope there is sustained engagement on the commitment issue. If the commitment track negotiations are put on the same footing as the “cooperation” track, then they will proceed at the glacial SED pace. We don’t have much time left.

More at his weblog.

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Charles McElwee is a speakers at the China Speakers Bureau. When you are interested in having him at your conference, do let us know.

China: stability at all costs - Arthur Kroeber

Arthur Kroeber by Fons1 via Flickr

China will keep on buying US treasuries, even against all odds. Arthur Kroeber, managing editor of the China Economic Quarterly, tells the Financial Times:

“China’s default policy is to pursue stability at all costs. They do not want to rock the boat when things are unstable.”

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton wanted to make sure that, despite domestic misgivings, China will keep on supporting the US economy. She seems to have gotten that support.
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Arthur Kroeber is also a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. When you are interested in having him at your meeting, do get in touch.

Most sought speakers - February 2009

Andrew Leung by Fons1 via Flickr

It is that time of the month again and at the global offices of the China Speakers Bureau we have been compiling the top-10 of most sought speakers. Most surprising and highest newcomer is professor Andrew Leung from London, who joined us last month and can now be found at the eight place.
Otherwise, we see remarkable few shifts in the top-10 compared to the listing in January (between brackets). Two additional speakers moved into the top-10, Rupert Hoogewerf and Tom Doctoroff, but in our listings they have never been very far away from the top-10.
Is there a certain stability coming into our rankings? In the coming months we have planned some major marketing efforts, and of course we hope that those efforts will make a difference.

The top-10 most sought speakers in February (January in brackets)
1. Shaun Rein (1)
2. Zhang Lijia (2)
3. Jeremy Goldkorn (7)
4. William Bao Bean (4)
5. Victor Shih (3)
6. Tom Doctoroff (-)
7. Arthur Kroeber (8)
8. Andrew Leung (-)
9. Jasper Becker (9)
10. Rupert Hoogewerf (-)

Reinventing the TV in China

Marc van der Chijs by Fons1 via Flickr

Mike Walsh of CASBAA did a nice job in summerizing the online video industry in China, looking indepth at how China is different and how it might influence the way the outside world looks at TV. "TV, just not as you know it".
Not surprisingly, most of the leading voices who explain what is happening belong to the China Speakers Bureau: Kaiser Kuo, Jeremy Goldkorn, Sam Flemming and Marc van der Chijs. Enjoy.

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At the China Speakers Bureau we are happy to provide you with leading voices on the changes taking place in China. Do let us know of you need our help.

Expected: law use rights reforms - Amy Sommers

Amy Sommers by Fons1 via Flickr

As a part of China's green efforts a major change in the country's land use rights are expected, writes Shanghai-based lawyer Amy Sommers in the Green Buildings Blog, republished here.
When China opened up its country for business, foreign companies could typically get a lease of the ground for up to 70 years, leaving open the question what would happen afterward. For industrial and commercial property was up to 50 years, and especially in Shenzhen, where the development started, questions were being asked.
Amy Sommers, Partner at Squire, Sanders & Dempsey, LLP, now has the beginning of good news:

With respect to Land Use Rights (LUR) for residences, the Property Law has now clarified that the contracts will definitely be extended; the only question is the price. As I understand it, the government is considering a couple of different alternatives. One would include using an annual property tax approach, similar to what we have in the US, which would then generate regular revenue streams. However, whether to take this approach or to use some hybrid of it and the payment of 'grant fees' remains to be sorted out.

Most likely local governments - who now make most of their revenue from land use rights, more than on tax revenue - have to be convinced that this practice, common in the US and large parts of Europe, should be introduced in China too.

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Amy Sommers belongs to the China Speakers Bureau with leading speakers on all China-related issues. When you need her at your conference, let us know.

China's media plans "nothing different" - Rowan Simons

Rowan Simons by Fons1 via Flickr

China's central government media have ambitious plans to conquer the world, including the film festival in Cannes, but our media expert Rowan Simons doubts in USA Today whether anything will be different. He shares the doubts of many in the media industry.
They still are the mouthpiece of the communist party in China, Rowan Simons argues:

China also plans an aggressive marketing campaign of its TV programs next month in Cannes, France, says Rowan Simons, director of a media consultant group in Beijing. Among the programs is The Story of Bruce Lee,China's top-rated drama in 2008.

Do you want your speaker over satellite?

Zhang Lijia by Fons1 via Flickr

Challenging times with limited financial resources? Getting a key-note speaker in from overseas can be very expensive. Speakers' fees go up and - although flying has become a tidbit cheaper - flying your speaker in business class adds still to the costs.
At the China Speakers Bureau we are happy to offer you a way out: beam in a speaker by satellite. Of course, having a speaker at your meeting on the ground still adds value. But if we can help you to make ends me, we are happy to do so.

China's internet offers better investment options - William Bao Bean

William Bao Bean by Fons1 via Flickr

As the shake out of industries takes place under the global financial crisis, internet companies in China are becoming more attractive for investments, says William Bao Bean of the SoftBank China & India Holdings (SBCI) to Interfax.
The market has been too expensive in the past few years, but now that is changing:

However, the price adjustment brought about by the global economic downturn will alter this, he said.
"It has taken longer for the global economic downturn to influence China than other countries. I think in the next three to five months, we'll see some good investment opportunities as the market shakes out," he said....
Gaming and e-commerce are the most promising online sectors for investment, according to Bean, because they do not rely so heavily on advertising as a source of revenue when compared with other Internet sectors.

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William Bao Bean is also a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. When you need him at your conference. Do let us know.

Glass tycoon become China's biggest giver - Rupert Hoogewerf

Rupert Hoogewerf by Getty Images via Daylife

Cao Dewang, a glass tycoon from Fujian province, has become China's biggest giver in charity, Hurun publisher Rupert Hoogewerf writes The Shanghai Daily. Cao Dewang wants to run the Fujian Charity Federation and would be number 102 on Hurun China Rich List last year with total assets of 6.5 billion Renminbi.

If the foundation is approved by state authorities, it would be the first to be based entirely on stocks, the Fujian Charity Federation said.

The fund would be used to provide school grants, disaster relief, subsidies for the poor and financial support to religious groups around the country, said the report, which did not say how the shares would be turned into cash....

Cao dropped out of school when he was 14 and went on to earn 700,000 yuan in 1986, three years after he began operating a glass workshop in Fujian's Fuqing City. The shop was later developed into the Fuyao Group, which went public in Shanghai in 1993.

Commercial Rupert Hoogewerf is also a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. When you want him at your meeting or conference, do let us know.

The shock for the migrant workers - Victor Shih

Victor Shih by Fons1 via Flickr

2009 will be a troubling year, professor Victor Shih tells USA Today. Especially for millions of migrant workers who have lost their jobs in export oriented industries and hang on in lesser paying jobs, or return home to rural life.

For those who go home and stay, Shih says, rural life will come as a shock. "These young people were farmers, but they have lived in big cities, and their expectations are now a lot higher."

Polo lost the fight against pirates - Shaun Rein

Shaun Rein by Fons1 via Flickr

Counterfeits might be part of life in China, but some companies win, while Polo lost, tells Shaun Rein Bloomberg. Hong Kong operator Dickson Concept loses after twenty years its "Polo" license, as the company takes control in Asia itself.
Unlike other brands, Polo did not defend its brand in China effectively.

Piracy has damaged Polo’s brand in China and its conservative image has led it to lose market share to rivals such as Ermenegildo Zegna SpA, Gucci Group NV, Louis Vuitton and Prada SpA, said Shaun Rein, managing director of China Market Research Group in Shanghai. “A lot of consumers have told us: Why buy a real Polo shirt if it looks the same as a fake one?”
“Ralph Lauren wasn’t doing as well as it should have in China and Hong Kong even before the financial crisis and it’s doing worse now,” he added. “It has a very ‘old’ image which is not what the Chinese consumers aspire to.”

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Shaun Rein is one of the leading speakers at the China Speakers Bureau. When you need him at one of your conference, do get in touch.

The pitfalls of celebrity marketing - Shaun Rein

Shaun Rein by Fons1 via Flickr

A pot smoking Michael Phelps illustrates now celebrities change from brand ambassadors into liabilities, especially in China where audiences tend to be less forgiving compared to the US, writes Shaun Rein in Forbes.

But brands like Omega and Visa that support Phelps are finding their image in China truly damaged, because attitudes towards drug use are much more conservative there than in the U.S. As one 34-year-old Beijing woman said, "I've lost all respect for Phelps, even though he's a great athlete."

China has seen a long range of celebrity scandals, from Christian Dior's Sharon Stone, who blames the Tibet issue on bad karma. Shaun Rein:

Of course, celebrity endorsements do work sometimes, for instance for Nike with Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods. Those relationships work because they make sense. People wear Air Jordans because they think they'll help them play basketball just a little bit like Mike. People use Nike golf gear to hit that ball a little bit straighter and farther, a little more like Tiger does.

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Shaun Rein is a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. When you are interested in having him as a speaker, do get in touch.

Construction, not export triggered China's crisis - Arthur Kroeber

Arthur Kroeber by Fons1 via Flickr

The declining export figures have not the influence on China's economy that is commonly believed, says economic analyst Arthur Kroeber in The Globe and Mail. Not the export, but failing real estate and declining demand for the construction industry set off the current economic problems in China, he says.
The managing director of the Beijing-based research firm Dragonomics:

"China is more of a construction-driven economy than an export-driven economy." China's troubles began when a housing price bubble burst, which reduced demand for housing materials, he said, adding that the downturn only later spread to exports.
With the Chinese government investing so much in stimulus, construction should pick up later in the year, Mr. Kroeber said. "They should be able to weather what will be a really bad year in exports."

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Arthur Kroeber is a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. When you are interested in having him to share his insights, please get in touch.

You cannot control the internet - Sam Flemming

Sam Flemming by Fons1 via Flickr

You cannot control the IWOM (Internet Word of Mouth) and thus ultimately the internet, tells CIC-chief Sam Flemming 56minus1, when asked about the biggest mistakes companies, brands and agencies make:

One big mistake is thinking they can control IWOM by posting fake messages or getting negative messages deleted (see great example here; the whole Sanlu Milk powder case is also worthy of mention). IWOM is made up of the hundreds of millions of voices of the Internet community and to assume that as a single institution the brand can control IWOM is a fantasy at best.

Because of the commercial character of the Chinese internet providers, compared to the West, they would encourage anything that increases traffic, Flemming explains.

More at 56minus1.

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Sam Flemming is a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. When you are interested in having him at your conference, do let us know.

Saturday, February 28, 2009

Global China Chat on consumer confidence in China

Friday, February 27, 2009

Group purchases turn to cars - Sam Flemming

Thursday, February 26, 2009

Chinese collectors push up value artists - Rupert Hoogewerf

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Retail sales of luxury good in Shanghai strong - Paul French

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

Most consumers expect to spend more in 2009 - Shaun Rein

Monday, February 23, 2009

CSB newsletter for February is out

Global China Chat on consumer confidence in China

Climate changed on climate change - Charles McElwee

Sunday, February 22, 2009

China: stability at all costs - Arthur Kroeber

Friday, February 20, 2009

Most sought speakers - February 2009

Thursday, February 19, 2009

Reinventing the TV in China

Expected: law use rights reforms - Amy Sommers

China's media plans "nothing different" - Rowan Simons

Do you want your speaker over satellite?

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

China's internet offers better investment options - William Bao Bean

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Glass tycoon become China's biggest giver - Rupert Hoogewerf

Monday, February 16, 2009

The shock for the migrant workers - Victor Shih

Polo lost the fight against pirates - Shaun Rein

Thursday, February 12, 2009

The pitfalls of celebrity marketing - Shaun Rein

Construction, not export triggered China's crisis - Arthur Kroeber

You cannot control the internet - Sam Flemming

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