The BIG Language Debate

Throughout China’s long history, language has been used by emperors and policy makers alike to unite China. On the record, China’s official language is Mandarin but less only about half of the 1.3 billion people speak it.

In Guongdong is where the Cantonese language originated and much of the population speaks it fluently. This is where Beijing has recently issued a banishment of Cantonese, Shanghainese, and Tibetan in the classroom and over the airwaves, which has sparked a revolt within Guangzhou. Many Cantonese who took to the street to protest said “I am willing to speak Mandarin but don’t force me to speak Mandarin!” as well as ‘Cantonese for Cantonese people’.

Protestors in Guangzhou

The requirement of Mandarin in schools and to succeed professionally in China has forced many young Chinese to prioritize Mandarin over their mother tongues. Beijing sees as Mandarin as a national-unity tool and it dominates in schools and is the only language heard on national television and radio stations.

This worries people because language is central to their culture and they believe once they have taken away their language, their culture will become assimilated into an overall Chinese culture.

            Many believe that this is the government’s way of cultural intimidation and making sure that everyone follows the government’s policies.

            This is very interesting because protests are so far and few within China because they crack down so heavily on dissidents. I think that this is interesting too because language is usually not so contested in countries which have been established for some time. Beijing has to find a balance between the various different ethnic tongues in the region and the state chosen language. 

Jail for a Twitter Update

It is well known that China has prevented its’ citizens from accessing popular social networking websites such as Facebook, Youtube and Twitter. For those who want to use the website, they just have to find a way to circumvent the government’s heavily secured firewall.

            As more and more people try to circumvent these firewalls, China has reacted.  Recently, the Chinese government sentenced a 46 year old woman, Cheng Jiangpeng  to one year re-education in a labor camp for disturbing social order. Her crime was re-tweeting a satirical message on Twitter encouraging Chinese protesters to smash the Japanese Pavillion at the Shanghai Expo.

            She reposted a message originally sent by her fiancé hinting that Chinese protestors should smash the message adding the quote “Angry youth, charge!”. Her fiancé said that her tweet was to mock anti-Japanese protestors who have grown since a recent maritime incident where allegedly a Chinese trawler hit a Japanese coast guard boat.

Cheng's original Twitter post still remains online

            The swift actions by the Chinese government show just how closely. the state monitors web usage in China and how strictly enforced Beijing’s rigid controls can be. Both Twitter and Facebook remain indefinitely banned in the country and Google has been banned and unbanned pending they censor material for the Chinese.

'Aftershock' -China's First Imax Film

‘Aftershock’ is a Chinese drama film depicting the aftermath of the 1976 Tangshan earthquake directed by Feng Xiaogang. The movie is about a young woman named Yuan Ni who must chose to save either her son or daughter who are trapped under a cement block after the earthquake hits. Her choice impacts her life for the next 32 years.

It was released in China in July, and it is the first big commercial Imax film created outside the US. This illustrates the growing Chinese influence within the film industry. Imax CEO Rich Gelfond stated that “There is really nowhere in the world that is as active as China right now. Our approach to China has been to become part of the fabric of the culture.”

Aftershock is showing in an unprecedented 4,000 screens and is the highest grossing domestic movie ever.

Although, there is a lot of praise for Feng, some even calling him the ‘Spielburg of China’. There was some outrage at the amount of product placement within the movie including alcohol, insurance, cell phone, cars and sportswear. He states that he did this intentionally because the commercial aspect of Chinese film is evitable as domestic films can only profit through limited channels.

The use of Imax in China shows that many different companies including Imax see the potential of China as a consumer market. They want to be an part of this growing consumer culture. The success of the movie also demonstrates how using American types of filming makes people believe that the movie produced is better than domestic movies.

It also plays on the history and culture of China, which is becoming more and more important to middle and upper class Chinese people. It plays on the age old themes of family, loyalty and love, which are ingrained into the Chinese culture.

International Superstars Promote Chinese Brands

With one of the fastest growing economies in the world, globalization in China has become very important. With this trend, there has developed a very strong preference for the foreign brands n China. These brands are usually first-choice brands in China. In order to compete with the international corporations, many Chinese corporations are turning to international superstars to promote their brands

Two major companies which are using international superstars to promote their brands are Anta an athletic shoe producer and Me & City which is a "high end" Chinese retail company.  Anta has used celebrities such as NBA stars Kevin Garnett and Luis Scola and Serbian tennis player Jelena Jankovic and plans to have Garnett introduce his ‘KG’ line of shoes. Garnett will also wear his KG shoes for NBA games and make annual return visits to China during his contract.

Kevin Garnett after signing with Anta Athletics

KG line from Anta Athletics

Me & City used actor Wentworth Miller, Orlando Bloom and Agnes Deyn. Me & City's brand director, Zhou Long, said Deyn and Bloom were picked because Deyn is the best-known model in China while Bloom and Miller’s casual images fit the definition of success among Chinese consumers aged 25 to 35: "interesting, rather than boringly rich."

Agyness Deyn and Orlando Bloom's Me & City Advertisement

Wentworth Miller's Me & City Advertisement

These ambitious brands are scouring the globe for athletes, film stars and other celebrity spokespeople have no personal link to China but are stars here. These brands think that having a good brand is having a global celebrity, it makes them think they are more of a premium brand and have a global image.

Shaquille O'Neal's Li Ning Advertisement

            The consulting firm McKinsey & Co, found 45% of 15,000 Chinese consumers thought well-known brands were  better quality than lesser known brands. That was up from 41% just three years ago.

            This really shows the globalization and Americanization of other cultures around the world especially China. The newly created companies in China realize the value that international superstars bring to their brand and want to capitalize on this idea. These superstars give credibility to their brands. People in China want to have the same status symbols as their global counterparts.

            Brands also want to be seen as a good investment like their global counterparts and by using international superstars they are seen as equal on the world stage.

            

New International Brands for China

            As many corporations struggle to stay afloat as the recession continues to drag on. Many companies are looking to expand into new markets in an attempt to capture a new audience. Their new focus is now on developing countries such as India, China, and Korea.

China is the largest new consumer market. Affluent Chinese spent over 9.4 billion on luxury goods in 2009, coming second to only Japan. In addition, the per capita GDP is growing at a rapid rate and is expected to reach $3400 dollars this year. All this meaning that China is a huge untapped market for all merchandise price points. Many companies are trying to create lower-priced merchandise for the ever-expanding middle class.

            Many brands are working hard to try and capture this market. One luxury brand that is currently working to do this is Hermes. They created a separate brand called Shang Xia, which created a blend of traditional Chinese craftsmanship and contemporary design for their merchandise. It includes everything from hand-sewn cashmere to fine china. WWD describes it the products as elegant and ethereal. “The goal for Shang Xia is to show the world the strong tradition of China which is a tradition of thousands of years” Hermes CEO Patrick Thomas stated.

            Shang Xia means ‘topsy turvey’ in Mandarin. The materials used will be local materials all assembled by local artisans. This has a huge appeal to Chinese consumers because many are increasingly exploring their roots, craft and culture.  This new brand is specifically being tailored for the Chinese market as a luxury brand made in China for Chinese.

Shang Xia Furniture

Shang Xia Tea Set

         Another brand which striving to make in-roads into the Chinese consumer market is GM. They have recently paired with SAIC-GM-Wuling Automotive Co. They created the Baojun or ‘Treasured Horse’ line of cars to capture growth at the low-end of the Chinese market. This new brand will compete with domestic makers such as Geely, Chery and BYD. The price of this cars has not been announced but it is estimated that the Baojun brand Sail car will be about 56,800 yuan or $8,563 USD.

The reason why GM has made this move is because China has become the largest single market for GM. It is estimated that out of the 5 millions unit sold in China, GM captures about one third of that.

Baojun 'Treasured Horse' Logo

Baojun Sedan

The last brand that has been created to target the Chinese customer is Denizen Denim created by Levi’s. The brand is said to be built around the needs of the new emerging middle class and is all about giving them jeans at affordable price points and up-to-date fits and finishes. Levi’s is aiming to price its Denizen brand in the range of $40-$55 and it will be expensive than the Signature brand. 

The Denizen brand is designed for 18 to 28-year-olds who seek high-quality jeanswear and other fashion essentials at affordable prices. The product collection – including a variety of jeans, tops and accessories – complements active lifestyles and empowers consumers to express their aspirations, individuality and attitudes. They have chosen young people from China, Korea and India to be brand ambassadors for Denizen, in an effort to show how Denizen allows young people to express their individuality.

Pair of Denizen Jeans

Brand Ambassadors for Denizen

            These co-branding ventures really show the potential that the Chinese market possess especially now as the American economy remains stagnant. These companies really need to find new markets to keep making money. As China’s GDP grows, their consumer consumption will continue to grow.