Juicy Info

Chinese New Year has just passed + Juicy has just completed some
research looking at China = an opportunity to delve into this
fascinating marketplace.

China is one of the BRIC economies, with GDP growth the envy of many
an advanced nation. It has a growing base of more prosperous consumers
living in urban locations, eager to spend cash and indulge their
material aspirations. McKinsey's 2008 Chinese Consumer Survey
recently reported that over one billion people will be urban-based by
2030, at which time the high-earners will account for around one-third
of this total. 

In doing our research it's clear there is lots to be said about
China, and lots of people doing it very well. Just check out the
showcase on Alltop
for starters. So, in our attempt not to rewrite the wheel, here are
five good things to know about China right now. And if you're a
marketer, they just might be quite useful.

1) Economy prosperity: They must be a pretty happy
lot, what with a strong currency, consistent increases in GDP growth
for most of this decade, and the third largest economy in the world. In
a rather pessimistic global economy, China's engine continues to be
buoyant, albeit at slightly slower growth rates than previous years.
The Chinese National Bureau of Statistics this week reported that
actual GDP growth for 2007 was some 13%, hitting the $3.4 trillion mark
(via Wall Street Journal), but 2008 growth was likely to fall back to 9% in 2008.

2) Happy shoppers: The rise of the middle and upper
classes is driving appetite for products and services that are deemed
non-essential. The Chinese have a penchant for shopping, especially for
luxury brands. Just as one exampple, McKinsey's research found that 15%
of consumers were willing to pay over 60% more for high end consumer
electronics. There is a lot more great stuff in the PDF (via Slideshare) around consumers' relationships with brands and media analysis.

3) Getting switched on: Stats from The China
Internet Network Information Centre  (CNNIC) shows that penetration is
about 20% of the population, far below Western levels of around 60% in
the US/UK. However, in actuals, it equates to some 298 million users as
of end 2008 – clearly not small by any means. Techcrunch
reveals Comscore data for December 2008, showing China leading the way
in the country stakes. The Internet is fast becoming an important
channel for consumers, with penetration climbing nearly 50% in 2008
alone. WARC reports that mobile web media is on the rise and e-Commerce is picking up too. Improved infrastructure will be an important growth driver moving forward, with players like Cisco, who this month underlined its commitment to China, spearheading developments. 

4) Olympic glory: They may not have made in to
first place in the medal rankings, overtaken at the post by Mr Phelps
et al, but they did put on a good show. Playing host to the Olympics in
2008 put China under the microscope, at times yielding both positive
and negative press. China Business Review
outlines some of the benefits to the economy from a tourism,
environmental and economic perspective, but also highlights some of the
'lingering effects' playing Olympic host will bring in the future.  

5) Future prospects: No article on China would be
complete without giving an angle on its fundamental growth prospects.
Many of the 1.3 billion people populating this country are still
fledgling consumers by Western standards. There's roughly 100 million
middle-class consumers representing a relatively small proportion of
the country's population. The economic downturn is likely to hamper its
recent fortunes, but there's no mistaking the future potential. PwC predicts it could be as early as 2025 when China overtakes the US to become the world's largest global economy.

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