Noon: Branding China

The presentation was followed by a panel discussion on branding in China, led by Hong Kong retail scion Dee Poon. She grilled Richard Hsu (director of branding firm H+), Design Republic’s Lyndon Neri, and Shanghai Tang creative director Joanne Ooi on what it takes to create a successful brand in China—and why so few exist here on the luxury level. As Joanne put it, “Mao is still the biggest brand in China.”

For a little insight, I’m going to grossly oversimplify their three points!

1. Richard: The Chinese market is growing so explosively, many companies don’t feel the need to invest in branding—an attitude that will backfire once the market becomes more sophisticated.

2. Lyndon: Chinese consumers dwell too much on brand name—at the expense of product itself. More companies need to focus on the quality, integrity, and cultural underpinnings of their products. (Which is why he just launched his own housewares brand at the show, Neri & Hu.)

3. Joanne: Without marketing—which is lacking in sophistication here—you can’t get the brand message across. And Chinese consumers are still learning to understand themselves, their tastes, their style…it will take a more self-aware consumer for brands to really take hold.

Despite the occasionally conversation, there was a general consensus: that China needs to brand itself a bit better.

+ 100percentdesign.com.cn