Decoding the Chinese consumer

Mike Bastin, a researcher at Nottingham University's School of Contemporary Chinese Studies, says there is more independent consumer behavior in China. [Photo/China Daily]

But Mike Bastin, a leading expert on Chinese brands and a researcher at Nottingham University's School of Contemporary Chinese Studies, believes the differences between Western and Chinese consumers are no longer so clear cut.

"I think there is actually more independent consumer behavior that is less dependent on either society or family pressures. Chinese consumer behavior is now much more of a hybrid between Chinese and Western culture," he says.

One intriguing aspect of the consumption market is the increasing influence of women.

According to the recent McKinsey survey, participation by women in the workforce on the mainland is 67 percent, more than the 58 percent in the US, 48 percent in Japan and just 33 percent in India. It is also far higher than the 52 percent in Hong Kong.

Liao at BCG says women often play a major role in the spending decisions of households in all markets but in China independent women are increasingly making their own mark.

"In the Western world a man might buy a diamond for a woman as a gift but in China quite a high proportion of diamonds are bought by women themselves. It is not that they can't wait for diamonds to be bought for them. They may just want more," she says.

All this is taking place in an environment where a savings culture still remains dominant.

If the Chinese are such big savers, it begs the question as to what types of expenditure they are foregoing.

Atsmon at McKinsey says it varies depending on the consumer.

"It is really hard to say. Even within a single province there are a lot of differences. In Guangdong, for example, you find that in Shenzhen people do a lot of outside dining, whereas in nearby Guangzhou, people do much less of that," he says.

A major interest of Chinese companies and foreign multinationals is the gray yuan with China facing one of the severest ageing demographics in the world. By 2050, one in three will be aged over 60.

Unusually in China, the people with the real spending power now are in their 30s and 40s and within the next 30 years this is likely to translate into older people being the biggest spenders.

"There is going to be a lot of expenditure on healthcare and there is also going to be a focus on health food products and low fat diets. Today's major consumers are going still be the main consumers in the future but they will be obviously older," Liao at BCG says.

For now, however, the younger generation seems to be obsessed with the latest gadgets with people often lining up around the block at Apple stores when a new product has been launched.

But Atsmon at McKinsey & Co is not sure whether that makes them any different to consumers in the West, where Apple stores are often packed also.

"I would still question whether it is just a question of supply and demand. There are fewer stores and to a certain extent such products have a greater novelty so they attract more attention," he says.

With China being a new consumer market it is often difficult to detect what are the actual Chinese characteristics of behavior and those that are common to all developing markets.

Liao at BCG says Chinese people are currently only behaving in a way similar to the way consumers behaved in the markets around China 100 years ago.

"They are very much into value for money. They like brands but they are not brand loyal. They want a bargain and they will shop around to get it. This is probably deep in the Chinese culture," she says.

Deng Zhangyu contributed to this story.

andrewmoody@chinadaily.com.cn