Made for China

Foreign companies are finally wooing Chinese consumers either by designing products for them or by unveiling global brands first in the country. In September 2010, France's Hermes will open its first Shang Xia — which translates roughly as "from top to bottom" — store in Shanghai to mark the launch of a line of ready-to-wear clothing and crafts inspired by traditional Chinese motifs. Last month, America's Levi Strauss launched, with much fanfare, a global jeans brand, dENiZEN, in the same city. Earlier in the summer, General Motors and SAIC announced their plans to introduce a new automobile, Bao Jun ("prized horse"), for about RMB 50,000 ($7,400), which is lower than the price at which the Chevrolet sells in China.

Although welcome, the trend has started when confusion among Chinese consumers about brand origins is at its peak. On the one hand, Chinese companies have created the impression that they are foreign. For instance, 90% of respondents believe that Metersbonwe, a Chinese fast fashion company, is foreign, according to our most recent consumer survey. On the other hand, multinational companies have marketed brands cleverly so they can pass as Chinese. Seventy percent of consumers think that Danone is a local company, we found. Read more