David Liao

Opinion | How to woo 1.4 billion Chinese consumers, who are not just crazy rich but also more educated now

David Liao says Chinese consumers are becoming more sophisticated, and now have a taste for avocado, coffee and electric cars. As China switches to growth based on consumption, there are great opportunities for businesses everywhere

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In the past, China-based trade fairs were all about what Chinese companies could sell to the world. The upcoming China International Import Expo, at Shanghai’s National Exhibition and Convention Centre in November, is about foreign companies selling to China. Photo: Handout

David Liao

Published: 2:30pm, 18 Sep 2018Updated: 10:56pm, 18 Sep 2018

Consumer tastes change quickly in China. Seven years ago, the country imported only about 30 tonnes of avocados, with the Central American fruit an exotic ingredient rarely appearing on Chinese dining tables.

Fast-forward to 2017: China bought 32,200 tonnes of the fruit from Chile, Mexico and Peru – enough to make 200 million servings of avocado on toast.

Much has been said in recent years about the opulence of China’s new rich, and their outsize impact on anything from Swiss luxury watches to designer handbags and superyachts. But China is more than just Crazy Rich Asians ; less recognised is how consumption is becoming more sophisticated and inclusive, as wealth spreads from urban centres to rural heartlands, spurred by better-educated new generations who are web-savvy and worldly-wise.

As rising protectionism and trade tensions create growing unease for businesses around the world, there is no better time for international companies to take a fresh look at these new consumers and their potential to drive demand for goods from half a world away.

Some crazy, or fairly, rich Chinese queue to enter a Chanel store in Shanghai in 2015. Photo: Reuters