A New App Translates Western Chic for Chinese Millionaires

—

by

bernhard

START
body

When Chinese political drama “In The Name Of The People” came on air, it became a pop culture phenomenon. The local program was a drama chronicling the corruption and backroom deals that plague the upper echelon of China’s government. Though it touched on issues familiar to the public, in some ways, it was esoteric. Viewers didn’t understand the show’s sartorial symbolism, not recognizing that different style suits, and hairstyles betrayed the morals of the character wearing them.

Only thirty years ago personal appearance in China was practically uniform, for decades the Mao suit was ubiquitous. The Chinese luxury market is still in its infancy—Louis Vuitton didn’t first land in Beijing until 1992. Consumers are still getting acclimated to the class signifiers that we take for granted in the West. That’s where the new new e-commerce platform and fashion publication App ‘Enjoy’ or ‘Ya Qu’ in Chinese comes in; it’s become China’s brand translator.

When “In the Name Of The People” was at the peak of it’s popularity, ‘Enjoy’ published articles explaining the meaning of the character’s different outfits, with an accompanying shopping guide to help readers emulate the show’s ultra wealthy characters. Enjoy’s content is either integrated with e-commerce, or in collaboration with a brand. For the most part their articles are based on trends in pop culture, serving as an ultra relevant luxury-lifestyle encyclopedia. It’s catalogue for China’s new rich, spanning apparel, travel, cuisine, and self care, crafted to be culturally in tune with an audience new to Western modes of consumption.

‘Enjoy’ is not a sharing platform, or a digital mood board. It is an aggregator for the recommendations of various influencers. The app has a network of over 200 ‘experts’ generating content around the clock, which is vetted by an army of editors. Articles on the app’s homepage are sorted by the number of likes they receive. This is because the average Chinese consumer relies on social media for product reviews, and the many millions who are new to consuming require the advice from peers to navigate the market. Enjoy’s function is to build brand loyalty through it’s expert endorsements and user participation.

With the relevance of many luxury brands waning for young consumers in the West, the ‘Enjoy’ model could be a powerful way to bolster brand loyalty in a changing market.

END

prev link: https://www.crfashionbook.com/fashion/a9951624/a-new-app-translates-western-chic-for-chinese-millionaires/
createdAt:Tue, 30 May 2017 19:39:15 +0000
displayType:Standard Article
section:Fashion