October 23, 2007
Top 25 Brands in China
This is an old list that appeared in the June 5, 2006 Chinese edition of Fortune. I love lists and brand rankings don’t change too much over time so I thought I’d post it (homegrown Chinese brands are in bold):
- BMW
- Microsoft
- Intel
- Mercedes Benz
- Coca Cola
- IBM
- Haier
- Nokia
- Wuliangye
- Kweichou Moutai
- Airbus
- Porsche
- Audi
- Lenovo
- Motorola
- Wal-Mart
- Boeing
- Tongrentang
- Tsingtao
- Pepsi
- Siemens
- Sony
- Nike
- General Motors
Cat: | Time: 3:38 pm (utc+8)
October 23rd, 2007 at 4:31 pm
How do these brand rankings work? Its funny that two of them are for Baijiu, I can’t wait for the day when they wipe that stuff off the planet :)
Does Tongrentang market western medicine overseas, outside of Chinese stores?
October 23rd, 2007 at 5:43 pm
Nik: Clearly the survey was deeply flawed and included a disproportionate number of drunks. Frankly I wouldn’t know a puddle of regurgitated Kweichou Moutai if I slipped in it. Some of my worst memories of studying abroad here are of puking baijiu (the only brand I remember was the vaunted Erguotou) … nowadays if I even get a whiff of baijiu I want to run for the exit. I’ve never been inside a Tongrentang and have no idea about there business, here or abroad. Can you get dried tiger penis there? This is the important question.
October 23rd, 2007 at 9:01 pm
amazing that appple is not on the list. rooooom to grow,
October 23rd, 2007 at 9:43 pm
howard: Who knows about the accuracy of these kind of lists, but it’s true that Apple doesn’t seem to have much brand awareness in China.
October 23rd, 2007 at 11:03 pm
I can drink Baijiu. They are not so bad. And the Sichuan one is way better.
Don’t know about dried tiger penis, but Tongrentang’s medicine works wonder on Wesley.
No Big M and Starbucks and Kentucky and Pizza Hut and IKEA? I thought they’re everywhere now. :)
October 23rd, 2007 at 11:12 pm
Apple’s products are overpriced. Americans are not very price conscious. For other people , it matters a lot.
October 23rd, 2007 at 11:49 pm
CM, I am curious and wanted to ask this question for some time. Are you still a US citizen? or did you take up Chinese citizenship.
Thanks,
October 23rd, 2007 at 11:52 pm
BMW no. 1? Strange, do they sell much in China?
October 24th, 2007 at 12:03 am
I’m always amazed by the perception of brands and the relative value. Last year at this time I was in Chicago, and the popular beer was Stella Artois, selling for about $5 - $8 a bottle depending on the bar. A few months later, in Borneo, you can buy it at a road side stop for about $1, a little cheaper if you buy three at a time, the cheapest beer in town. Hip in Chicago, not! in Borneo. I drank a bunch with salted peanuts in the shell.
October 24th, 2007 at 4:54 am
Isn’t Buick a pretty strong brand over there? I heard that Mao drove Buicks, so everyone associates that brand with people in/with power.
October 24th, 2007 at 7:50 am
@Joy: IKEA isn’t everywhere (just Beijing and Shanghai I think), but MCD and Starbucks and the YUM brand stores (KFC and PH) are pretty common even in second tier cities. As we’ve said, these surveys are probably deeply flawed and we need to look closely at their methodology before giving it too much credence.
@observer: I thought the same thing … the Chinese are pretty careful about spending money and they’re practical, so they’re not going to pay top yuan for an Apple product just because it’s pretty.
@KK: I am an American citizen though once I reach $25 million in liquid assets I will renounce it for tax reasons. This hasn’t happened yet. ;-) I couldn’t become a Chinese citizen even if I wanted to (which I certainly don’t anyway, in part for tax reasons, in part for ideological ones).
@Carlos: BMW not only sells a lot of cars here, they manufacture a lot too (in Shenyang).
@TraderD: Funny that you mention Stella Artois. I think it’s a Harvard B school case because any Belgian will tell you Stella is a second or third-rate beer that’s been brilliantly marketed.
@Doug: Buick is a GM division … Mao didn’t drive a Buick but the car still has a lot of status — from pre-revolutionary days.
October 24th, 2007 at 8:01 am
BMW, Buicks and Audis are all seen on the roads here in great numbers. Brand awareness is an interesting topic and it would be great to find out more about whats in the minds of the chinese shopper.
Maoxian, check out the Tongrentang megastore in Dashilan/Dazhalan south of Qianmen. You can pick up some 250,000RMB ginseng down there :)
October 24th, 2007 at 9:39 am
Nik: Last I checked VW had largest market share (26%) which is equal to all Chinese brands combined. GM is second with 9% and Toyota third with 4%. Again it’s a Tier One Tier Two Tier Three cities story — 88% of all cars registered in Shanghai are foreign brand (76% in Beijing).
I rarely stray out of the CBD and my 100 kuai ginseng is good enough for me (I take a tablet every day).
October 24th, 2007 at 1:14 pm
Mao, is your son considered a Chinese citizen? If not, does he have citizenship somewhere?
Also, why do you take ginseng everyday?
October 24th, 2007 at 2:45 pm
pancho: Although Baby T was born in London, he’s an American citizen. I take ginseng because I think it boosts my immune system (no reason to think this… placebo effect probably).
October 25th, 2007 at 2:31 am
Mao, strangely enough, the hippest beer in Sarawak (Borneo) is Budweiser, though hard to find. Myself, I can’t drink the stuff, but it has that american “style” to it, like James Dean and Levi’s I guess. I have this strange dream of opening a hawker stall and selling bud and hamburgers, with the hamburgers made diner style. If I ever do, I’ll send you a picture.
October 25th, 2007 at 8:15 am
TraderD: Another marketing success because Bud is swill as everyone knows (even those who love it). Your Borneo Bud and burger stand should be a resounding success.
October 25th, 2007 at 8:38 am
you can renounce your citizenship, but ive heard the IRS wants their money for 10 more years.
October 25th, 2007 at 10:04 am
QQQBall: I haven’t looked into the details but I have no idea how they could claim ten future years’ taxes.
October 25th, 2007 at 12:44 pm
[…] Check it out! While looking through the blogosphere we stumbled on an interesting post today.Here’s a quick excerptThis is an old list that appeared in the June 5, 2006 Chinese edition of Fortune. I love lists and brand rankings don t change too much over time so I thought I d post it (homegrown Chinese brands are in bold): BMW Microsoft Intel Mercedes Benz Coca Cola IBM Haier Nokia Wuliangye Kweichou Moutai Airbus Porsche Audi Lenovo Motorola Wal-Mart Boeing Google Tongrentang Tsingtao Pepsi Siemens Sony Nike General Motors […]
October 25th, 2007 at 11:52 pm
Chinese passport can get you to 15 countries without visa, American 133. I rest my case. Thou strangely, I still got my Chinese passport.
October 26th, 2007 at 6:21 am
[…] Read the rest of this great post here […]
October 26th, 2007 at 7:55 am
Joy: Out of curiosity, do you know which 15?
October 26th, 2007 at 11:25 am
yes, i think it is true. also, ive also heard that individual states (California) demand state taxes on pensions earned in California, even after you move to another state, say Nevada with no state taxes.
dont you get like an $80,000 exemption on foreign income?
October 26th, 2007 at 11:31 am
QQQBall: Yes.
April 20th, 2008 at 9:04 pm
I am in China now and have been scoping out the popular brands of all sorts and noticed that Buick is incredibly popular in China. Come to find out, China is Buick’s largest market. They’re everywhere here, even in Nanjing.
April 20th, 2008 at 9:07 pm
cb: Yes, the brand retains its status from pre-revolution days (inexplicably), but VW has the greatest market share among foreign makes by a mile. (The Buick minivan is popular among the nouveaux riche and was what we were driven around in during our recent trip to Chengdu.)