Challenges of Western Brands when Marketing to Chinese Literature review

Challenges of Western Brands when Marketing to Chinese - Literature review Example This potential can be signified by the continual growth of retail sales of consumer goods, for instance retail sales figures increased by 3% in 2007 (PRC 2011). China may be described as a large and homogenous developing market. The ‘huge population, the rapid industrialization and unprecedented economic growth’ provides manufacturers a great opportunity (Ewing et al., 2002). Multi-million Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) like Coca Cola, Uniliver and Mc-Donald’s have experienced a lot of success in this market. The consumer brand consciousness in china goes through four eras and steps into a post-industrialization era. The consumer’s attitude has seen a change from a supply-side orientation to a demand-side orientation (Schlevogt, 2000). Nolan (2002) once pointed out that china is moving rapidly to integrate with the world economy. The Preference For Domestic Brands There are still some issues which may act as an impendent for international companies. One such impediment, cited by many scholars, is local brand loyalty in china. Ayala and Lai (1996) claimed that foreign brands may find it hard to enter this market, due to the development of brand loyalty. â€Å"Foreign brands underestimate the power of domestic brands and the degree of brand loyalty to them† (Ewing et al, 2002). ... Other factors that internal brands have to contend with while competing with local brands are ethnocentrism and protectionism. According to Bates (1998) the idea that â€Å"west is best† is no longer the dominating factor for consumer’s first choice. Although, western culture still does influence consumption behaviors, it tends to benefit local brands more than their foreign competitors. For example, there has been a general trend among businessmen to wear formal business attire, rather than casual wear. But local brands like Youngor and Firs have been the main beneficiaries of this trend instead of foreign manufacturers. â€Å"European fashion was most aware by Chinese consumers, but consumers simply consider it as a source of choice rather than actually purchasing European fashion products† (Bates,1998). According to Nolan (2002) when China joined the World Trade Organization, their local corporations needed to find a way to compete on a worldwide field. Chinaà ¢â‚¬â„¢s industrial policy also faced many issues in the process of emerging into the global business arena. These limitations in turn, constrained the development of local brands. For instance, ‘policy inconsistency exists in the same industry, China’s weak economy based, and failures in China’s bureaucracy’ (Nolan, 2002). The Growth of China’s Fashion Industry The Vogue China Fashion Index (2006) (the National Bureau of Statistics) found that Chinese consumers associate fashion with modernization, innovation and personalization. According to the statistics, 18.7 % of Chinese consumers consider modernization as the highest factor while selecting fashion, and then followed by 17% who consider

Are American students grossly unprepared for college Statistics Project

Are American students grossly unprepared for college - Statistics Project Example to answer the question what fraction of first year students enrolled in all higher learning institutions between 1999/2000 and 2003/2004 and the fraction that was reported to take remedial courses (Dina 10). Besides, the researchers are trying to find out the reasons behind their course of action. The target population is the fresh undergraduates that are first year students being enrolled in private and public institutions. This is the same population the author is trying to draw conclusion from based on various characteristics. The sample in the study is a section of the first year and fourth year students in the higher learning institutions. The sample is not a representative of the population because it did not consider the continuing students. There are differences according to the control and level of the institution, according to selectivity of the institution, student characteristics, and differences by the degree program or the study field in regard to the remedial course taking in higher institute of learning. There were notable four distinctions in the proportion of undergraduates who got enrolled in remedial courses for every academic year. The researcher found that based on the reports of students for remedial courses in the study there was proof that the rate of remedial courses being taken by students might have gone down since 1999/2000. This might not be a logical conclusion given that the variables used were not exhausted. Hence causal conclusion cannot be taken. However, this is a valid conclusion based on the research design. The results can be used by the institutions and the ministry of education to seek the best policies to adopt in the higher education course programs. The statistical analyses that were used to draw conclusion for the study include: establishment of statistical variance and standard deviation. This was conducted from the information that was collected over telephone and interviews of the population sample which is the