Sriram@Searchlight

Inhospitable times for China’s hospitality industry

As Shanghai enters the 12th day of what was originally billed as a 4 day lockdown, the impact on businesses is very visible. We have clients who are affected and looking at their struggles and financial reforecasts for the year gives us a sense of the pain that many industries will face in China thisContinue reading “Inhospitable times for China’s hospitality industry”

Think global or local? Confused?

MNCs often find it hard to manage their China business. Local teams insist that it’s different and needs a unique approach. Regional and global teams are worried about departing from a brand framework and business strategy that’s proven successful everywhere else in the world. How can you frame this interaction positively and help the businessContinue reading “Think global or local? Confused?”

Awash with data, athirst for insight

As we look back on the client projects we worked on through 2021, one thing that stands out as a common theme across many of them is that the client already had more than enough data or research or information of various sorts to make good strategic decisions. Yet, somehow, they were usually in oneContinue reading “Awash with data, athirst for insight”

China’s Double 11 shopping festival cooling is an opportunity for brands to re-think

Unlike previous years, there is no barrage of real-time reports and chest-thumping assertions of being even bigger and better than ever before. Double 11 (November 11th) became famous as the world’s biggest online shopping day, dwarfing any such event anywhere in the world in terms of revenue. While it’s gone from a single day toContinue reading “China’s Double 11 shopping festival cooling is an opportunity for brands to re-think”

Famous in China (7) – A Cautionary Tale

To try and create greater familiarity for those living elsewhere, we’ll periodically profile some China brands and businesses that we believe will be household names across the world soon – though this week’s example is a cautionary tale of a Chinese brand that was already in many markets around the world but may need toContinue reading “Famous in China (7) – A Cautionary Tale”

The Goldilocks Zone (part 2)

IKEA vs. Home Depot 6.45 million new homes were built in China in 2019. Culturally, owning a home is a prerequisite to getting married and starting a family, and as a result 90% of households own their home; one of the highest ownership rates in the world. Two brands, IKEA and Home Depot seemed perfectlyContinue reading “The Goldilocks Zone (part 2)”

Famous in China (part 6)

To try and create greater familiarity for those living elsewhere, we’ll periodically profile some China brands and businesses that we believe will be household names across the world soon, except perhaps for this time’s example. It’s getting to the hottest part of summer and quite naturally, our thoughts turn more and more often to beerContinue reading “Famous in China (part 6)”

The Goldilocks Zone

That old trope about pencils in space Stop me if you’ve heard this one… During the space race, NASA discovered that typical ball-point pens don’t work in space. So, they invested a million dollars to develop a pen that would work in zero gravity, could write upside down and could withstand the extremes of outerContinue reading “The Goldilocks Zone”

Famous in China (Part 5)

To try and create greater familiarity for those living elsewhere, we’ll periodically profile some China brands and businesses that we believe will be household names across the world soon. This month let’s look at something quintessentially Chinese – a hotpot restaurant chain called XiaBu XiaBu （呷哺呷哺） Background Xiabu Xiabu started in 1998, pioneering the concept ofContinue reading “Famous in China (Part 5)”

6.18 – China’s second “shopping day”

As perhaps many people are already aware, 11.11 (November 11) was launched as a shopping extravaganza by Alibaba’s TMall – initially named “Singles Day” although now it’s become pretty universal. Jing Dong (JD) launched their own special shopping day on June 18 which was their founder’s birthday and over the years it’s become China’s secondContinue reading “6.18 – China’s second “shopping day””