Latest Posts
Cultural fluidity in business between cultures – Sharon Gai
Sharon Gai, a China-born Canadian who is an expert in e-commerce, digital transformation, and AI, and worked as head of Global Key Accounts at Alibaba. She explains what lessons she learned about cultural fluidity in business and society to IKNS Conversations That Matter, in places where different cultures meet, and how cultural intelligence can help.Read More →
What can brands learn from China – Ashley Dudarenok
Branding expert Ashley Dudarenok, author of Innovation Factory: China’s Digital Playbook For Global Brands (September 2023), discusses with Pascal Coppens what global brands can learn from China. Business models from the USA, Germany, and Japan have left their footprint in business education. Still, the innovations coming from China have been left out of this business learning process, says Dudarenok, especially regarding ways to reach consumers directly.Read More →
China: key for McDonald’s expansion – Shaun Rein
Fast food giant McDonald’s is expanding its footprint in China with one-third of its planned 9,000 new restaurants. China is key for McDonald’s expansion, says Shanghai-based business analyst Shaun Rein in FDIntelligence. “McDonald’s actually has a lot of potential because it’s considered cheap, quick [and] convenient,” says Shaun Rein.Read More →
Falling pork prices: another red flag for China’s economy – Shaun Rein
Deflation is on the edge of slowing down China’s economy, and falling pork prices are yet another indication not all is well, says Shanghai-based business analyst Shaun Rein at CNBC. As for the less affluent, China Market Research Group’s Rein observed that they are saving money by ordering less pork, according to CNBC.Read More →
How Alibaba’s Taobao adjusted to tight-fisted consumers – Ashley Dudarenok
China’s consumers are adjusting their purchasing habits and big players are adjusting their strategies to the search for cheaper products. Marketing expert Ashley Dudarenok looks at the changed strategy of Alibaba’s Taobao for the Double 12 festival, she says at marketing-interactive.Read More →
Why China and Japan need closer ties – Zhang Lijia
Relations between China and Japan have been tense since the end of World War II, and the annual remembrance of the rape of Nanking, this year 86 years ago, marks those tensions. Author Zhang Lijia argues that nowadays both countries need better relations, she argues in the South China Morning Post. “An amicable Sino-Japanese relationship is vital for regional stability and prosperity. If the two remain hostile, it will play into the US’ hands,” she writes.Read More →
How China’s internet platforms differ from those in the West – Sharon Gai
China’s platforms like Shein, Temu, and TikTok can conquer Western markets, but Western retail apps fail to do the same in China. E-commerce expert Sharon Gai gives some reason for that difference in the Australian network ABC.Read More →
Who are my ‘underground’ historians – Ian Johnson
China veteran and Pulitzer prize winner Ian Johnson discusses his newest book Sparks: China’s Underground Historians and their Battle for the Future with Bao Pu at City Lights Live. First question: who are the underground historians? And how do they survive in China’s system and challenge the state’s efforts to whitewash its history.Read More →
Why investors need different options, including China – Jim Rogers
Investors need to keep their options open, in case things go wrong, to have an alternative, including China, says Singapore-based American investor Jim Rogers at the Nomad Capitalist. “You hope you do not need it, but you need to have the option,” he says.Read More →
What can Asian startups learn from China? – William Bao Bean
VC William Bao Bean, managing director of Orbit Startups explains how Asian companies can learn from the example from Chinese companies. Not by simply copying the China models, but by learning the lessons and applying them in a new situation, he tells the Future Investment Initiative Hong Kong.Read More →
Why low-cost platforms are logical winners – Sharon Gai
Shein, Temu and TikTok have become winning platforms on the internet, and for a good reason, says e-commerce expert Sharon Gai at the Rest of the World. “Globally you have an economic slowdown, so a lot of consumers are also spending less per platform,” Read More →
Sharon Gai joins China Speakers Bureau
The China Speakers Bureau is happy to announce Sharon Gai is joining its stable of high-profile speakers. Sharon Gai is based in San Francisco and has worked at top management positions in Alibaba and other e-commerce companies.Read More →