Chinese Design Appearing in Global Homes

In the 1980s Steve Jobs tapped German designer Hartmut Esslinger of Frog Design to revolutionize the industrial design of Apple products. In the 1980s and 1990s IBM relied on Munich born Richard Sapper to bring elegant form and function to IBM desktop PCs and ThinkPad notebooks. Few have noticed as Chinese car companies and PC firms like Lenovo are integrating distinctly Chinese design into their products. At first glance the Lenovo IdeaCentre is another consumer all-in-one PC, but a closer glance at the rear vents of the PC reveal artistic lines reminiscent of Ming and Qing Dynasty (1368 - 1912) design. The youthful and charismatic VP of Design Yao Yingjia at Fortune 500 firm, Lenovo, is at the forefront of revealing how Chinese firms integrate their culture and history into the design of today's consumer products. Such artistry and thought is welcome in an age of impersonally cold commodity products.

Top 10 Advertising Capability in China

Based on my experience managing Sales & Marketing deliverables at China's top IT firm, Lenovo, these are the top 10 Advertising Capability required when selecting a local or MNE ad agency in the PRC. Most of these advertising skills are essential in any geography, although many ad agencies lack all ten of these capabilities.

Top 10 Challenges for Local Chinese Marketing Firms

This is a subjective list of the top 10 Advertising Challenges in China based on my 7 year experience of marketing and managing local ad agency relationships in Beijing. While there are many reputable advertising firms operating in China, unfortunately the above list constitutes the challenges many local ad agencies exhibit. This does not mean that reputable firms are not gaining enormous advertising contracts, in fact China is one of the top destinations for corporate advertising spending, as demonstrated in this CampaignAsia & R3 Pitch List from 2011.

Cutting Edge Marketing Shows People Who Do in Beijing

Chinese metropolises like Beijing are becoming hubs for the creative class despite the unending traffic, pollution, and internet censorship. The web video that I wrote and edited shows five real-life creators in Beijing - a model, photographer, product designer, chef and business manager using PCs throughout their day to work smarter.

Four U.S. Brands are Most Engaging Brands in China, Says R3 Research 2H 2011

As many Americans fear the dominance of Chinese firms, much as Americans feared the threat from Japanese brands in the 1980s, it is important to note that in the second half of 2011, R3 research shows nearly half of the most engaging brands in China are American brands - Apple no. 2, Nike no. 3, and Coca-Cola no. 5 and KFC (Yum Brands) no. 10. Americans should take heart that Buyology Inc. research of the top 20 Most Desired Brands in the U.S. for Men or Women do not list a single Chinese brand. So who should be fearful, the Chinese or Americans?

Despite China's Rise not a Single Chinese Brand on Interbrand Global 2011 Top 100 List

While U.S. politicians ratchet up the threat of China to challenge U.S. capitalism and business, it is important to note that 49 out of the Interbrand Best 100 Global Brands 2011 list are U.S. firms and not a single Chinese brand made the coveted list. Marketing power house, Apple, led the Interbrand list with the largest annual change in brand value - surging 58%. Germany with respected brands like Mercedes, BMW and SAP is the closest runner up with 10 top global brands, while France and Japan share third place with 7 top global brands each. Time will tell when Geely which bought Volvo in 2010, BYD with investment by Warren Buffet, or Huawei will make the Interbrand Global Brand list. With such a formidable lead in global branding, U.S. politicians would better serve their constituents by focusing inward on how to invest in long-term R&D, primary - university Education, and Community Infrastructure to ensure American businesses remain competitive against global competition.

Sarah Palin's Foreign Policy

Sarah Palin's Foreign Policy
Originally uploaded by Cory M. Grenier

On Nov. 25th, 2010 Sarah Palin stated on the Glen Beck radio show "Obviously, we've got to stand with our North Korean allies" (1).

Palin has consistently demonstrated a lack of geopolitical understanding. The Idaho born Republican-Tea Party leader and Fox News Host entered college on a beauty pageant scholarship (2). Decades later, Palin received her passport at the age of 42 (3), and made her first international flight to Kuwait.

Before quitting as Governor of Alaska, in an interview with Alaska Business Monthly, Sarah stated she supported the Bush Administration in Iraq but admitted, "I've been so focused on state government, I haven't really focused much on the war in Iraq" (4)

Demonstrating her understanding of international diplomay on a May 29th, 2010 Fox News show, Palin stated President Obama would be reelected if, "he played the war card. Say he decided to declare war on Iran or decided really come out and do whatever he could to support Israel, which I would like him to do" (5).

After BP's Deep Horizon oil rig, which was being maintained by Halliburton, killed 11 men and pumped 185 million gallons of oil (6) into the Gulf Coast in the worst oil spill in history, Sarah stated defiantly, 'I repeat the slogan 'drill here, drill now' (7). Later saying, "I want our country to be able to trust the oil industry."

Sarah Palin holds a Univ. of Idaho BA degree in Communications.

(1) www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-11840828
(2)Johnson, Kaylene (April 1, 2008). Sarah: How a Hockey Mom Turned Alaska's Political Establishment Upside Down. Epicenter Press. p. 80.
(3)http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2008/09/03/palin_not_well_traveled_outside_us/
(4) andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2008/08/pal...
(5) www.politicsdaily.com/2010/02/07/sarah-palin-on-fox-news-...
(6)http://pubs.acs.org/cen/news/88/i39/8839notw7.html
(7)http://voices.washingtonpost.com/right-now/2010/04/palin_on_oil_spill_no_human_en.html

Local Chinese Clothing Retailers Copy Foreign Brands

To local Chinese living in Shang Di on the northern tip of Beijing, the new mall opening was a blessing. For four years residents have had to put up with long lines at the supermarket and little entertainment. The opening of Hualian Mall , the eighth Hualian Mall to open in Beijing alone, brought the first cinema, video arcade and mega shopping market to Shang Di. But during my first walk through the mall I couldn't help noticing dozens of local Chinese retailers knocking off established western brands. Here are some examples from the mall and down the road in nearby Wu Dao Kou.

Above the retail store scrambles the luxury car brand acronym BMW, which stands for Bavarian Motor Works, and inside the store a modified logo of the German car brand is on display. -Hualian Mall, Shang Di, Beijing

This product line of baggages are branded similarly to the luxury brand 'Hugo Boss', which was founded in Metzingen, Germany in 1923 by Hugo Ferdinand Boss. -Hualian Mall, Shang Di, Beijing

A hybrid knockoff of luxury brands Calvin Klein and Paul Smith, a posh Nottingham based UK brand. -located nearby Shang Di in Wu Dao Kou, Beijing

It should be noted that the Hualian Mall did contain a legitimate branch of the London based coffee powerhouse Costa Coffee. Within three months the Costa coffee shop was closed down, apparently not tailoring its beverages to the local tastes of Shang Di residents who are likely more accustomed to tea, or Tsingtao.

Download Software to Jump over the Great FireWall

JumpOverGreatFireWall/">

China Censors Foreign Websites

The Open Net Iniative (ONI) recently mapped out locations where Internet censorship is "pervasive". Leading the list is China, Iran, Syria, Vietnam, and Tunisia. As chronicled by ONI and experienced in person, in March Youtube was permanently blocked. Two months later in the days before the 50th anniversary of the Tibetan uprising and also the one year anniversary since violence erupted in Tibet in 2008, Blogspot and Wordpress were summarily blocked and have not returned. On June 4th, Flickr, Picasa Web Albums, Twitter and Hotmail were blocked within China during the anniversary of the Tiannamen Square protests. In early July violence broke out in Xinjiang's capitol Urumqi between ethnic Uighurs and Han Chinese, which saw the blocking of Facebook.

The irony is social media facilitates one of humanities most basic needs - the sharing of ideas. Much has been written about how China needs creative people to help the country transition from a largely agragarian economy in rural areas and low-skilled manufacturing to high value added service industries. But how many creative ideas are blocked with a swift invisible hand of censorship? How many innovative new technology videos such as Google Tech Talks will never be seen by local Chinese? How many inspiring photos will never be seen by any of China's more than 50 ethnicities? And how many potential business conversations and relationships will never be forged online? Yes, China has its own search engines like Baidu, and its own versions of youtube such as Youkou, but in a 'flat world' a country cannot benefit from the collective wisdom of the crowd when billions of people's outside voices are restricted. As Richard Florida states in Flight of the Creative Class, a country's ability to compete is largely based upon its ability to attract the most talented and creative global people. Mr. Florida states that this is facilitated when regions embrace openness, and harnesses the power of creative individuals. What would my hometown of Silicon Valley, California be like without creative immigrants like Google co-founder Sirgey Brin of Russia, Intel co-founder Andy Grove of Hungary, or Sun Microsystems co-founder Vinod Khosla of India? If the U.S.A. had restricted individual forms of self expression and sharing then these creative individuals may have never have chosen to work and live in America. Each foreign website that China blocks deters talented people from choosing to make the move to China. Ironically, it is a global creative class who can help China realize its ambitions to establish the modern service economy it so badly craves.

Even China is not immune to Hip Hop Culture

From With the locals

Major League Baseball adds Cheerleaders in China

In China, Baseball has Cheerleaders from Cory Grenier on Vimeo.

China's Economic Growth Continues Faster than the West

In July 2009, Bloomberg reports that China's stock market displaced Japan as the second most valuable stock market in the world, with the Shanghai Composite Index growing 75% from the same period last year. Investors are reacting positively to the Chinese stimulus package, which unlike the US stimulus, has created record lending, increased domestic consumption and boosted the stock prices of domestic firms. Infrastructure spending in the less developed western provinces, high auto and real estate sales and domestic consumption for manufactured goods are credited with China's recent economic recovery. Despite the 'global financial crisis', China's economy grew 7.9% over the same period last year. China's spectacular economic rebound points to a meltdown in the U.S. housing, credit and securities market, which have hit western economies hardest. The globalized impact from U.S. financial troubles did not cross the Pacific as hard as predicted. For the first time in modern history, governments in the developing countries may be looking to China rather than the U.S. for economic and political models to copy. The long term effects of this socio-economic change are unknown.

Millions of Boy Security Guards

With a national slogan of a "Harmonious Society", why all the security? Every large apartment complex in China is guarded by young Chinese security guards who can be seen staring bored into space, harassing motorists, or listening to music on their mobile phones. Beijing has more security guards at residential areas than any city I have ever visited. In 2007, the Beijing Municipal People's Congress stated there are 200,000 security guards in Beijing alone, of which 50,000 security guards patrol properties. Xinhua News Agency states that a security guard earns only 1,000 RMB ($133) a month, which is less than a waiter. The report also states that 30,000 guards are employed illegally. In 2006 there were five cases of murder in Beijing by security guards, in which all five of the convicted guards were below the age of 20, were not natives of Beijing, and had no high school education.

Note: Once I saw a badly beaten guard, who looked about 16, but a elite police officer who arrived stopped me from helping him and refused to let me give him a cold Coke for his swollen cheek. Often I donate my old clothes and magazines to the guards who stand freezing for hours in the cold winters and sweating during hot summers. If China wants to be a world class country, and not only the largest economy, then the 50,000 young men standing in place at Beijing apartments will need a high school education and a more purposeful role in society. For a start, how about an Eco-Corps of newly trained botanists, forestry majors and biologists planting trees and plants in the barren, deforested hills surrounding Beijing?

90 Second Motorcycle Taxi Ride in Beijing

90 Second Motor Taxi Ride in Beijing from Cory Grenier on Vimeo.

Behaviors are Learned

From With the locals

China's Economic Winners

From California Visit

H1N1 Lands in Hong Kong and China Reacts

On the morning of Friday, May 1st I decided to book a three night stay at the Renaissance Hotel over the Metropark Hotel in Wan Chai, Hong Kong. That was a fortunate decision.  Upon landing in Hong Kong from Beijing I saw that people were taking the H1N1 flu seriously.  As the above photo illustrates, numerous passengers, and every HK airport employee were wearing protective masks.  I was asked to fill out a new type of health form that asked if I had 'contact with pig'.  

Once in Wan Chai, HK my girlfriend and I passed a chaotic scene of police, medical workers and press photographers wearing masks outside the Metropark Hotel as we walked to the nearby entertainment district Central.   I commented that someone inside the Hotel was probably infected with the H1N1 virus.  I was right. 

Earlier in the day flight MU505 from Shanghai to Hong Kong  carried a Mexican passenger who was infected with the H1N1 virus and checked in to the Metropark Hotel.  The passenger became the first confirmed H1N1 flu victim in Asia.  The Hong Kong and Chinese government swiftly reacted by placing all 354 hotel guests and staff under a seven day quarantine inside the Metropark Hotel.  In addition all flights between Mexico and China were cancelled indefinitely. Throughout China crowds are the norm, personal space is a luxury, and public spitting is prevalent.  Under such conditions it is easy to understand China's reaction to prevent an epidemic from catching hold of the population.  

The South China Morning Post reported that local HK restaurant owners in Wan Chai were suffering economically from a 50% drop in business.  But entrepreneurial local street vendors could be seen selling enormous quantities of protective face masks.  Perhaps the street vendors are analogous for the current financial downturn, where despite a global crisis situation, hardworking Chinese continue to profit.  

China's GDP Growth Slows to a 17 Year Low

This clip states that China's GDP growth grew at a mere 6%, its lowest rate since 1992. The growth decline has been less global demand for Chinese made products with exports declining 20% from this time last year. Domestically China's (USD) 600 Billion dollar stimulus is contributing to heightened domestic growth with China's stock market up and auto sales growing to record levels. But as the former blog post shows, growing consumption of auto sales has its own social and long term economic impacts.