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<ul><li>The lockdown has led to many brands experimenting with 'anti-virus' offerings, to capitalise on the pandemic.</li><li>We put together a list of some products that have been widely spoken about. Luckily, ASCI is taking note.</li></ul>Since the Covid-19 virus came into our lives a few months back, our lives seem to have changed forever. We are living in a new reality, a new world, one we had only seen in sci-fi movies. For months now, the brightest brains of the world have been working tirelessly to find a cure for the virus. However, while we are still some time away from coming up with a vaccine, this time has also led to people think ‘out-of-the-box’ and come up with ‘solutions’ that can help people fight, if not completely cure the virus. Recently yogaguru Baba Ramdev and his brand <keyword id="6356684" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="patanjali">Patanjali</keyword> came under fire after they claimed to have launched a drug that could cure the virus. However, after the company faced criticism, the company’s CEO said that they never claimed that the drug could cure or control the coronavirus. ANI quoted Acharya Balkrishna, CEO of Patanjali saying, “We never told the medicine (Coronil) can cure or control Coronavirus. We said that we had made medicines and used them in clinical controlled trials which cured corona patients. There is no confusion in it. Over the past few months, we have seen many brands come up with products ranging from bizarre to plain ridiculous, all with the same promise, of being able to either cure or control the virus. While many made us laugh out loud, there were still some that made us sit up and think, how did these products ever get approved? And why do people fall for these marketing gimmicks? We scouted the internet to bring to you some of the most ‘innovative’ inventions we witnessed during the pandemic. Siyaram’s Anti-Corona fabric Siyaram’s recently launched its Anti-Corona range of fabric that it claimed had been tested by WHO (World Health Organisation) approved labs to fight against the spread of pandemic. It also claimed in a release sent to us that it is 99.94% effective against killing Coronavirus (H1N1), SARS, Influenza virus with a broad range of Anti-Microbial treatment. <div type="twitter" handle="SiyaramsIndia" handlename="Siyaram's India" image="http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/1221770070939979778/78H8ckE-_normal.jpg" favoritecount="4" retweetcount="1" status="Your trusted suitings &amp; shirtings fabrics are now available with HealthGuard® Australia’s technology that protects… https://t.co/yD1IIFxhno" createdat="1595153340000" id="1284792348958797824"></div> UPDATE: In an official statement speaking about its product, Shridhar Soni, Vice President- Sales and Marketing, Siyaram Silk Mills Ltd said, "We have launched our range of Anti-Corona fabric after conducting proper research and collecting data by testing the fabric at WHO certified &amp; Government approved Indian laboratory, reputed Australian laboratory using internationally accepted protocols. The tests conducted on the treated fabric establishes that it comprises anti-viral and anti-bacterial properties and is also effective against corona viruses, by reducing the infectious viral load on the treated fabric. The 'anti-corona fabric' is made after treatment with technology from Australia's HealthGuard Corporation Pty Ltd by applying HealthGuard AMIC which has proven effective against bacteria and viruses including the novel SARS-CoV2. It stops virus transmission through treated fabric to any surface. <keyword id="1031192" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Siyarams">Siyaram's</keyword> has always believed in serving the Indian society by providing innovative products with complete dedication and honesty. As the world fights against an unusual situation, we hope that we play our part in overcoming these tough times with the best of our abilities". Bhabhiji Papad A video of BJP MP Arjun Ram Meghwal where he was seen promoting a product called <keyword id="9632350" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="bhabhi-ji-papad">Bhabhi Ji Papad</keyword> went viral. He claimed that the product can be very effective in fighting the virus as it helps develop anti-bodies that can fight the virus. <div type="twitter" handle="scribe_prashant" handlename="Prashant Kumar" image="http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/1286229013921296384/VmhAMdPB_normal.jpg" favoritecount="1947" retweetcount="796" status="Watch: MoS Arjun Ram Meghwal launches Bhabhi ji papad, says it will help people fight Corona Virus. “It will be v… https://t.co/GqB57Odrgu" createdat="1595556790000" id="1286484539930341376"></div> Modern Immuno Bread This seems like a product that could help you fight the virus, right from your breakfast. The product contains ‘Ayush Ministry recommended immunity ingredients’ that include turmeric, ginger, clove, black pepper, cinnamon, cumin and jaggery. <div type="twitter" handle="LloydMathias" handlename="Lloyd Mathias" image="http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/459068431027826689/OoV8_z_6_normal.jpeg" favoritecount="38" retweetcount="10" status="Strange things #COVID19 does: Modern Foods has just launched a bread that can help boost immunity with turmeric, gi… https://t.co/DJp0EKWYsb" createdat="1594910469000" id="1283773672679895041"></div> Update: Following complaints about the claims of the brand, we came to know that this product has been pulled off the shelves. <div type="twitter" handle="ascionline" handlename="ASCI 77100 12345" image="http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/875219584462143488/wkrgIEo1_normal.jpg" favoritecount="42" retweetcount="15" status="ASCI examined this complaint and we are happy to share that the advertiser has confirmed that the product is withdr… https://t.co/m1FIF12qgf" createdat="1595500044000" id="1286246529666187264"></div> Zodiac’s Securo range of shirts In an ad for its Securo brand, <keyword id="131908" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Zodiac-Clothing">Zodiac Clothing</keyword> claimed that it uses the HeiQ Viroblock technology that kills 99% of the Covid-19 virus. <div type="image" title="Screenshot_20200724-124408" msid="77143694" hostid="261"></div> Arihant Anti-Corona mattress This mattress by brand Arihant claimed to be ‘<keyword id="9174316" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="anti-coronavirus">Anti-Coronavirus</keyword>’. However, soon after the ad came out, an FIR was lodged against the proprietor of the furniture manufacturing company. <div type="image" title="19BM-mattress-ad" msid="77143733" hostid="261"></div> Biryani Blues' Supermeals with Immunity Booster Meanwhile, there was another print ad of a restaurant called Biryani Blues that claimed to be serving Biryani with ingredients to boost immunity. While this ad doesn’t mention Covid-19 or Coronavirus in the copy, it still seems to be taking advantage of the situation. <div type="twitter" handle="atuln" handlename="atul s nath" image="http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/1278938427866533888/p4Qimajr_normal.jpg" favoritecount="0" retweetcount="0" status="@ambimgp @HUL_News @ascionline @Sam_Balsara @rameshnarayan Here you go Ambi.. this is brand new https://t.co/lIOYXr3JWE" createdat="1595571103000" id="1286544572349181957"></div> Meanwhile, there was also a discussion on Twitter about the claims of Lifebuoy’s hand sanitizer boosting immunity. While the product was launched much before the spread of the Coronavirus, brand consultant Karthik Srinivasan wrote in a tweet that nobody had bothered to check the claims of the brand for 4 years, considering it was launched in 2016. <div type="twitter" handle="LloydMathias" handlename="Lloyd Mathias" image="http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/459068431027826689/OoV8_z_6_normal.jpeg" favoritecount="107" retweetcount="7" status="A hand sanitizer that can 'boost immunity' sounds a bit stretched, doesn't it? 🤔 https://t.co/aCKQu0PUfC" createdat="1595318542000" id="1285485254430519300"></div> <div type="twitter" handle="beastoftraal" handlename="Karthik" image="http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/1140493276316745734/WH-6N17h_normal.jpg" favoritecount="3" retweetcount="0" status="@LloydMathias @ambimgp @EconomicTimes @shambhaviET @amazonIN Interestingly, they launched this in 2016, l-o-n-g- be… https://t.co/0KvJqmQO8Z" createdat="1595400577000" id="1285829333546758144"></div> We are sure we will come across more such products in the next few months. In case you come across similar ads and products, write to us at samarpita.banerjee@timesbridge.com

Covid-19 has made for some very interesting inventions in the past few months. We list some bizarre products we have come across

<keyword id="549217" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Zodiac-Clothing-Company">Zodiac Clothing Company</keyword>, a premium end outfitter for men, fell to a 1-month low after sales slumped. 
 
Zodiac reported first quarter net loss of 5.3 crore rupees compared with a profit of 4.1 crore rupees in the same quarter a year ago. Sales during April-June fell 13 percent to 87.1 crores versus 99 crores. 
 
As a consequence, Zodiac plunged 27 rupees, or 8.4 percent, to 295 rupees, its lowest since July 7th on the National Stock Exchange. 
 
Zodiac's market capitalisation has slipped 23 percent in one year to 614 crore rupees. 
 
Image credit: Indiatimes

Shares of Zodiac Clothing slipped to 1 month lows

<ul class="summary-list"><li>An unidentified group of attackers seized an Israel-linked tanker off the coast of Yemen on Sunday.</li><li>A US Navy warship responded to a distress call and secured the seized ship, an official said.</li></ul>Attackers seized a tanker linked to Israel off the coast of Yemen on Sunday, authorities said. While no group immediately claimed responsibility, it comes after at least two other maritime attacks in recent days have been linked to the Israel-Hamas war.The attackers seized the Liberian-flagged Central Park, managed by Zodiac Maritime, in the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/pirate-hunters-track-smugglers-dhows-former-navy-admiral-says-2023-7">Gulf of Aden</a>, the company and private intelligence firm Ambrey said. An American defense official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence matters, confirmed to The Associated Press that the attack took place.Zodiac called the seizure "a suspected piracy incident.""Our priority is the safety of our 22 crew onboard," Zodiac said in a statement. "The Turkish-captained vessel has a multinational crew consisting of a crew of Russian, Vietnamese, Bulgarian, Indian, Georgian and Filipino nationals. The vessel is carrying a full cargo of phosphoric acid."A US Navy warship responded to a distress call from the tanker and secured the ship, US officials told <a target="_blank" href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/armed-individuals-seize-israeli-managed-oil-tanker-gulf-aden-us-official-2023-11-26/">Reuters</a>.Zodiac described the vessel as being owned by Clumvez Shipping Inc., though other records directly linked Zodiac as the owner. London-based Zodiac Maritime is part of Israeli billionaire Eyal Ofer's Zodiac Group. British corporate records listed two men with the last name Ofer as a current and former director of Clumvez Shipping, including Daniel Guy Ofer, also a director at Zodiac Maritime.It wasn't immediately clear who was behind the attack. Nearby Aden is held by forces allied to <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/history-of-conflict-in-yemen-2017-12">Yemen</a>'s internationally recognized government and a Saudi-led coalition that has battled Yemen's Iranian-backed <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/yemens-houthi-rebels-use-new-missiles-during-israel-hamas-war-2023-11">Houthi rebels</a> for years. In theory, that part of the Gulf of Aden is controlled by those forces and is relatively distant from Houthi-controlled territory in the country. <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/somali-piracy-maps-2016-10">Somali pirates</a> also are not known to operate in that area.The US defense official said that it appeared "an unknown number of unidentified armed individuals" seized the ship.One senior US official told Fox News Chief National Security Correspondent Jennifer Griffin that five gunmen were involved in the attempted hijacking.Crew members of the Central Park tanker locked themselves in the ship's safe room for safety, the official told Griffin. The gunmen failed to beat the door down. According to Griffin, the official also stated that a <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/japan-building-warships-to-counter-north-korean-missile-threat-2022-12">Japanese destroyer</a> helped the US Navy while two <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/china-navy-six-highly-capable-vessels-middle-east-military-expert-2023-10">Chinese Navy warships</a> in the vicinity did not render assistance.The gunmen exited the vehicle and were sailing back to Yemen shores when US Navy personnel made the arrest, Griffin reported."US and coalition forces responded to a distress call from the M/V Central Park. The crew of the M/V Central Park is currently safe," a US defense official told Business Insider.The official did not address questions regarding the details of the incident, including whether 5 armed gunmen were involved in the attack and if Chinese Navy ships were near the area.Zodiac Maritime has been targeted previously amid a wider yearslong shadow war between <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/israel-hamas-iran-walks-tightrope-us-steps-up-shadow-war-2023-10">Iran and Israel</a>. In 2021, a drone attack assessed by the US and other Western nations to have been carried out by Iran killed two crew members aboard Zodiac's oil tanker Mercer Street off the coast of Oman.The British military's United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, which provides warnings to sailors in the Middle East, had earlier warned sailors that "two black-and-white craft carrying eight persons in military-style clothing" had been seen in the area. It issued another warning, saying that radio traffic suggested a possible attack had occurred before acknowledging the seizure.The UKMTO put the ship's location over 60 kilometers (35 miles) south of Yemen's coast, some 80 kilometers (50 miles) east of Djibouti, and about 110 kilometers (70 miles) northeast of Somalia in the Gulf of Aden, a key shipping route.The Central Park seizure comes after a container ship, CMA CGM Symi, owned by another Israeli billionaire, came under attack Friday by a suspected <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/americas-foes-unveil-drones-closely-resembling-us-military-reaper-2023-8">Iranian drone</a> in the Indian Ocean. Iran has not acknowledged carrying out the attack, nor did it respond to questions from the AP about that assault.Both the Symi and the Central Park had been behaving as if they faced a threat in recent days.The ships had switched off their Automatic Identification System trackers, according to data from MarineTraffic.com analyzed by the AP. Ships are supposed to keep their AIS active for safety reasons, but crews will turn them off if they appear to be targeted. In Central Park's case, the vessel had last transmitted four days ago after it left the Suez Canal heading south into the Red Sea.The attacks come as global shipping increasingly finds itself targeted in the weekslong war that threatens to become a wider regional conflict — even as a truce has halted fighting and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/21-images-of-released-hostages-and-prisoners-gaza-and-israel-2023-11">Hamas exchanges hostages for Palestinian prisoners</a> held by Israel.With the Israel-Hamas war — which began with the militant Palestinian group's October 7 attack — raging on, the Houthis seized a vehicle transport ship in the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/israel-iran-idf-houthi-rebels-hijack-ship-red-sea-2023-11">Red Sea</a> off Yemen. The Houthis did not immediately acknowledge the seizure of the Central Park.The Associated Press contributed to this story.

US Navy foils gunmen attempting to hijack an Israel-linked tanker off Yemen

Growing fears of a global currency war pushed the <keyword id="6354813" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="nifty">Nifty</keyword> lower for the 4th day in a row as traders remained heavy sellers on metal, banking and real estate stocks even as they took fancy to software and pharma companies. 
 
The Rupee fell more than 1 percent intra-day, striking its lowest level since September 2013. The India VIX Index, which signifies fear in the market, surged 9.8 percent to 17.44. 
 
Meanwhile, the Nifty fell 109 points close at 8,353 as bears took full control of Dalal Street. Intense, delivery-based selling was seen in the last hour of trade, indicating institutional interest shifting to the negative side. The Nifty's Advance-Decline ratio was 12/38 with Vedanta, Hindalco, Coal India, BPCL and State Bank of India occupying the top 5 slots on the losing side. On the gainer's list were Sun Pharma, Infosys, Tech Mahindra, HCL Tech and TCS: all companies that will benefit from a depreciating rupee. 
 
Traders pressed heavy sales on all major indices such as CNX 100, CNX 200, CNX Midcap, CNX Small Cap and CNX 500. These ended with losses totalling 1.3-2.8 percent. 
 
The Bank Nifty plunged 539 points to 18,078. The trend in other sectoral indices was intensely bearish. CNX Realty, CNX Metals, CNX PSU Bank,and CNX Media Indexes were top losers whereas decent gains were seen on the CNX Pharma and CNX IT Indexes. 
 On the Bombay Stock Exchange, the <keyword id="6484188" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Sensex">Sensex</keyword> plunged 354 points to close at 27,512 points. Infosys, Sun Pharma, TCS, Wipro and Lupin were the top gainers on the Index, while Vedanta, Hindalco, Coal India, ICICI Bank and Bajaj Auto were the top losers. The Advance-Decline Ratio stood at a negative 7/23 on the Sensex on which State Bank of India was the top traded counter worth 84 crore rupees. 
 
Bears were in full control in the wider market for the fourth day in a row with just 703 stocks gaining ground versus 2,133 fell below friday's closing prices. 
 
The trend remained bearish in the derivatives space with Nifty Futures closing at 8,368, down 123 points. All major sectors reported losses accompanied by a sharp rise in Open Interest. The only sector to show gains was the software space. The Advance-Decline Ratio favoured the bears with a ratio of 19/142 in the futures and Options market. 
 
Muted earnings growth was reported by IDBI Bank and City Union Bank. Divi's Labs, NIIT Technologies, Ashok Leyland and Ajanta Pharma hit fresh highs. Jain Irrigation, Ramco Cements and Zodiac Clothing Company figured in the list of top traded stocks. 
 
Image credit: Indiatimes

Here's how the Markets fared today

<div class="image-container float_right"><div class="image"><a href="http://www.jingdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Screen-shot-2013-09-09-at-2.27.43-PM.jpg">Christie's via Jing Daily</a></div></div>Chinese contemporary art, impressionist and modern art, watches, and jewels will all be featured at Christie's first ever mainland auction, which will be held in Shanghai on September 26 at the Jing An Shangri-La hotel.
Both Asian and Western art are expected to draw a rapidly growing contingent of enthusiastic Chinese collectors.
In a press release sent today, the international auction house provided an overview of the highlights of the upcoming auction, which include Zeng Fanzhi's Bicycle and Sui Jianguo's series of sculptures Clothes Veins Studies, as well as works by Liu Ye, Zhan Wang, and Luo Zhongli. Western works by Giorgio Morandi and Pablo Picasso will be auctioned as well.
In addition to the the September 26 event, Christie's is offering several private and online sales. Its China-only online Andy Warhol sale is expected to be <a href="http://www.jingdaily.com/warhols-work-takes-china-by-storm/33141/" target="_blank">especially popular with Chinese collectors</a>.
According to Christie's CEO Steven Murphy, the online <keyword id="53361" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="auctions">auctions</keyword> and Shanghai event are intended to draw global participation:
"In addition to offering the gala auction, we are hoping to convene anyone who wishes to engage in the wider world of art and culture. And while the events and activity is focused in Shanghai and <keyword id="1334" type="COUNTRY" weightage="60" keywordseo="China">China</keyword>, we invite the global art community to join us both in person and virtually via Christies.com as many of the events will be broadcast live from Shanghai. In short, this is Shanghai Christie's invitation to our world."
As the first auction held on the mainland by an independent company free of a joint venture, the September 26 auction will prove to be a landmark event. Just prior to Christie's announcement that the auction was being planned, the Pinault family donated to China <a href="http://www.jingdaily.com/christies-announces-return-of-zodiac-heads-to-china/25955/" target="_blank">two bronze zodiac heads</a> originally looted by British troops during the Qing dynasty that had created a major controversy when they were auctioned in 2009.
The event's opening ceremony will take place on September 24, and works will be on exhibition from then until the day of the sale as part of a "three-day cultural gala" to mark the auction's historic nature. In addition, Christie's education program and private sales will also be held from September 24 to 26.

Christie's First Auction In Mainland China Will Be A 'Landmark Event'

<div class="KonaFilter image-container"><div class="image">"Tiny Times"</div></div>
<h3 class="rubric">The market is growing furiously, but getting tougher for foreign firms</h3>
In the heart of old Shanghai is a magnificent villa that serves as the workplace of Guo Jingming, a provocative young film-maker. "Tiny Times", his recent blockbuster, follows the travails of some fashionable college girls (pictured, in the walk-in closet of one of them). Its depictions of the high life, rarely shown in Chinese films, have set social networks ablaze; they have also been attacked by the People's Daily for "unconditional hedonism". Mr Guo says: "So what? Materialism is neutral, neither positive nor negative." After all, he goes on, China's cosmopolitans know at any given moment what movies are playing in New York and what fashions are on the Paris runways.
China's once-drab and Mao-suited interior is not so far behind. In Mianyang, a middling city in the province of Sichuan, an enormous billboard featuring Miranda Kerr, an Australian supermodel, draped in Swarovski crystals welcomes shoppers to the Parkson shopping mall. It is one of half a dozen high-end malls in town. Luxury sales are exploding there. Local Audi and BMW dealers sell more than 100 cars each a month; Land Rover, Jaguar and Cadillac have just muscled in on the market.
Thirty kilometres (20 miles) away in Luxi, a town of 57,000 people, online shopping is hot. The first express-delivery office opened only three years ago, and handled perhaps ten packages a day; today, there are five, each handling 100 packages a day. Even 60km away, in rural Santai county where farm-workers are the customers, one modern shopping mall has sprung up and another is being built. "Customers are evolving very quickly from the low-end market to the middle and high-end," says Yang Shuiying, proud general manager of the Zizhou shopping centre.
In the 1950s and 1960s the world economy was transformed by the emergence of the American consumer. Now China seems poised to become the next consumption superpower. In all likelihood, it has just overtaken Japan to become the world's second-biggest consumer economy. Its roughly $3.3 trillion in private consumption is about 8% of the world total, and it has only just begun.
"The future of the world will be profoundly shaped by China's rush toward consumerism," says Karl Gerth, an expert on Chinese consumption at the University of California, San Diego. Although investment made the biggest contribution to China's growth last year, and although private consumption's share of output, now at 36%, fell between 2000 and 2010, that trend is unlikely to last, for several reasons.
First, boosting the people's desire to consume is a stated goal of China's leaders. Higher government spending on health care and pensions may encourage households to save less for such things. Higher interest rates may, paradoxically, discourage thrift if people reach their savings goals faster. Rising wages and an ageing population will also shift the balance towards consumption rather than saving. And although household debt is growing fast, China still has relatively little.
Besides, consumption has not fallen in absolute terms. It has, in fact, grown briskly--just not quite as quickly as the economy overall. In dollar terms, China contributed more than any other country to the growth in global consumption in 2011-13, according to Andy Rothman of CLSA, a broker. Moreover, China's official statistics understate some consumption--spending on housing, for example.
A massive push to urbanise is also under way, which should produce tens of millions of richer citizens seeking retail therapy. McKinsey, a consultancy, forecasts that consumption by urban Chinese households will increase from 10 trillion yuan in 2012 to nearly 27 trillion yuan in 2022 (see chart 1).
<h3>Fickle Sophisticates</h3>
How much China spends is striking. Even more so is the way it spends. This is now one of the world's most sophisticated consumer markets, heavily skewed towards expensive goods. Local property barons are now building half the world's new shopping malls in China, many of them in smaller cities, because even punters without big incomes are becoming big shoppers. Research by IDEO, a consultancy, has found that many young migrant workers earning less than 5,000 yuan ($830) a month will spend a month's wages on an Apple iPhone.
That points to another difference from previous consumption booms elsewhere: with the world's largest e-commerce market at their fingertips, Chinese shoppers are online from the start. As a result, what was once a foreign marketers' fantasyland is now the world's fiercest battleground for brands.
Sanford C. Bernstein, a research firm, calls the Chinese "increasingly aspirational and conspicuous consumers" who routinely trade up to fancier labels even on staples. Newly middle-class types in cities in the interior are keen to try out new products, especially the ones they have seen on foreign television shows. Jeff Walters of the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) points out that even country bumpkins are consuming global media, thanks to the wild popularity of local online-video services. Chinese consumers, he says, were watching the latest season of "Downton Abbey" on Youku, a video-sharing website, well before it was released in America.
This passion for fashion is, in theory, good news for multinational marketers. Unlike, say, Japan, where consumers heavily favour local brands, Chinese consumers hold foreign brands in high esteem. Torsten Stocker of AT Kearney, a consultancy, observes that foreign brands are doing well in sectors they introduced to China (chewing gum, chocolate); those that have "heritage" appeal (premium cars, luxury goods) and those where local brands are not trusted, such as powdered baby milk. The world's fast-food and consumer-goods giants--Procter &amp; Gamble, Pepsi, General Mills and so on--are also big in China, but they are increasingly dogged by local rivals. A recent study by Bain, another consultancy, found that although foreign brands still lead in some areas (biscuits, fabric-softener, bottled water), local brands are surging in others (toothpaste, cosmetics, juice).
Brand-hopping, though, is rife. Having grown up with radical economic change, Chinese shoppers are "very fickle, and hard to pin down to a strong brand loyalty", says Mintel, a market-research firm. Yuval Atsmon of McKinsey reckons that brand-switching--between Pepsi and Coke, Colgate and Crest, KFC and McDonald's--is common, "much more so than in most markets". Swarovski, the crystal-maker, has discovered that over three-quarters of Chinese customers are eager to try new brands, a far higher figure than elsewhere. A recent study by Bain found that the top five brands in ten categories lost 30-60% of their customers between 2011 and 2012.
This creates several problems. With two or three times as many brands on shelves as found in other countries, competition is ferocious. This makes advertising and marketing vital--but the cost of publicity is soaring. Also, firms that thought they enjoyed a "first-mover advantage" have discovered that their brands are now seen as stodgy or old-fashioned. Olay, a cosmetics brand, defined skin care in China for a generation--but Carol Potter of BBDO, an advertising agency, reckons that "the new generation thinks it's a brand from yesterday." She adds that whereas Louis Vuitton once symbolised good and expensive taste in China, a new generation is seeking different, subtler luxuries.
<h3>The Empty Suitcase</h3>
Another complication for marketers is that many Chinese shoppers have a global outlook. When previous middle classes rose to prominence in America and Japan, the internet did not exist. People could not Google the latest European fashions or check discounts on Amazon. The arrival of cheap air travel has also made the Chinese more discerning shoppers. Mr Stocker argues that these factors have "compressed the discovery process", which in Japan took 30 years, to less than ten.
The Chinese are already the world's biggest shoppers abroad, but a report released on January 20th by CLSA forecasts that the number of outbound Chinese tourists will double to 200m a year by 2020 and that their spending will triple over that time. James Button of SmithStreet, a consultancy, reports a well established piece of etiquette: "You must let friends know when you are going overseas," and take along an empty suitcase.
Many Chinese also use online shopping agents, who aggregate requests and bring back foreign goods. Sales by overseas purchase agents came to nearly 50 billion yuan in 2012, a leap of more than 80% on the year earlier; they jumped by half again last year to 74.4. billion yuan. Foreign websites, including Amazon, now offer direct delivery to China for certain products, and local e-commerce giants such as Alibaba run cross-border services.
Buying overseas saves money, since mark-ups and hefty taxes are the rule in China. Many ordinary folk travel not just to Hong Kong, the most convenient spot, but to Jeju Island in South Korea (where they can visit without a visa and shop duty-free) to stock up on cosmetics that cost much more at home. Price, though, is not the only motivation. Another is to avoid the counterfeit goods so common on the mainland. Even more important, consumers say, are the variety and freshness of the products available overseas.
Nowhere is this wide-ranging urge to spend more obvious than in the market for luxury goods. Globally the Chinese are the biggest buyers of expensive items, accounting for some 29% of purchases last year (see chart 2). Some two-thirds of Chinese spending on luxury goods takes place outside the mainland; a fifth of it in Europe. (Harrods of London has seen sales to Chinese shoppers, its largest foreign contingent, increase by 50% a year since 2011.) Consistently favoured brands include Lancôme, Gucci, Audi, Rolex and Tiffany.
The Chinese are also the world's largest consumers of Bordeaux wine and cognac, though sales (like those of Moutai, a local grain alcohol) have fallen in the wake of official campaigns against gift-giving (see "Corruption: Less party time"). At Berry Bros &amp; Rudd's bonded wine warehouse in Basingstoke, in southern England, where 4.5m expensive bottles are stored, more than 1m of those are owned by oenophiles from greater China. No longer, says the firm's chairman, should the Chinese be pictured ruining fine wine by pouring Coca-Cola into it.
Although a government crackdown on corruption has crimped mainland sales, and some luxury firms slowed down the rollout of new boutiques there last year, Coach, Prada and Bottega Veneta continued to expand. Apple expanded too; it now has more stores in Shanghai than in San Francisco, and launches new iPhones in Beijing when it does in California. Mr Button of SmithStreet thinks brands offering affordable luxury--Michael Kors and Kate Spade, say--can capture both the upwardly mobile and the "post-luxury" elites in the cities, who want less flashy brands.
In the past, the Chinese showed little interest in Western art. That is starting to change, and may change quicker with the opening of a new museum of Western art in Shanghai. The richest man in China has just paid $28m for a Picasso, though he was condemned as "unpatriotic" on Sina Weibo. Ms Potter also observes that two-thirds of affluent consumers are keen to know the history and cultural background of foreign brands. So they love to buy Piaget watches in Geneva and Zegna suits in Milan, but reject unconventional offerings such as German watches or Japanese leather bags.
It is not only in luxury goods that Chinese shoppers are leading the way. China has become the world's biggest e-commerce market, with spending forecast to reach $540 billion next year. On Singles Day, an annual online-marketing extravaganza held on November 11th, 400m Chinese spent $5.7 billion just on Tmall, an e-commerce platform run by Alibaba; Americans, on their Cyber Monday a few weeks later, spent only about $2 billion. China is the world's biggest maker and consumer of smartphones, and will soon be the largest "mobile-commerce" market, too.
Perhaps because they distrust official information, the Chinese rely heavily on peer reviews. Research by BCG has shown that they write, and act on, online reviews of products and services far more than Westerners do. A recent study of purchases of moisturiser found that two-thirds of Chinese buyers relied on online recommendations by friends or family; the comparable figure in America was less than 40%. Millions of online shoppers follow the thoughts of Miumiu and Viviandan, leggy twins from industrial Chongqing, who started posting pictures of themselves in the latest fashions, with wry observations on trends and prices, a decade ago. Even now they post recommendations nearly every day on social-media sites such as Instagram, or on Weibo. Their likes and dislikes make or break products.
Online shoppers in the remotest parts of China often know a great deal about a global brand's attributes and pricing worldwide--which can put marketers on the back foot. Chinese consumers are no longer willing to pay a hefty premium for any old foreign brand. As they grow more discerning, multinationals are having to work harder to prove their worth--and are having to defend their brands on China's wild social media. But creative approaches can pay off.
When VF Corporation, a large American clothing firm, wanted to promote The North Face, a brand of outdoor clothing, in China, it struggled. Whereas climbers and hikers in the West relish the thought of conquering mountains alone, the Chinese generally think of outings in Nature as a spiritual escape, to be enjoyed with friends. So the firm created an online community linking amateurs to clubs devoted to outdoor pursuits. The website offers points for activity and loyalty that can be redeemed for products. Sales are soaring, and VF now has a detailed database of over half a million keen customers.
The online awareness of Chinese customers has big global implications. According to Andrew Keith, the president of Lane Crawford, cosmopolitan Chinese consumers are now setting the agenda: "We are not teaching them, they are teaching us." (He should know; his Hong Kong department store has half a dozen shops in greater China, 650,000 high-spending customers and, in the new Shanghai store, private suites for "Platinum VIPs" who spend 60,000 yuan or more a year.) Alexis Perakis-Valat, head of L'Oréal's China business, agrees. He believes that the Chinese market, unlike those in Western countries, is driven by young urban consumers who are demanding something new and have no taboos. He points to peculiar and distinctive products developed for this niche in China, such as a black-foam face-scrub for men, which are now being launched around the world.
<h3>We're All Chinese Now</h3>
Another sign of such innovation is the reinvention of Johnnie Walker, a mass-market whisky brand belonging to Diageo, the world's biggest spirits firm, as a luxury brand in China. Keen to win over sceptical consumers more accustomed to baijiu (a local firewater), the firm opened Johnnie Walker House in Shanghai almost three years ago. For around 800,000 yuan, or $132,000, the company's master blender (with the delicious surname of Beveridge) will fly in and brew a special batch of Johnnie Walker precisely matched to a customer's tastes. Certain rare blends, including some bearing the marks of the Chinese zodiac, are sold only at this venue.
This effort has helped Diageo introduce its whiskies to thousands of affluent customers, who in turn have pushed the firm towards new inventions--such as blends with a much higher alcohol content--which helped its whisky revenues grow twice as fast as the industry average. The concept has been such a success that the company has opened new Houses in Beijing and Seoul, and plans others. When Diageo unveiled Odyssey, a special-edition blend, in 2012, it kicked off the global launch not in London or New York but in Shanghai.
Life was simpler for foreign brands when they first came to China, reflects David Roth of The Store, an advertising agency: "It was a land grab…you just had to create awareness as quickly as possible." Now the Western invaders must not only cater to the world's most demanding shoppers, but also cope with increasing home-grown competition. Chinese firms are starting to catch up with their fancier foreign rivals. Some even aspire to become global brands.
Huawei, a telecoms-equipment giant, is making a big push into branded consumer electronics. "We have it easier than Samsung did," says Colin Giles, chief marketing officer for its consumer business, because Korean firms paved the way for global acceptance of Chinese brands. Xiaomi, a startup smartphone manufacturer in Beijing, has developed a hugely popular phone-and-app system inspired as much by Amazon as by Apple. It could become China's first global innovation powerhouse.
Leading the local pack is Lenovo, an electronics firm that previously bought IBM's personal-computer business (and on January 23rd agreed to buy its low-end server business, too). When it launched its latest Yoga tablet last year it chose Ashton Kutcher, a Hollywood star who had played Steve Jobs in a film, as its spokesman. David Roman, Lenovo's chief marketing officer, says that even a few years ago it would have been unthinkable to do a global product launch in China with a single tagline, unified advertising content and a Western spokesman. But now he thinks there is "a global consuming class", with more in common across borders than within.
That sums up the rise of China nicely. Future consumer markets everywhere are going to look more Chinese. They will increasingly be cosmopolitan, luxury-minded and online. Firms that can flourish in China are not only winning today's toughest market, but are also positioning themselves for tomorrow's.
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