104 CultureShock! China
high moral fiber. Forget once shame on you, twice shame on
me. In China, integrity falls on the side of the person who
negotiates the best deal.
China is no longer the poor cousin of Hong Kong, Tokyo
or Singapore when it comes to shopping. Major cities have
beautiful malls housing a collection of the world’s leading
luxury brands. It is rumoured that the bulk of Louis Vuitton’s
global revenue growth in the last few years has come from
China. Shanghai has become the trendy launch pad for new
designer clothing collections. The occasional Bentley and
Ferrari have been seen doing an elegant crawl down Beijing’s
wide boulevards.Fashion Brands
International brands are congregated in high-end shopping malls
and near five-star hotels. China’s importance to these brands has
risen to the point that seasonal releases are in line with other top
cities around the world. Historically, sizing was an issue and some
international brands do not cater to the petite Chinese figure with
sizes running from 2 to 10. New entrants like Zara are turning that
logic on its head and have come into China with a full range of sizes
at good value. This strategy has made them a fast fashion favourite
for both locals and expatriates.Fakes
With badge consciousness has come a booming business for
fake luxury items. It is impossible to walk down any major
shopping street or through any clothing market without
having a man sidle up to you shaking a sheaf of glossy
magazine pages in your face and ask, “Rolex watches? Gucci
bags? ...cheap cheap...”
Hard core shoppers come from around the world to shop
at China’s fake markets. There are regular shopping tours
from Thailand and Hong Kong that scour the stalls and shops
looking for high quality knock-offs to go head to head with
the real thing in a fashion face-off at parties, society balls
and business meetings.
Many expat bargain hunters make staking out the best
shops a full-time job. Even the fake shops have adequate
fakes for the average person and a special section in the