ABSTRACT
A huge country such as the People’s Republic of China (PRC) offers an interesting mixture of subcultures and submarkets within its national borders. The transition from a planned to a socialistic market economy adds a dimension to the diversity. To comprehend consumer behavior, it is necessary to understand the diversity of cultures, geography, economic development, and the changing purchasing power of citizens in different parts of the country. The unification of Hong Kong and Macau to the PRC further diversifies the market, because both cities have had a separate and distinguished history and economic development. To provide this understanding, the following issues are covered: geography and climate, the economic history of the PRC, the current socioeconomic environment, the demographic environment, culture, and some changes in the culture. This chapter also examines consumption patterns; macromarketing issues involving branding, price, and distribution; communications and marketing research; and concludes with some ideas on the future directions of change. Hong Kong is then discussed separately and in considerable detail. The long-term trend is convergence, but Hong Kong’s consumer market will not look much like the rest of China’s market any time soon. Hong Kong remains important in its own right, as an affluent, sophisticated consumer market characteristic of developed economies, and as a trendsetter that gives hints of how many aspects of China’s market may develop in the future.
