Little Red Book’s hashtag 城市野餐计划 (“Picnic Plans for the City”) has over 18 million views, a figure that will well and truly grow over the summer. Though heading to parks for an outing on a sunny day is hardly novel, the activity is becoming more visible as strict quarantine and social-distancing rules are relaxed amid declining coronavirus cases. Sales of picnic-related products have soared, with some vendors noting high demand for products such as picnic blankets and tents, according to multiple media reports. The picnic trend has been partly popularized by online influencers sharing photos of their neatly curated experiences on social media sites including Little Red Book.

Limited capacity, face masks and plastic gloves to ride: The opening of Disney Shanghai offers a glimpse of how other parks may cope. The Chinese government has limited capacity at the park to 24,000 people daily, fewer than one-third of its pre-outbreak capacity. The limited number of tickets sold out within hours, suggesting that people are willing to resume public activities.

We work with big companies, but we love Challenger Brands even more. This article outlines how challenger brands can gain an edge in China. Put simply: They have a tight link between consumer research and product development. And they can quickly manufacture and distribute goods that meet emerging needs, without going through a lengthy R&D cycle. When it comes to skincare in China, are you aware of what consumers really need and expect? How will you adapt your needs to the skincare consumers who are wearing face masks through the summer?

At AgencyChina we like to look good and smell great. Don’t you? That’s why we’re excited about premium fragrances continued growth in China. Urbanites – particularly those who work in flashy office buildings or spend time socializing in indoor settings – look to fragrances to create additional depth to their style signature. E-commerce is a key channel, as it allows consumers to buy fragrances from overseas that may not be accessible locally or are available locally but at a significant mark-up. Outside of perfumes, home fragrances (including furniture perfumes, candles, mists, and aromatherapy kits) are also sought-after. Do you have a product that fits these categories? Have you looked at what the Chinese market can offer?

Shanghai’s two-month “Double Five” shopping festival got off to a strong start last Monday, with online and offline sales exceeding RMB 15.6 billion yuan (USD 2.2 billion) in its first 24 hours, local media outlets reported. Combined sales from the city’s online and offline channels soared to RMB 2.3 billion within the first four hours after the festival started and crossed the RMB 10 billion yuan mark 20 hours after the event launched. Going forward, the Double Five shopping festival may be a permanent fixture in China’s e-commerce calendar. So be sure to put it on yours as well!

JD has launched 10 country and region pavilions for wine that integrate the leading wine products from each country to promote together to customers. These include countries and regions that are already well-known among Chinese consumers, such as France, Italy, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Germany, United States and the Chinese wine region Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. In addition, they also include the lesser-known ones for Chinese customers that offer high-quality products, such as Moldova, Georgia, and Hungary. How are you using online channels to augment your distribution into China? Could these national pavilions work for you?

Yet more Chinese platforms have taken to livestreaming, this time to promote domestic tourism. The Chinese superapp Meituan has rolled out livestreaming features on its platform to promote traveling and e-commerce platform Pinduoduo has launched a series of virtual travel guides via live broadcasts to promote various tourist destinations in China. Tourism is among the hardest-hit industries during the pandemic. China Tourist Attractions Association (CTAA) estimated an 80% drop in revenue for tourist destinations in China. But there is hope, 71.5% of Chinese travelers are expecting to hit the road again now that the outbreak is coming to an end, and 90 million people are expected to be traveling for the holiday on May 1st.

Ikea is reporting a quick return of customer footfall to its stores in China as they reopen after the Covid-19 crisis. Ingka Group, one of Ikea’s largest retail operating divisions, reported that customer footfall in the Chinese centres were back to the level of between 70% and 80% of the numbers at the same time last year. Shopper confidence there was “recovering rapidly” a spokesperson for the company said.  Most Ikea China stores have now reopened and some have been trading since the end of last month.