SAO PAULO - When Xing Yanling posted on WeChat about her visit to the Brazilian Amazon in April, she described to her friends in China the unforgettable sensation of being "enveloped by tens of thousands of shades of green."Xing is no ordinary tourist. She leads the Tianjin Meat Industry Association, representing importers responsible for around 40 per cent o
At SPS Affinity we ran three types of content for a luxury hotel on Xiaohongshu last year.
The results 👇
40% of posts were hero content — aspirational, visual, showcase-driven.
They generated 65% of total account interaction. Not surprising, except for what we learned about why: it wasn't the polish that drove it. It was the emotional specificity. Desert pool at sunset for honeymooners. Ski slope views for families escaping winter. Not "beautiful rooms." Specific scenarios for specific people.
35% were guide posts — travel planning content tied to Chinese seasons and events.
These achieved the highest save rate of any content type. Which matters more than most brands realize. A save is a travel intent signal. Someone bookmarking your content is mentally placing you in their trip.
The final 25% — activation and interactive campaigns — averaged 150+ new followers per campaign.
What's shifting in 2026 is the depth of personalization required.
Generic Chinese New Year posts aren't enough anymore.
Affluent Chinese travelers are seeking experiences and stories, and they can tell the difference between content made for them and content translated for them.
A fast-growing consumer trend reshaping China’s economy has largely flown under the radar outside the country - the “emotion economy”, where consumers place greater value on how a product or service makes them feel than on its practical use. The trend is driving demand for everything from collectibles and bubble tea to gaming and immersive experiences that evoke excitement, comfort and fulfilment. Why are young Chinese consumers spending this way, and what does it reveal about the country’s changing economy? CNA’s Krystal Chia reports from Shanghai.
How has the Iran war impacted Chinese consumer sentiment about travel to the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), and how should regional travel brands approach the Chinese market now? These are the latest insights from Dragon Trail’s consumer research, market intelligence, and strategy planning. Co
Most international clean beauty brands entering China in 2026 still think hope is a strategy.
The market entry approach that used to work in China is not just outdated. It's increasingly ineffective.
Here's what separates successful founders from the ones burning budget and wondering why nothing is converting.
1. Xiaohongshu first. Not as an afterthought.
For a clean beauty or skincare brand entering China in 2026, Xiaohongshu is not one channel among many, it's where brand credibility is built or destroyed.
Founders getting this right treat it as a long form trust building platform, not a promotional channel. They build a content library around ingredient transparency, formulation philosophy and real skin results, not vibes.
2. Ingredient literacy is now taken for granted.
Chinese skincare consumers, particularly the urban 25-40 demographic that buys premium, can decipher an ingredient list much better than you can.
If your formulation claims aren't substantiated, if your hero ingredient is underdosed, if the gap between your marketing and your formulation is visible, they will find it, and post about it.
Successful brands in China are leading with ingredient transparency as a brand asset, not managing it as a compliance obligation.
3. China Chic is real competition.
Domestic Chinese skincare has grown up fast. Brands like Proya, Winona and Florasis have sophisticated formulations, credible clinical positioning, and deep channel infrastructure. Competing with them on price or on "natural" claims alone is a losing strategy. You need to own something specific that domestic brands structurally can't replicate.
4. Pricing architecture before you launch. Not after.
Grey market is not a distribution problem, it's a pricing architecture problem. If your RRP in China is too far above your home market, or you discount too heavily, parallel imports will undercut you before your authorised channel has found its feet.
I've seen brands spend heavily on setting up a flagship shop only to watch daigou beat them to the punch, and their sales.
5. The first twelve months are not about revenue. They're about signal.
Founders we work with enter China with a clear set of leading indicators that aren't GMV. Revenue follows signal. Brands that optimise for short term sales in year one almost always compromise positioning to get there.
China's clean beauty market in 2026 is genuinely exciting. Consumer sophistication is high, appetite for credible international brands is real, and there is white space for founders who do the work properly.
If you're a founder mapping a China entry for the first time, or you've been in market for twelve months and the numbers don't make sense, let's talk.
I'm Iain Langridge 毅安 co-founder In2Asia Export. We launch, grow, and manage international brands to deliver a sustainable presence in China.
The report identified the next set of travellers that will fuel the region’s travel retail development, and the role of AI and innovation to fuel this future growth.
A collaborative research project by DONG Luxury Collection and Dragon Trail, the Luxury Travel Trends in China White Paper provides a comprehensive analysis of China's luxury travel market, based on surveys and interviews with HNWIs, travel agents, and hospitality partners.
Despite differences and disagreements on the issue of the West Philippine Sea, the Philippines wants more Chinese tourists to visit and experience the country’s beauty, culture and warm welcome that Filipinos are known for.
Korean retailers have made the most of the early May holiday period, as their sales soared with a massive flock of foreign tourists visiting the country. Accord
Young Chinese couples are redefining weddings around control, authenticity, and self-expression. From “san-wu” weddings (no convoys, no pickup rituals, no bridesmaids) to fast-food banquets, the signal is clear: people want experiences that feel personal, flexible, and true to who they are.
For brands, this shift goes far beyond weddings. The winners will be those who leave room for consumers to shape their own stories.
3Drips support brands uncover the psychology behind user decisions and the consumer trends shaping what comes next. Please subscribe if you are interested.
China’s Micro-Drama Revolution: The Future of Global Attention?
China’s explosive rise of micro-dramas — ultra-short mobile-first video series designed for platforms like Douyin and WeChat — is rapidly reshaping entertainment, advertising, luxury branding, and consumer behavior.
What looks like simple smartphone entertainment is actually becoming a powerful new business ecosystem driven by algorithms, emotional storytelling, AI, and social commerce.
For travel brands, hotels, luxury retailers, and marketers, this trend may represent one of the most important shifts in digital media coming out of China today.
A few minutes of video… but potentially billions in influence.
Chinas 520 romance economy cools as young consumers shun splurges Practical spending and meme-fueled work over dating mood eclipse pricey 520 displays amid Chinas slowdown
Luxury outlet retail in China is demonstrating vitality and resilience as the sector capitalises on the growing demand for cultural, lifestyle and vacation experience-centred shopping.
What appeal does cruise travel have for HNWI Chinese? How can luxury cruise operators tap into the potential of China’s travel market? Here are the findings from the Luxury Travel Trends in China White Paper by Dragon Trail and DONG Luxury Travel Collection.
Many thanks to Jackie Hoo (The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection) and Adam Radwanski (Silversea) for their insights.
🚢 There are challenges in selling Chinese HNW travelers on cruise as a form of travel, as they may think first of crowded, mass-market experiences. Selling points for luxury cruises include luxury on-board amenities, privacy, and exclusive destinations and experiences.
🗺️ 60% of Chinese HWNI travelers say that the cruise itinerary is very or extremely important. They will be looking for niche destinations and unique itineraries – including ports that are too small for standard cruise ships – and exclusive access to heritage sites or private excursions.
🐧 Luxury yacht cruises and expedition cruises are the most appealing cruise type for Chinese HNWIs. These travelers are looking for access to unique, off-the-beaten-path destinations (60%) and opportunity for closer interaction with nature and wildlife (22%).
☎️ Dragon Trail has extensive experience working with the cruise sector on both B2C and B2B marketing in China, in addition to our work with the luxury hotels sector. Contact us to discuss how we can help your brand to launch or optimize its approach to the Chinese travel market.
By Dan Siebers — 25 Years in China Wine & Spirits In my last article, I described China’s wine market as a landscape shaped by compulsive entrepreneurialism — a culturally driven flood of operators entering any category that shows demand, fragmenting markets faster than they can consolidate, and res
Most Western brands still think China retail works the way it did five years ago.
It doesn’t.
And this week’s China Pulse #018 shows just how fast the ground is shifting underneath fashion, lifestyle, and athleisure brands trying to compete in China in 2026.
Some brands are adapting. Others are quietly disappearing.
Inside this week's China Pulse:
🔎Why Vuori launched 5 simultaneous Shanghai pop-ups instead of 1 flagship, and why distributed retail is outperforming traditional store launches by 3–5x on Xiaohongshu
🔎How China’s new “kidult economy” turned glossy plastic shoes into $400+ status products with 30M+ impressions, and why anti-perfectionism is becoming a real retail strategy
🔎The uncomfortable reason Galeries Lafayette just shut down its massive Beijing flagship after 12 years, and what it reveals about the collapse of the old Western department store model in China
🔎Why brands built around “curation” are losing to Xiaohongshu, Douyin, and community-driven discovery ecosystems
🔎How MAIA ACTIVE, ALO Yoga, and a wave of emotionally-positioned brands are reshaping China’s athleisure market while legacy players struggle to keep up
Here’s the part most companies still don’t understand: China consumers didn’t stop buying. They changed how they discover, evaluate, and emotionally connect with brands.
And many Western retail formats were never built for that world.
The brands still operating with a 2021 China playbook are about to learn that lesson the hard way.
Check out China Pulse #018 to find out what's working in China right now.
China's retail sales of consumer goods remain a major indicator of the country's consumption strength. From January to March, retail sales expanded 2.4 percent from a year ago. Some retailers, such as discount chains, see opportunities in consumer market segmentation. Chen Tong spoke with the head of one popular outlet chain in China.
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