While many Western consumers are trading down and preferring less expensive items, Chinese women are spending more and becoming more influential in their family’s spending habits. They are becoming a key target for companies trying to boost sales in China, says Shaun Rein, founder and managing director of the China Market Research Group, a strategic market intelligence firm. Understanding how they think and what they buy will be critical for foreign firms trying to sell to them.

 

In a recent article in Forbes, Rein says women have become a major driving force behind China's economic growth. China's overall retail sales rose 15% in the first half of this year, and that growth was driven in large part by women under the age of 35.

 

His firm recently surveyed female consumers in China, and 80% of them said they expected to spend more in the next six months than in the last six. “Not only are they exerting influence on decision-making in their own homes; they're also making purchase decisions for their parents when they live in the same house or neighborhood,” the former Harvard graduate writes.

 

Rein goes on to make the following points: 

¨         Millions of girls since the late 1970s have been raised as little princesses in one-child families.

¨         While much has been made of the statistic that there are 117 males for every 100 females in China (because of abortions), it's also true that in urban areas there is much gender parity.

¨         Women now contribute about half of household income, up from 20% in the 1950s. Their educational opportunities have greatly grown, and they've entered the white-collar workforce.

¨         They now spend as much as men on luxury consumption, accounting for 50% of luxury purchases from companies like Louis Vuitton and Gucci.

¨         She is cutting back on impulse purchases, spending more time before entering a store to do research online on what she wants to buy, consulting blogs and search engines and websites.

¨         Women are becoming less price sensitive and more sophisticated about the brands and products that they finally buy.

¨         Women are also extremely influential in big-ticket family purchases such as homes and even televisions that traditionally have been up to men. In Shanghai, we found that many women control their households' finances. They keep the bank accounts in their own names and give their husbands a weekly allowance.

¨         These young women are greatly concerned about the safety of the products they buy for their children. If Americans worry about the "Made in China" label, Chinese women worry even more, for they have to deal with it every day.

¨         In general they trust foreign brands more than domestic ones. The vast majority of females in 15 cities told us that they would spend 20% or more for products for their babies if they felt they could fully trust that they were safe.

 

As a foreign man with a Chinese wife for the past three years, I believe every one of the above points is true. During my nine years in China, it is clear to me that most Chinese women are confident and many have the ability and opportunity to earning the money to keep on spending.

 

Rein concludes, “To be successful selling to them, you have to cater to their emotions and concerns more than ever before, even when selling products that men traditionally buy. As Chinese women work harder, raise children at the same time, and pay for their parents, they want to spoil themselves and relax a little. They are willing to pay a premium for safe and healthy quality products that let them do so.”