Afleveringen
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Highlights:
06:30 - Jiao Jie on the economic transformation of the Global South
10:45 - David Sumual on Alternative Financing: How new funding models are reshaping global financial cooperation
21:50 - Marc Uzan on Financial Reform: Challenges facing the Global South in the Bretton Woods system
34:00 -The future of financial governance in an increasingly multipolar world
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pekingensight.substack.com -
The Year of the Snake is approaching!
春节chūn jié, the Spring Festival, also known as the Chinese New Year, is one of the most important holidays in Chinese culture. This year, it has been officially added to UNESCO’s representative list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
In this special Spring Festival episode, host Zhang Yiyi is joined by three special guests. They are:
Carmen Xiao肖疆, IKEA Product Design Developer
Lian Zhelin 连哲林, IKEA Designer
Qian Jing 钱菁, IKEA Designer
They explore how the globally recognized Swedish home furnishing brand, celebrates the Spring Festival.
The guests share their unique insights into their Chinese New Year designs and how they bring tradition and innovation together in IKEA products.
The conversation also touches on their observation of the Chinese market, including evolution of consumer behavior and home decoration trends.
Highlights:
02:25 IKEA's journey in celebrating Spring Festival
10:30 Warm drinks on the go: even thermos are taken into consideration
10:55 Design challenges: balancing festive colors with everyday usability
14:49 Key motifs and cultural elements in IKEA’s 2025 Spring Festival Collection (FÖSSTA)
18:26 Incorporating Chinese aesthetics into modern ceramics
21:11 How IKEA's Spring Festival collections have influenced Chinese families and global consumers, reconnecting with traditional customs through tangible designs.
25:36 Evolution of consumer behavior and home decoration trends in the Chinese market
29:03 Incorporating cultural elements to a wider landscape
This podcast is available on Spotify, Apple Podcast and YouTube. You are also more than welcome to check our newsletter where you can find more in-depth sharings around Chinese economy: https://pekingensight.substack.com/
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pekingensight.substack.com -
Zijn er afleveringen die ontbreken?
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The Year of the Snake is approaching!
春节chūn jié, the Spring Festival, also known as the Chinese New Year, is one of the most important holidays in Chinese culture. It has been officially added to UNESCO’s representative list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
In this special Spring Festival episode, host Zhang Yiyi is joined by Wen Xiaodong 温笑冬, senior concept designer at the LEGO Group, also the first designer from Chinese mainland to join the headquarters of the global toy giant.
Wen shares his experiences in integrating Chinese culture into LEGO sets, also the challenges and rewards of representing a diverse culture through toys.
The designer walks us through highlights of the LEGO Group’s efforts to incorporate Spring Festival traditions into their products, and also the features of the 2025 series.
He also reflects on his journey to becoming a LEGO designer, the process of designing culturally significant LEGO sets, and his pride in contributing to the spread of Chinese culture internationally.
Highlights:
03:26 Celebrating Spring Festival overseas: sharing unique cultural experiences
04:57 The LEGO Group's journey in embracing Chinese New Year Culture
08:57 Extensive brainstorming and consumer feedback sessions across China to create unique festival sets
11:38 Rewards and challenges: design process details for Spring Festival-themed sets
19:15 Spring Festival: a gateway to Chinese culture
20:38 From concept artist to LEGO designer: an unexpected journey
26:30 Inspiration behind the Monkey Kids Series
32:24 LEGO aspirations for cultural relevance in China
This podcast is available on Spotify, Apple Podcast and YouTube. You are also more than welcome to check our newsletter where you can find more in-depth sharings around Chinese economy: https://pekingensight.substack.com/
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pekingensight.substack.com -
Trending in China, a podcast where we dive into the latest buzz around Chinese economy and beyond.
Starting this season, we are bringing you new content from tech trends to culture and consumption, with a focus on what'smaking waves in China's fast-paced society.
In this episode of Trending in China, host Zhang Yiyi is joined by Lucas Zhang, a frequent blind box buyer and art toy collector. They dive into the fascinating world of China’s rapidly expanding art toy market, with a particular focus on Pop Mart and its viral blind boxes, where Lucas shares insights into how these toys transcend their function as simple playthings and instead serve as cultural ambassadors, offering emotional fulfillment and self-expression for Gen Z consumers.
They explore the growing trend of emotional consumption, where younger generations prioritize products that connect with their individuality and offer a deeper emotional resonance, rather than just fulfilling material needs.
The conversation also touches on the role of intellectual property (IP) in shaping art toys, how these toys reflect not just a consumer trend but a shift towards self-expression and community-building, and also the consumption upgrades taking place in China.
This episode was recorded in December 2024.
Highlights:
4:47 Adults also need to play with toys
10:08 Art toys like Pop Mart make art more approachable
13:00 Labubu storms Southeast Asia
16:21 When we talk about IPs, what are we talking about?
20:00 Huge market reflected by growth of Pop Mart and Gen Z’s growing purchasing power
25:16 What makes them buy: emotional value
26:06 Shopping malls in Beijing are providing services different from the past
28:39 China is shifting from a production-driven to a consumer-driven society
29:40 Gen Z consumers are spending money to buy happiness and please themselves
34:25 Purchases of art toy blind boxes is not about escapism but shows confidence of GenZ consumers
36:36 How brands should adapt to the evolving market landscape to attract the younger generation of consumers
This podcast is available on Spotify, Apple Podcast and YouTube.
You are also more than welcome to check our newsletter where you can find more in-depth sharings around Chinese economy: https://pekingensight.substack.com/
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pekingensight.substack.com -
Check out the thriving innovative enterprises in China in this episode!
What are gazelles and unicorns? Why are dynamic enterprises like these driving China's national policy? And what are the country's strategies to better support them?
Let's take a look at those fantastic beasts in China and see where to find them!😜
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pekingensight.substack.com -
In this episode, let’s look at six buzzwords of China's ongoing reforms.
01:31 Debut economy
03:56 Industries of the future
05:57 Patient capital
08:15 New forms of employment
10:11 Childbirth-friendly society
12:15 Silver economy
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pekingensight.substack.com -
🚗🚝🌳A 15min tour of the best of Chinese city clusters!😜
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pekingensight.substack.com -
In this episode, come and join us to visit lottery stores, where young people gather to buy excitement of anticipation, to stroll around a supermarket to shop for unique experiences, and to look through new policies to cultivate new consumption drivers.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pekingensight.substack.com -
This week, Mike and Sylvia are off on a "Culture Express,” diving into the world of new Chinese style travel, museums, and Yue Opera.
01:24 New Chinese style travel
06:05 Chinese museums greet more young people
11:16 Yue Opera fever
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pekingensight.substack.com -
Join Mike and Sylvia this week to explore why America is "unhappy" about China's strong new energy capacity.
This episode is produced by Trending in China, with additional help from Allen Zhu.
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pekingensight.substack.com -
In this episode, come and explore new policies allowing visa-free entries to China, the bike boom in bustling cities, and a miniseries that leads us "to the wonder" of Altay, Xinjiang!
(00:55) New policy to facilitate foreign cruise ship passengers
(04:35) Bicycles become symbols of tech and fashion
(07:30) "To the Wonder" ignites a strong desire among viewers to visit Altay
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pekingensight.substack.com -
Back to latest economic trends in China! In this episode we look at new reading habits among the young, thriving pet-related businesses, memes gone viral during the May Day holiday tourism boom, and how "world's supermarket" welcomes the Paris Olympic Games.
(00:45) "Listening to" books becomes popular among young people
(06:04) China's pet industry and related new jobs
(07:49) New trend on social media -- Selfies? No. Memes？Yes!
(11:15) Yiwu & Paris Olympic Games
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pekingensight.substack.com -
Hi, you're listening to a special episode on the 4th China International Consumer Products Expo. Check out what participants have to say about the event!
(01:39) Ireland's ambassador to China, Ann Derwin
(04:01) Irish Food Board
(05:27) Estée Lauder
(08:46) "Newcomers" & "old friends"
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pekingensight.substack.com -
In this episode, we look at Qingming Festival holiday consumption, "Shenzhen bag" and young people's new consumption habits, and the upcoming consumer products expo in Hainan.
(00:22) Qingming festival holiday consumption
(03:17) "Shenzhen bag" and trade in second-hand goods
(09:40) 4th China International Consumer Products Expo
Trailer:
https://www.hainanexpo.org.cn/videos/2337.html
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pekingensight.substack.com -
Our show is now available on Apple Podcasts, Pocket Casts, Castro, etc. Search "Trending in China" and start listening!
In this episode, we look at China's performing arts industry, the "multilingual" businesswomen in Yiwu City, rapid development of microdramas, and the newly-unveiled negative lists for cross-border trade in services.
(00:56) World Theatre Day & the performing arts industry
(03:46) Zhang Jiying the "polyglot" in Yiwu
(08:03) China's huge market for microdramas
(10:22) Negative lists for cross-border trade in services
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pekingensight.substack.com -
·Flower tour recommendations (Chinese version):
https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/l4sMn--QiNPOsnrFV2Zdeg
·e-CNY user guide:
https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/YYK75SqEy01G_ekWLcNkkg
·(00:37) Cherry blossom industry scale will reach 100 billion yuan in the next five to ten years
·(03:12) The finals of the Village Super League, or 村超(cun chao), kicked off on March 16, together with the "happiness economy"
·(05:44) How to use China's digital currency?
·(07:40) Hefei city's rising population and emerging industries
·(09:17) "ma la tang" from Tianshui city -- foodies let's go!
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pekingensight.substack.com -
* File: A Guide to Working and Living in China as Business Expatriates（2024 Edition）.pdf
http://images.mofcom.gov.cn/wzs/202403/20240306153128529.pdf
* (00:45) Alipay and WeChat Pay have made it easier than ever to link your Visa and Mastercard accounts to their platforms
(03:30) "She-Power" -- about 1/3 female truck drivers contribute over half of their family's total income
(05:10) Crushing rumors -- The real plane that overshot the runway after landing at the American airport
(07:05) Something "new" -- "New Quality Productive Forces"
(09:20) Revival of "Hanfu", the 2,000 year-old traditional attire
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pekingensight.substack.com -
This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit pekingensight.substack.com
