Wine Market trends in China Over the years, China is becoming the second world’s largest market for imported wine. With a population of nearly 1.38 billion, a flourishing middle class and sophisticating consumers, China presents big opportunities for international wine brands and businesses. Economy is rapidly changing and it’s important to stay focus on the latest trends and insights to grow and harness its market potential. China wine market The wine industry in China is an important industry, there are nearly 48 million regular wine drinkers in China and all belong to the upper-middle class. Actually, Chinese people consume more alcohol compared to the previous generations. They have more disposable income, so despite the higher prices, they can purchase and drink imported wines from Europe rather than drinking local Chinese brands. The Chinese like to drink wine. China’s millionaires are able to buy $300 of a bottle of wine. And, since China’s economy is growing, wine consumption is rising up and the way the Chinese drink wine is totally changing. The number of wine lovers will increase to around 70-80 million by 2020. There will be a growing demand for middle-priced wines and this market is expected to increase by 65% over the upcoming five years. Over 40% of imported wine consumers in China are aged 18 to 29-year-old. This trend with great potential has attracted different international wine producers to the growing Chinese market, including countries such as France, Argentina, Chile, Australia, Italy and Spain. Chinese Consumer Habits and Trends The number of Chinese wine drinkers is still rising nearly 38 million. The main task confronting wineries is how to lure a huge percentage of the Chinese population into the wine fold. The process of convincing beer drinkers is not easy, we have twofold: education and price. The biggest problem in the wine market in China is the quality. Chinese wines are pretty bad, and they want to compete with the top French brands. So they are starting to produce bad quality wines with low priced. Chinese consumers are one of the most complicated to comprehend and to satisfy customers in the world. Young Chinese wine consumers are likely to conduct thorough research online and on winery websites before purchasing wine online. Chinese consumers prefer to choose a brand they know; they’ve tried before or have been recommended by friends and family.” 88% actively use the internet, 69% of them search for wine information online and 49% purchase wine online. Chinese consumers are easily influenced by luxury foreign brands. Thus they are purchasing only from brands and companies they have known, which makes it hard to earn Chinese consumer’s trust. If you want to attract the younger generations in China, you have to consider two important things: the packaging and lower alcohol content. About to packaging, Chinese consumers prefer classy expensive looking designs. It makes them feel more sophisticated. Instead of traditional Chinese alcohol with high alcohol content such as Baijiu and Mijiu, the younger generations prefer to consume alcohol with lower content such as beer and wine. Social Media and E-commerce: New chance for wine The new trend of the young Chinese wine consumers is the social media and the massive use of WeChat and Weibo. Now, all Chinese customers purchase their wine online and take information on Wechat or Weibo. There are 47% buy Wine online and 62% obtain information online. The digital media in China is a cornerstone of wine marketing now. Winemakers are trying to keep up WeChat and Weibo from their rolling vineyards thousands of miles away. However, if a winery really wants to succeed in China, they must put significant effort in the social media sectors since this is the source where Chinese consumers discover and discuss products. chinese market is a very fragmented market. Online platforms such as Taobao and Tmall are China’s main e-commerce channels. Moreover, with the development of the technology, online trends is still growing, through the use of platforms such as Pinshanghongjiu and Jiubaowang which also conduct B2C business are gaining more and more market share in China. This is mainly due to the fact that they specialize in alcohol and wine. The main competitors in the Chinese wine market are online, however many are also doing a combination of online and offline retail allowing a wider range of availability to their consumers. Another increasingly seen marketing trend is for retailers to offer education for new wine drinkers as well as hosting wine tastings. This allows Chinese customers to meet with wine retailers and distributors, which can play a significant role in building customer loyalty and “guanxi”. Business Opportunities The number of business opportunities is big in China, especially when it comes to the wine market. when entering the Chinese wine market, you have to establish a clear business plan before doing anything. Chinese younger consumers have more disposable income, are more sophisticated, have a global perspective, and will be the driving force of the Chinese market’s future.