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306,000 Chinese tourists visited New York last year: more to come…

A new article in Business Insider came out today reiterating what we already know. Spendy Chinese tourists are traveling the globe, much to the benefit of luxury good retailers. An article in the Business Insider looked into Chinese tourists going to New York. Last year 306,000 Mainland Chinese visited New York – up from 59,000 in 2002.The typical Chinese tourist stayed for 11.3 days in New York and spent $3,297 per trip. Chinese tourists contributed US$877 million to the New York economy last year.

China Luxury News Roundup

Summary: Luxury auto dealers are beginning to provide more sales incentives in the face of slower economic growth in China and fear of excess inventory. Luxury Institute releases top trends for 2012, including the end of luxury flash sites. Mainland Chinese tourists are accounting for 67% of visitors to Hong Kong, and the largest group of spending. Fake luxury products found on China Amazon site. Shanghai Tang plans to double its stores in China. Sotheby’s posts strong sales in its Hong Kong auction. Wyndham opening a new resort in southern China. China inspired Maybach 62 debuts in Xian. Links to full stories below.

Scaling Distribution in China

I was recently asked to write an article for Business Forum China on my favorite subject – distribution in China. See the article at http://businessforum-china.com/article_detail.html?articleid=320 or read it below.

Are market fears of a China luxury downturn warranted?

This past week has seen the financial markets punish luxury stocks on fears of a China economic slowdown. (http://tgr.ph/pWac64)

The European Union is struggling to shore up their already debt laden banking industry as Greece teeters on the brink of default.  Meanwhile, the United States continues to battle high unemployment, low consumer confidence, and fears of a double dip recession.  Some economists perceive these events as omens pointing towards a second global economic crisis.

But how does China measure up amid these dire monetary projections? 

International Tourism: “Low Hanging Fruit” for economic stimulus

The U.S. government has found a new way to create jobs and stimulate the economy — by promoting the U.S. as a tourist destination to international travelers. The government believes that courting tourists from cash rich countries like China, Brazil and India could add as many as 1.3 million new jobs and an $859 boost to the economy over the next ten years.

Chinese tourists are leading the pack, with spending up 39% in 2010 to reach US$6 billion.

Weibo photos: “Sea of tourists” during Golden Week

Ever wonder why China is predicted to have more than 100 million outbound tourists by 2020 – making it the largest source of tourism in the world? Certainly, its to experience new places, but its also to escape the massive crowds that occur during China’s three “Golden Weeks” when the whole country goes on vacation. The Shanghaiist posted pictures of the current National Holiday tourist rush in China posted from a Weibo account – illustrates the point pretty nicely. Who wouldn’t want to avoid these crowds??

http://shanghaiist.com/2011/10/04/weibo_photos_sea_of_tourists_during.php#photo-1