23.04.2018

Some of you might have heard about it: In 2015, China abolished its traditional one-child policy introduced in 1979, meaning that officially, each family is allowed to have two children again. The background of this change in policy is the massive overaging of our society and the resulting lack of labor which threatens to affect us in the years ahead (see Ifeng News, 2016). This will make it difficult for us to maintain the level of economic growth we have known in China. In the mean themes, the two-child policy has been in effect for about two years, and according to what you read in the press and what you observe among acquaintances, people exercise their option of having a second child quite actively.

Measures to counteract the overaging of the population mean: our country will become more crowded

I myself was born in 1987 and, like all my contemporaries, I grew up as an only child in a one-child family. Nevertheless, our generation recorded very high birth rates. According to the statistics, about 124 million babies were born between 1986 and 1990 (See Sina News, 2013). This is why I grew up having the impression of being one among many and of always having to fight for my place in the world. It was like that when I wanted to go to high school and later, when I was applying for a place to study at the University of Shanghai, and even when we were looking for a restaurant to celebrate our wedding. Now that we will have a baby ourselves, I am even a bit worried: If we, the baby boomers, start families and are even allowed to have two children, the relevant institutions, and the country in general, might quickly become quite crowded again...

Western vitamins and traditional Chinese medicine will help

Nonetheless, my wife and I are obviously happy to have children. We have also invested quite some time and money in preparing for pregnancy, money spent, among other things, on vitamin pills. These products (for women and men) have nearly become a standard in China. Yet, they are not always bought in China, but often in foreign countries and then sent to us by mail. Millions of Chinese consumers generally rely on their “friends overseas” when they want these and other products from abroad: They feel reassured that they will not receive fake products or pay excessive prices. Yet besides, we have also consulted a traditional Chinese doctor. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is currently experiencing a revival, as it always takes into account the entire body and the mind. And pregnancy is indeed an all-embracing issue. Ever since, we’ve tried to eat in accordance with our TCM diagnosis and have hired a woman from the neighborhood who cooks our dinner every day for 700 RMB (about 10 Euros).

Only the best for the baby: radiation protection clothing, bottle, BabyNes

Families like us dig quite deep in their pockets when they have a baby and preferably choose international brands. During a business trip to Germany, my wife already bought some bottles, pacifiers and a breast pump from European brands. We also chose radiation protection clothing for my wife from leading international manufacturers: Octmami, Joyncleon, Emxee. It may sound exaggerated to some, but we think that she should not be so exposed to radiation generated by computers at work, household appliances and cell phones. What has been very popular since last year as well is BabyNes, a device from Nestle which turns capsules of powdered milk into baby milk. With very well-done advertising, the manufacturer Nestle has been giving this device a western and very glamorous image (“It girl, it mom!”), which attracts many Chinese mothers. At the same time, they convey another value which is very important to us when it comes to our babies: absolute safety in terms of hygiene, and a healthy diet. Thanks to an intensive cooperation with Alibaba and a fancy online shop on Tmall.com this product is looking forward to growing sales volumes here in China. In October 2017, their flagship store opened in Shanghai, and the opening event featured Jingjing Guo, a very well-known scuba diver who has started an advertising career as a modern mom after she withdrew from professional sports.

The “Puerperal Center“ boom

In Chinese culture, the first four weeks following childbirth are considered a very special time for mothers. Traditionally, the mother is supposed to strictly spend this time in bed, being cared for by family members. Usually, the woman spends this time at her or her mother’s home, but now there are the so-called “Puerperal Centers”. They are an extremely booming business, some kind of luxury hotels exclusively for mothers with their newborn babies, including single room, treatment and food according to TCM, apart from midwives and nurses (see https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgP-Qv-wlwU). By the end of 2017, there were already more than 4,000 of these centers in China , most of them in the big metropolises (Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen), which are home to many young families with high spending power. The service is expensive: On average, 30 days cost 60,000 RMB (approx. 7,700. Euros). If the father wants to join his wife over the weekend, of course he pays extra. My wife and I think this is very expensive, but we are still thinking about her spending her first month at a Puerperal Center, as some of my wife’s friends did it and were thrilled about it.

Social media: carefree presentation of parental pride

Another trend is that many women have their pictures taken during pregnancy to capture the precious moment when their babies are still in their bellies. The respective photos generate many “likes” and good wishes in our social media.

After the child is born, parents are even more active in the social media: Countless photos and videos of babies are uploaded together with texts telling funny stories about the children. In China, we call this “sharenting” (晒娃shai wa). You want to know what is shared exactly? Basically, it is all about feeding, sleeping and changing diapers. When the baby gets older, people share the milestones of early education: painting, singing, dancing, a visit to the museum or an exhibition etc. Parents and grandparents pose together in front of the camera quite openly to share the resulting pictures online: This is our new Chinese cross-generational multimedia baby boom.

Future prospects: the Chinese baby boom benefits international brands

I guess everything I have just reported only allows for one conclusion: International manufacturers of products which have to do with pregnancy, babies (and, of course, increasingly also with older children) have great business opportunities in China. To seize these opportunities, they should take into account the following important factors:

• Marketing focusing on high quality, safety, highest technological standards and orientation at the latest findings about healthy child development
• An advertising strategy which contains large-scale advertising elements and at the same time generates positive word-of-mouth among the target group
• Secure sales channels (run by the company itself) which convey that the customer can be assured to buy the original product