Table of Contents
Introduction
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- Definition
- Report structure
- Methodology
- Abbreviations
Executive Summary
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- The consumer
- Chocolates and traditional festive foods are the most popular food gifts
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- Figure 1: Festive food bought as gifts, June 2013
- Parents are the most typical gift recipients
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- Figure 2: Recipients of festive foods as gifts, June 2013
- Festive occasions when festive foods are bought
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- Figure 3: Festive occasions when festive foods are bought, June 2013
- Retail channels used for buying festive food
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- Figure 4: Channels for buying festive food in the past 12 months, June 2013
- Important factors when buying festive food as a gift
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- Figure 5: Important factors when buying festive food as a gift, June 2013
- Attitudes towards buying festive food
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- Figure 6: Attitudes towards buying festive food, June 2013
- Key trends
- The bright future of imported festive food
- Ingredients with health benefits can be appealing to Chinese festive food buyers
- Online retail channel shows great potential in festive food gift market
- What we think
Background – Gifting Culture and Festivals in China
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- Key points
- Gifting culture in China
- The Guanxi philosophy
- Consumption to maintain ‘face’ in gifting market
- When gifting becomes a burden
- Chinese festivals
- Spring festival
- Mid-autumn festival
- Duanwu (Dragon boat) festival
- Yuanxiao (Lantern) festival
- Dongzhi (Winter solstice festival)
- Double Ninth/Chongyang festival
- Anti-extravagance campaign
- The festive food market
- More official public holidays means more gift-giving opportunities
The Consumer – Purchase of Festive Food as Gifts
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- Key points
- Chocolates and traditional festive foods are the most popular food gifts
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- Figure 7: Festive food bought as gifts, June 2013
- Younger people are less likely to buy ‘everyday snacks’ as a gift
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- Figure 8: Selected festive food bought as gift, by age, June 2013
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- Figure 9: Purchase of festive food as a gift to social circle, by age, June 2013
- Higher incomes drive gifting
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- Figure 10: Festive food bought as gift, percentage point difference in purchase levels by income, June 2013
- Parents are more likely to buy food and drink as gifts
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- Figure 11: Demographic profile of parents from tier one to tier three cities in China, June 2013
- Food and drink gifts are more common in tier one cities
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- Figure 12: Festive food bought as gift, by city tier, June 2013
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- Figure 13: Processed meat bought as gift, by city, June 2013
The Consumer – To Whom Festive Foods Are Given As Gifts
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- Key points
- Parents are the most typical gift recipients
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- Figure 14: Recipients of festive foods as gifts, June 2013
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- Figure 15: Recipients of festive foods as gifts, by social relationship, June 2013
- Women are more likely than men to give gifts to family and relatives
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- Figure 16: Selected recipients of festive foods as gifts, by gender of giver, June 2013
- Young adults are more likely to give gifts to their social circle
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- Figure 17: The recipients of festive foods as gifts, by age of giver, June 2013
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- Figure 18: Spouses as the recipients of festive foods as a gift, by gender and age of giver, June 2013
- Parents buy festive food as gift for their children irrespective of incomes
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- Figure 19: Recipients of festive foods as gifts, by personal income of giver, June 2013
- Festive foods as gifts for one’s social circle
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- Figure 20: Buyers of festive foods as gifts for their social circle, by demographics, June 2013
The Consumer – Purchase Occasions and Channels
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- Key points
- Festive occasions when festive foods are bought
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- Figure 21: Festive occasions when festive foods are bought, June 2013
- Chinese festivals
- Western festivals
- Men buy more festive foods for Valentine’s Day
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- Figure 22: Selected occasions for buying festive food, by gender, June 2013
- Older consumers are most likely to buy festive foods for traditional Chinese festivals
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- Figure 23: Occasions when festive food is bought, by age, June 2013
The Consumer – Purchase Occasions and Channels
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- Key points
- Retail channels used for buying festive food
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- Figure 24: Channels for buying festive food in the past 12 months, June 2013
- Age plays a key role in choice of retail channels
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- Figure 25: Selected channels for buying festive food in the past 12 months, by age, June 2013
- Local supermarkets are more important to low earners and those in smaller cities
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- Figure 26: Consumers buying festive food from local supermarket, by income and city tier, June 2013
- High-end supermarkets tend to be more attractive to married couples
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- Figure 27: Consumers buying festive food from high-end supermarket, by marital status, June 2013
- Buying health food from high-end supermarkets is popular
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- Figure 28: Use of high-end supermarkets to buy festive food, by type of festive food purchased in the last 12 months, June 2013
- Online platforms tend to be a popular choice for Christmas festive food buyers
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- Figure 29: Usage of high-end supermarkets to buy festive foods, by types of festive foods bought in the last 12 months, June 2013
The Consumer – Important Factors When Buying Festive Food as a Gift
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- Key points
- Important factors when buying festive food as a gift
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- Figure 30: Important factors when buying festive food as a gift, June 2013
- Brands spark only limited interest
- Well-known brands tend to be more important to male consumers in their thirties and forties and those with higher incomes
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- Figure 31: Agreement with well-known brands being an important factor when buying festive food as a gift, by gender, age and income, June 2013
- Females and those with low to mid level of income tend to show greater concern over clear labelling
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- Figure 32: Agreement with clear labelling being an important factor when buying festive food as a gift, by gender, income and education level, June 2013
- Ingredients in festive foods tend to be most important to respondents in their forties
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- Figure 33: Agreement with food ingredients being an important factor when buying festive food, by age, June 2013
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- Figure 34: Selected attitudes towards food and drink ingredients, by age, December 2012
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- Figure 35: Selected health ingredients bought in the past 12 months, by age, December 2012
- Packaging is most important to young consumers and high earners
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- Figure 36: Agreement with package design being an important factor when buying festive food as a gift, by age and income, June 2013
- Quality of festive food is a major consideration among low earners in China
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- Figure 37: Agreement with quality of food being an important factor when buying festive food as a gift, by income, June 2013
- Parents pay more attention to brands and care less about prices
- Attitudes towards buying festive food
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- Figure 38: Attitudes towards buying festive food, June 2013
Key Issue – The Bright Future Of Imported Festive Food
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- Key points
- Imported festive foods enjoy a high growth rate
- Local supermarkets becoming an important retail channel for imported festive foods
- High demand for imported festive food products at local supermarkets
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- Figure 39: Buying festive food from local supermarket, by income and city tier, June 2013
- Figure 40: Agreement with the statement “I would buy more imported festive foods if they were stocked at my local store”, by income and city tier, June 2013
- A presence in international supermarket chains can support premium positioning
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- Figure 41: Consumer perception of how foreign and domestic retailers compare on selected service attributes, April, 2012
- Imported festive food appeals to high-end consumers and as luxury gifts
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- Figure 42: Agreement with selected statements regarding imported festive foods, by personal income, June 2013
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- Figure 43: Agreement with the statement “I am willing to pay more for imported festive foods”, by education level and city tier, June 2013
- Highlighting the fashionable and exotic nature can help operators to target young adults
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- Figure 44: Selected festive food products brought as a gift, by age, June 2013
- What it means
Key Issue – Ingredients with Health Benefits Can Be Appealing to Chinese Festive Food Buyers
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- Key points
- Chinese consumers are increasingly concerned about their wellbeing
- Festive foods with health claims are a popular choice as a gift
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- Figure 45: Important factors when buying festive food as a gift, June 2013
- Redesigning festive food health claims can make them more attractive to gift buyers
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- Figure 46: Overall health benefits associated with selected food products and ingredients, December 2012
- Festive food with health claims appeals most to consumers in their forties
- Consumers in their forties pay more attention to maintaining their health and the health benefits associated with functional ingredients
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- Figure 47: Agreement that food ingredients are an important factor when buying festive food, by age, June 2013
- Figure 48: Selected attitudes towards food and drink ingredients, by age, December 2012
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- Figure 49: Selected health ingredients bought in the past 12 months, by age, December 2012
- Opportunities for premium festive food with health claims to target consumers in their forties
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- Figure 50: Agreement with the statement “I stick to a budget when buying festive foods”, by age, June 2013
- What it means
Key Issue – Online Retail Channel Shows Great Potential In Festive Food Gift Market
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- Key points
- Online shopping enjoys high penetration in China
- Developments in logistics, secure payments and return policies have fuelled growth of e-tail
- The festive food market lags behind wider online shopping
- The online channel is popular among festive food buyers
- More than half of festive food shoppers have bought it online
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- Figure 51: Channels used to buy festive food in the past 12 months, June 2013
- B2C platforms offer an easy route for brands to move online
- Limited availability is a key barrier for imported festive foods’ usage
- Utilising the popularity of the social networking sites
- High-end festive food gifts have potential online
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- Figure 52: Important factors when buying festive food as a gift, June 2013
- Figure 53: Purchase of festive food from online shopping websites, by income, June 2013
- What it means
Appendix – Festive Food Bought as a Gift in Past 12 Months
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- Figure 54: Festive food bought as a gift in past 12 months, June 2013
- Figure 55: Most popular festive food bought as a gift in past 12 months, by demographics, June 2013
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- Figure 56: Next most popular festive food bought as a gift in past 12 months, by demographics, June 2013
- Figure 57: Other festive food bought as a gift in past 12 months, by demographics, June 2013
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- Figure 58: Festive food bought as a gift in past 12 months, by most popular festivals when food is purchased as a gift for others, June 2013
- Figure 59: Festive food bought as a gift in past 12 months, by next most popular festivals when food is purchased as a gift for others, June 2013
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Appendix – To Whom The Festive Food is Given as a Gift in Past 12 Months
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- Figure 60: To whom the festive food is given as a gift in past 12 months, June 2013
- Figure 61: Most popular to whom the festive food is given as a gift in past 12 months, by demographics, June 2013
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- Figure 62: Next most popular to whom the festive food is given as a gift in past 12 months, by demographics, June 2013
- Figure 63: Other to whom the festive food is given as a gift in past 12 months, by demographics, June 2013
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- Figure 64: To whom the festive food is given as a gift in past 12 months, by most popular festive food bought as a gift in past 12 months, June 2013
- Figure 65: To whom the festive food is given as a gift in past 12 months, by next most popular festive food bought as a gift in past 12 months, June 2013
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- Figure 66: To whom the festive food is given as a gift in past 12 months, other festive food bought as a gift in past 12 months, June 2013
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Appendix – The Festivals When Food is Purchased as a Gift For Others
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- Figure 67: The festivals when food is purchased as a gift for others, June 2013
- Figure 68: Most popular festivals when food is purchased as a gift for others, by demographics, June 2013
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- Figure 69: Next most popular festivals when food is purchased as a gift for others, by demographics, June 2013
- Figure 70: The festivals when food is purchased as a gift for others, by most popular festive food bought as a gift in past 12 months, June 2013
- Figure 71: The festivals when food is purchased as a gift for others, by next most popular festive food bought as a gift in past 12 months, June 2013
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- Figure 72: The festivals when food is purchased as a gift for others, by other festive food bought as a gift in past 12 months, June 2013
- Figure 73: The festivals when food is purchased as a gift for others, by most popular to whom the festive food is given as a gift in past 12 months, June 2013
- Figure 74: The festivals when food is purchased as a gift for others, by next most popular to whom the festive food is given as a gift in past 12 months, June 2013
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Appendix – The Most Important Factors For Buying Festive Food as a Gift
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- Figure 75: The most important factors for buying festive food as a gift, June 2013
- Figure 76: The most important factors for buying festive food as a gift, by most popular festive food bought as a gift in past 12 months, June 2013
- Figure 77: The most important factors for buying festive food as a gift, by next most popular festive food bought as a gift in past 12 months, June 2013
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- Figure 78: The most important factors for buying festive food as a gift, by other festive food bought as a gift in past 12 months, June 2013
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Appendix – The Channel For Buying Festive Food in Past 12 Months
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- Figure 79: The channel for buying festive food in past 12 months, June 2013
- Figure 80: Most popular channel for buying festive food in past 12 months, by demographics, June 2013
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- Figure 81: Next most popular channel for buying festive food in past 12 months, by demographics, June 2013
- Figure 82: Other channels for buying festive food in past 12 months, by demographics, June 2013
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- Figure 83: The channel for buying festive food in past 12 months, by most popular festive food bought as a gift in past 12 months, June 2013
- Figure 84: The channel for buying festive food in past 12 months, by next most popular festive food bought as a gift in past 12 months, June 2013
- Figure 85: The channel for buying festive food in past 12 months, by other festive food bought as a gift in past 12 months, June 2013
- Figure 86: The channel for buying festive food in past 12 months, by most popular festivals when food is purchased as a gift for others, June 2013
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- Figure 87: The channel for buying festive food in past 12 months, by next most popular festivals when food is purchased as a gift for others, June 2013
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Appendix – Attitudes Towards Buying Festive Food
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- Figure 88: Attitudes towards buying festive food, June 2013
- Figure 89: Most popular attitudes towards buying festive food, by demographics, June 2013
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- Figure 90: Next most popular attitudes towards buying festive food, by demographics, June 2013
- Figure 91: Attitudes towards buying festive food, by most popular festive food bought as a gift in past 12 months, June 2013
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- Figure 92: Attitudes towards buying festive food, by next most popular festive food bought as a gift in past 12 months, June 2013
- Figure 93: Attitudes towards buying festive food, by other festive food bought as a gift in past 12 months, June 2013
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