Many people in China are still coming to terms with both COVID-19 and the measures taken to contain it, but there are indications that the country’s response to the situation is well regarded by its citizens, and this pride is an important idea for brands to be aware of, though the stress remains.

This is according to a new report on WARC, China pride and cloud lives: Seven trends emerging from COVID-19, which examines how the country is moving forward in ways that brands should seek to understand.

First, the stress of the situation, both past and present, will be important. Research by JD.com on sleep revealed that the Chinese are also highly stressed. “Over 70% of Chinese people struggle with sleep,” said Brad Burgess, global corporate affairs lead for JD.com.

While physical health, boosted by sports equipment, is a key area of growth, people are embracing a much broader idea of health, as much physical as mental and emotional.

Chinese pride is another big trend to watch out for.

“There is quite a lot of pride in China right now about the way they have handled the crisis and the way they’ve come out of it,” says Amrita Banta, managing director of luxury research firm Agility Research.

“Their own people have looked after them; they’ve brought business back in a way that many nations haven’t been able to do right now.”

“There is going to be Asian pride, China pride, and this is going to seep into the rest of the world,” she said. “This means respect for Asian brands and respect for the creativity that comes out of Asia – whether it’s China, or Korea or Japan.”

Sourced from WARC