Thanks to who asked about my time in London since early May, and methodologically provided a list to guide my reflection, I decide that today is the day to do it! By the way, I think this is a great framework if you want to reflect on any new city, job, or environment:

Things that are better, that you expected
Things that are worse, that you expected
Things that are better that you didn't expect
Things that are worse that you didn't expect

I'll be answering these questions at the end of this edition in case you’re curious! I’m looking to spend some time in Greater China in September, so let’s catch up then if you’re around. 💁🏻‍♀️

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Full-time Chinese workers endure longer work hours, while freelance gig workers remain neglected 😪

Data from the National Bureau of Statistics (excl. freelancers and delivery workers) shows that China’s average weekly hours reached a nearly 20-year high.

In 2023, Chinese workers at enterprises nationwide worked for 49 hours per week on average, which is 5 hours higher than the 44 hours that the Labor Law stipulates.

Dong Baohua, Vice President of the China Society of Social Law and a participant in the argumentation and drafting of labor law, is not optimistic that it will change. He told the domestic business publication The Economic Observer that overtime remains an “unsolvable” problem. “Considering the current stage of development in the country, it is difficult to enforce strict regulations on overtime,” he added.

Quick take: I was wrongly optimistic that in an economic downturn, people could slow down and have a better work life balance. Though that’s true for those who do not have to worry about making ends meet, the rest who are having a much tougher time and are not even part of the conversation.

For those outside of the metrics, such as 20 million freelancers (by 2021 per NBS), which include 1.6 million livestreamers and 13 million deliver workers, some have to work over 11 hours a day, 6 days a week. An academic paper published in 2016 (page. 55) showed that migrant Workers in central Henan province worked 9.41 hours per day and only took 0.4 days off per week. That is astonishing.

Nike’s paddle-licking controversy 🏓

Three days after Nike’s 2024 summer campaign went trending on Weibo, the American apparel company still hasn't responded to the controversy that centers around an Asian female athlete licking the side of a table tennis paddle.

The global ad titled “Winning Isn’t For Everyone”, was released ahead of the Paris Olympics, voiced by Willem Dafoe and done by Wieden & Kennedy Portland. The athlete’s name is not in Nike's official credits on YouTube, and we do not know who she is.

Some Chinese users online said they find it suggestive and uncomfortable to watch, while others say pros do not do that. There are also voices that calling the comments above "sensitive," noting that athletes kiss the grass and kiss the ball, so why can't they lick the paddle?

Quick take: To me, the fundamental question for Nike to address in their response is: is this authentic or scripted? That’s what matters to its sports-loving core customers, I argue that they do not have to worry about everyone in China, especially those malicious attackers. Though, it’s already too late.

Here are some steps they could've done before releasing: 1. Consult a cultural advisor, like what Netflix does with its China-related content; 2. gauge the reception from a group of Chinese core audience first. If they have done it then it's a failure of the executors.

Outflow of high-end tourism and luxury customers 🥂

High-net-worth individuals have finally begun to unleash their consumption potential abroad, and so have some Chinese luxury shoppers in Europe, according to separate domestic reports.

Compared with Q1 2023 when the pandemic restrictions were just lifted, the number of outbound visits organized by travel agencies nationwide in Q1 2024 increased by 900% to 2.86 million, according to data from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism (MCT).

Concurrently, the worldwide issued sales recovery reached 122% in June for mainland Chinese shoppers, and the number of Chinese tourists to Italy in June 2024 surpassed pre-pandemic levels with an increase of 111%, according to Global Blue, a tourism shopping tax refund company. (The latter results were seemingly only released to Chinese media and not on its global site.)

Chinese tourists in Rome, Italy, May 1, 2023. Image: Xinhua

Quick take: This is promising news for luxury and tourism groups outside China. However, what’s a bit concerning is the lukewarm inbound market, despite Chinese propagandists’ continuous efforts to hype up #Chinatravel on overseas platforms. In the same reports from MCT, it shows that inbound visits (by travel agencies) only returned to 14.8% in Q1 2024 compared with 2019 levels.

Stop trying to make fetch happen, it's not going to happen.

cctv.com: “China travel” goes viral on overseas social media platforms. Image: screenshot

Grandpacore’s awkward China translation 👴🏻

After Grandpacore became a thing in the West this Spring, some Chinese youth platforms (like this one from @Huxiu4youth) started catching up with explainers that sheds light on the vintage-inspired look, which I find non-authentic to a Chinese audience.

Long story short, #grandpacore started as a TikTok/Instagram styling trend that got picked up by Western lifestyle media in early 2024. Multiple English explainers that came around that time highlight real grandpa influencers who inspired young people to pay tribute to older gentlemen’s look.

Uncomfy take: My first reaction was: I’m not sure if anyone’s grandpa in China dresses like that. And my own grandpa died during the Cultural Revolution before I could meet up, so I have no idea what he wore.

To me, this appears like another addition of worshiping whiteness that are at odds with authentic nostalgia. Other examples include white-girl aesthetics, 'mixed-race' beauty (while white people food is a pretty innocuous one) that really speak to the deeply embedded racial hierarchy. The only thing it would benefit is the vintage sellers that sources predominantly from Europe.

Compared to the character featured in @gramparents, which inspired many #grandpacore looks, the grandpa in China that went popular (below) styles like a hip 20-year-old.

Kangkang’s grandpa has been a role model among senior influencers on Douyin.

No sector could escape the economic downturn, not even hair transplant 🌱

China’s first public hair transplant company finds itself in the crosshairs.

Riding on the wave of heightened anxiety for beauty, Yonghe Medical Group Co (2279.HK) went public in Hong Kong in Dec 2021. Its stock price has had a painful plunge to today’s HKD 0.83, more than 95% from the debut. Its current market value is around HKD 430.91 million.

In 2020, the market size of China's hair transplantation was 13.4 billion yuan (US$1.84 billion), and it is projected by both iResearch and Frost & Sullivan that it will reach 75.6 billion yuan in 2030.

Quick take: I’m going to state the obvious here, that although certain bright spots of the consumer market proved themselves to be more resilient, pet, sports & fitness and hair transplant are feeling the hit, too, after a couple of quarters. Anecdotally, more pure breeds have been abandoned by their breeders and owners due to economic distress, whereas middle-class consumers scavenge for cheaper alternatives of the likes of Lululemon.

As for hair transplant, the domestic media Zhen Gu Lab said it too well: “For the middle class, the economic pressure of making a living is overwhelming, and issues like hairline and anxiety over baldness have become trivial.”

The before VS after hair transplant treatment. Image from Lilac Doctor

Ok, now let’s get into the Qs:

Things that are better, that you expected? Access to information, creative freedom, attention to marginalized social groups, dating market, etc.
As someone who’s been in the information industry from translation to journalism to consultancy, the lack of access to accurate information in China is suffocating. What’s worse is the discourses that the environment gives birth to, where conspiracy theories and disinformation are quoted as facts. A twin phoenomenon that goes hand in hand is the high-tech surveillance system that made me feels on edge all the time, even at bars and yoga studios. I feel mentally more relaxed now.
Things that are worse, that you expected? Time and money spent on chores and transportation. But I don’t mind it that much, because I believe that my convenience was built on a dog-eat-dog work environment and systems that treats gig workers as tools.

Things that are better that you didn't expect? The proximity to the US means I also get to see American friends/connections more often! The work life balance has been a bit of a cultural shock at first, but it’s been influencing me in a better way — I work less, sleep better, touch more grass.

Things that are worse that you didn't expect? The quality of East Asian food and general knowledge about China. Not worse, just not moving as fast as I expected.

All in all, I’m grateful that I get to be here and I’m not taking it for granted, especially when I get to go to awesome cultural events for books I could not read or access in China. People have different proprieties in life, I’m not saying that it should be important for everyone, but it’s making me feel emotionally healthy and stable.🔚

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#51: Longer work hours 😪, Nike's China…