5 Must-Know Similarities Between the Chinese and the Arab Culture for Fashion Consumers

When it comes to marketing, the lifestyle background of the consumer plays an important role in indicating what he or she might like or dislike. If you are navigating yourself throughout the Middle East market, we are here to help!

As the first Social Media Marketing & E-PR agency combining native specialists with cross-market experiences in both the Chinese and Arabic speaking professional environments, the Oriental Hybrid is here to share 5 cultural tips to optimize your marketing strategy in the Arab regions supporting with the Chinese branding knowledge:

1 – Be bold in style.
From the streets of Shanghai to the music videos of Cairo, from Douyin to Instagram, impossibly cool outfits worn by Gen Z have ramped off the streets. To stand out from the crowds, being bold in selecting eye-catching statement pieces and vivid color palettes definitely play their magic. The shimmy-shimmy, the neon, the golden, the contrast, and the screaming patterns all work along the Silk Road.

2 – Pride is the key.
Chinese and Arabs are both well-known for their history and patriotism. When fashion companies develop products and social campaigns for these markets, research deeply in the cultural references for the messages that your content want to deliver and keep in mind of recognizing the pride they have for their culture heritage in each region.

3 – It is all about the Face.
Establishing your brand reputation is important in these two markets. With the collective concept of social formation, Chinese and Arabs are influenced greatly by KOL and word-of-mouth recommendations for their purchasing decisions. Fashion consumers in these two regions are more inclined to purchase goods that have identifiable logo that can easily be recognized from a distance as a way to show their prestige and their awareness of the fashion trend. On the other end of the spectrum, there is a raising genre in China called “Ins style” that is focusing on minimalism and low-key modesty which took its inspiration from Western KOL on Instagram.

4 – Diversity in dialects.
From Marrakesh to Amman, from Shanghai to Taipei ─ North Africa, Middle East, and the Greater China are full of different dialects with 30 official ones in Arabic and over 20 in Chinese. Characterize campaigns and content to fit locally, along with developing different lines of products based on each region, may help in building stronger emotional connection with the target consumers.

5 – Family and parents comes first.
Both Chinese and Arabic culture put strong emphasis on showing respect towards the elders in general and one’s own parents in particular. During traveling or on holidays, one often purchases high quality gifts for the family to show his or her appreciation and love. Afterall, it is always a good idea to promote the value of the luxurious products as an enhancement to the family joy and become an asset in which the family may pass down to generations.

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