Despite the rapid growth of China’s wine industry, many American wine companies should not consider trying to enter the market. U.S. wine shares of the Chinese wine market have struggled and declined in the last year, due to competition, lack of knowledge of American wines, and the rapid growth of the American wine market itself. However, American wine companies can still gain much from doing more business in China's wine industry if they are willing to take on the costs and risks of doing so. This paper aims to understand why American wines have struggled to gain greater success in China’s wine market, and to find ways to overcome these issues. To do this, it analyses the past and current situation of the Chinese wine market; discuss American wine’s top competitors in the market and how they find success; provides an explanation of who should be American wine companies’ target consumer; describes China’s wine market distribution channels; and makes some suggestions on how American wine can expand marketing and sales in China's wine industry. The reader of this thesis will have a better understanding of the current wine market in China and whether or not the market offers any opportunities to them.

China is turning into one of the world’s largest, most lucrative food and beverage markets. Especially wine is in demand and has become fashionable as a symbol of social status. This trend is very likely to continue as wine consumption is closely related to income and China’s emerging middle class offers tremendous potential. The market’s healthy value growth will further encourage newcomers from outside China. But how can a market entrance be successfully managed and what are the main challenges when bringing wine to China? This book is an insiders’ guide to efficiently planning a market entry by taking a thorough look at the wine market of China. It surveys the typical behavior of the Chinese wine consumer and examines the relevant factors for a successful market entry. Distribution channels (off- and online), pricing models and marketing activities are scrutinized. Further, the reader gets insights into the challenges of this dynamic market, such as fierce domestic and foreign competition, policies and regulations as well as entry barriers. The thirst for wine prevails, and this book will leverage your momentum.

Market analysis of the Hong Kong and mainland Chinese wine markets in regard to importation of California wines and development of China's domestic wine industry. Identifies the barriers to exporting to China and attempts to identify the key internal and external forces which impact on the export marketing strategies of firms in the California wine industry.

Master's Thesis from the year 2010 in the subject Business economics - Marketing, Corporate Communication, CRM, Market Research, Social Media, grade: 1,3, Berlin School of Economics and Law, language: English, abstract: China is turning into one of the world's largest, most lucrative food and beverage markets. With a growing middle class, the demand for premium lifestyle products is constantly increasing. A new generation of consumers, typically located in urban areas, is emerging, with more disposable income and a greater awareness and willingness to pay for high quality, often imported products - including wine. Wine has become "fashionable" as a symbol of social status and this trend is likely to continue. Further, the health benefits associated with red wine in particular, have convinced some consumers to switch from traditional Chinese alcoholic beverages to grape wine. Although China traditionally is a rice-wine-consuming country and unlike in many Western countries, grape wine is considered a luxury product, the grape wine market1 has grown rapidly since its emergence in the mid 1990s, with still wine being the most lucrative. According to a recent survey, in 2009 the Chinese wine market generated total revenues of US$ 7,2 billion which constitutes a compound annual growth rate of 5,3% for the period from 2005 to 20092. As wine consumption in China is closely related to income, there is no end in sight to this positive trend.

Project Report from the year 2011 in the subject Business economics - Business Management, Corporate Governance, grade: 1, , language: English, abstract: Hardys is a very successful and well established Australian wine brand with a long history and a wide range of different products including red and white grape wine as well as sparkling and sweet wines. Like many successful wine producers, Hardys plans to enter the Chinese wine market which has shown outstanding growth rates over the last years due to the Chinese perception of 8especially red) wine as elegant, exclusive, healthy and a symbol of high class, education, manners and upper life style. The Chinese market with its gigantic consumer potential is forecasted to quickly develop into one of the world’s largest markets for imported wines from all around the world. Currently French imported wine is the largest competition on this market, followed by already successfully introduced other Australian brands (making Australia the second largest country of origin of imported wine in China). In addition there is a growing and constantly improving competition from domestic wines. Research and analysis based positioning elements for Hardys (Shiraz) in China will be the ‘sweet’ taste, the ‘Australian’ origin and a focus on information to educate the consumers to ‘smart’ buyers of Hardys products. Selected customer segments provide a promising market potential in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou which builds the geographically most relevant market for imported wine in China. Through a themed yearly focus in accordance with Hardys positioning strategy, consumers’ interest will be raised, their knowledge will be improved and with a variety of communication activities they will be turned into potential repeat buyers. Communication channels therefore will be a combination of classical print media (selected magazines) as well as a strong online presence as more and more wine-related product research is done online. In accordance with the selected target segment’s life style and consumption habits, smart phone optimized content and access to information will play another crucial role in Hardys’ brand communication. Pricing follows Chinese consumers’ habits, expectations and perceptions as well as researched recent market trends and a strategic aspect of positioning Hardys as a ‘smart’ choice with higher value for money compared to already established but often overpriced French brands.

Akademische Arbeit aus dem Jahr 2010 im Fachbereich BWL - Offline-Marketing und Online-Marketing, Note: 1,3, Hochschule für Wirtschaft und Recht Berlin, Sprache: Deutsch, Abstract: China is turning into one of the world’s largest, most lucrative food and beverage markets. With a growing middle class, the demand for premium lifestyle products is constantly increasing. A new generation of consumers, typically located in urban areas, is emerging, with more disposable income and a greater awareness and willingness to pay for high quality, often imported products – including wine. Wine has become “fashionable” as a symbol of social status and this trend is likely to continue. Further, the health benefits associated with red wine in particular, have convinced some consumers to switch from traditional Chinese alcoholic beverages to grape wine. Although China traditionally is a rice-wine-consuming country and unlike in many Western countries, grape wine is considered a luxury product, the grape wine market has grown rapidly since its emergence in the mid 1990s, with still wine being the most lucrative. According to a recent survey, in 2009 the Chinese wine market generated total revenues of US$ 7,2 billion which constitutes a compound annual growth rate of 5,3% for the period from 2005 to 2009 . As wine consumption in China is closely related to income, there is no end in sight to this positive trend.

The Wine Value Chain in China: Global Dynamics, Marketing and Communication in the Contemporary Chinese Wine Market presents information on China and its role as a relevant player in the international wine industry, both as supplier and consumer. The book provides new insights into the global dynamics of the wine industry, expanding the knowledge of academics, practitioners, and students on the growing demand for wine in China. Special attention is paid to the supply and demand changes, their impacts on Western wine supply chains, and new market opportunities. The book contributes the latest research findings to increase the understanding of the context of wine consumption in China and the most suitable marketing and communication approaches. The book aims to provide academics with the most adequate methodological tools to study a novice market, with both conceptual and empirical chapters included. The book covers a range of topics, including the behavior of Chinese consumers and their attitudes towards wine, the cultural context of wine in China, the characteristics of the wine supply chain in China and its development, the impact of China on Western wine supply chains, wine marketing and communication in China, wine branding in China, including counterfeiting, wine education in China, the links between wine, food, luxury, and Western products in China, and wine tourism. - Collects and collates research on wine consumer behavior in China - Presents an outstanding scholarly look at wine marketing studies - Offers a whole market perspective that focuses on demand - Provide academics, practitioners, and students with new investigation tools in marketing and communication that are in-line with the characteristics of this market - Draw conclusions relevant to other emerging markets, detailing why China is different from other such markets