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Things are bustling again in China. Not just on the streets, but in the stores as well. So consumers are back, but anyone who thinks China is simply returning to its pre-pandemic consumption model is sorely mistaken.
Chinese consumers are thinking things through
Despite the doom-and-gloom reports from multinationals about steadily declining sales in China, the shopping centers aren’t empty. On the contrary, as RetailDetail founder Jorg Snoeck and Maarten Leyts (Trendwolves) notice now that they’re on the ground preparing for the Wingzz China retail inspiration trip. People are looking, trying, scanning, sharing, buying, putting things back, and comparing again. Coffee bars are full, restaurants are bustling. In beauty stores, young women are reading ingredient lists as if they were prescription inserts. In electronics stores, cameras, battery life, and AI features are being compared in detail.
The Chinese consumer is buying again, but no longer carelessly. They have become more discerning. And at the same time, strikingly willing to spend money on what resonates emotionally. That is the paradox that keeps cropping up. For everyday purchases, consumers are ruthlessly rational. They compare, calculate, and search. But as soon as something touches on relaxation, health, identity, self-development, or pleasure, the wallet opens again.
China shows that consumers do want to buy, but above all, they want to make better choices. For retailers, that is a very important signal. After all, for years China ran on a hunger for upgrades: bigger, faster, newer, more expensive. That reflex hasn’t disappeared, but it has been tamed. The key lesson from China today: consumers haven’t become less ambitious; they’ve become less naive.
With two wallets
Anyone who wants to understand Chinese shopping behavior today must stop talking about “trading down” as if it were a single trend. That’s too simplistic. Consumers aren’t just downgrading. They’re reallocating. In fact, they have two wallets.
The first is the rational wallet. That covers groceries, daily care, the household budget, everyday clothing, transportation, subscriptions, and everything with little emotional value. There, the consumer is tough. They seek the best value for money, use digital tools, and rely on platforms, reviews, and communities. They don’t want to pay too much for something that adds little meaning.
The second is the emotional wallet. It is smaller, but remarkably resilient. It covers concert tickets, weekend trips, wellness experiences, premium skincare, pet products, collectibles, specialty drinks, limited editions, gym memberships, workshops, and small rituals that make daily life more bearable.
That’s not a contradiction. That’s the new consumption model. Retailers who don’t understand this get stuck on the wrong question. They ask: is the consumer price-sensitive? The answer is yes. But that’s only half the story. The better question is: When does the consumer prioritize price, and when do they prioritize emotion?
Premium pricing demands proof
For the gray middle, however, there is no mercy left. In every market, there are brands that were able to survive on mediocrity for a long time. Products that are too expensive for their functional value and not special enough for their emotional value. Stores that are too boring for an outing and too expensive for convenience. In a growing market, that can work for a long time. In a selective market, it cannot.
Today, the Chinese consumer either waits for a discount or decides they don’t need the product at all. The latter has perhaps become the biggest competitor for many retailers: not another brand, but the decision not to buy anything.
Quality must be visible today. A premium price today demands proof. That proof can be technical: test results, certification, origin, warranty, material specifications, demonstrations. It can be social: consistent reviews, credible users, recommendations from experts. It can be experience-oriented: a store environment where the difference is palpable. But there must be something.
Retailers in Europe should be losing sleep over this. We are often still too quick to be satisfied with atmosphere, product range, and promotions. China shows that the next generation of consumers will be forensic consumers. They research before they buy, and they continue to evaluate after purchase.
AI is part of the consumer journey
What stands out is how naturally consumers are beginning to use AI. Not as spectacular technology, but as a daily assistant. For retail, this changes everything: a brand must be recommended by an AI assistant. That may seem like a technical detail, but it is strategic.
Those who don’t have their product data in order, who don’t make clear claims, who don’t offer consistent content, reviews, availability, and pricing information, will become less visible in the new commercial reality. The battle for shelf space is becoming a battle for recommendations.
Anyone who wants to understand China should therefore not view platforms like Douyin, Xiaohongshu, WeChat, and Tmall as mere distribution channels. Douyin is a shopping street without storefronts, an entertainment machine with transactions, an endless storefront that adapts to behavior. Consumers don’t enter with a shopping list. They enter with time, fatigue, curiosity, or boredom. The platform does the rest.
For traditional retailers, this is uncomfortable. Because it means the store no longer begins at the storefront or the online shop. The store begins in the consumer’s mind, the moment they relax, scroll, compare, or get swept up in a story. Those who only advertise in this environment lose out. Those who create content without commerce leave money on the table. Those who create commerce without entertainment are ignored.
Reviews are more important than advertising
Chinese consumers do not blindly trust advertising. That in itself is not new. What is new, however, is the extent to which they have built alternative trust systems. KOCs, micro-influencers, niche groups, forums, Xiaohongshu posts, Bilibili videos, WeChat communities, and detailed user reviews together form a new kind of consumer intelligence.
Customers don’t come to the store unprepared. They come armed: in China, you’re seeing the rise of what you might call “insider consumption.” Consumers behave like semi-experts. Not because everyone is actually a specialist, but because access to knowledge has become the norm. This is particularly evident in beauty, parenting, electronics, sports, health, and nutrition.
This requires a different approach from brands. No longer: how do we convince the consumer? But rather: how do we earn the right to be trusted? You earn that right through transparency, substance, education, dialogue, and consistency. By answering difficult questions. By treating communities not as media channels, but as co-owners of trust. By admitting what a product doesn’t do. By substantiating claims. In a world full of content, honesty becomes a premium position.
What this means for Western retailers
Copying China is pointless. The scale, the platforms, consumer behavior, and the infrastructure are too different for that. But ignoring China is dangerous. Not because everything that happens there will happen here tomorrow, but because China shows extreme versions of tensions that are already visible here as well.
Our consumers are also more price-conscious. Our consumers also distrust advertising. Our consumers also look for reviews. Our consumers also expect convenience. Our consumers also want experiences. Our consumers are also less tolerant of mediocrity. Our consumers also allocate their budget more carefully between basics and meaning. The question, then, is which signals we recognize but haven’t taken seriously enough yet—such as AI, social commerce, membership models, and new roles for physical stores.
That doesn’t mean every retailer has to become a Chinese platform tomorrow. But it does mean that every retailer needs to know today what role they want to play in a world where consumers are becoming smarter, more selective, and more emotional.
Consumers aren’t waiting
The biggest mistake retailers can make is thinking they have time. That consumer behavior changes slowly. China shows the opposite. The question is no longer: how do we get people into our stores, but why would people still let us into their lives?
That sounds heavy, but that is exactly where retail is headed. The best retailers don’t just sell products. They curate choices. They save time. They reduce uncertainty. They create small moments of joy. They give consumers the feeling that they are making smart and good choices. That is the new standard.
In September, we’ll therefore join RetailDetail to explore how shopping centers in China are reinventing themselves as social hubs. How membership clubs combine trust, volume, and value. And how seamlessly AI, payment convenience, service, and logistics are integrated into everyday consumer behavior.
Not for an exotic retail tour. Not to marvel at technology. But to understand how the consumer changes when digital infrastructure, economic pressure, cultural pride, social commerce, and emotional consumption converge. Because this is the real reason to go: China not only shows what retail can become; above all, China shows what consumers are beginning to expect.
