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Shanghai's Auto Show: 'Rough Around the Edges'
"It's more chaotic," auto analyst Michael Dunne told me, comparing this week's Shanghai auto show to shows in the US. "It's a little rough around the edges."
Five minutes later, I saw what he meant. Walking out the show's exit, I was mobbed by a group of men who were shouting prices at me, making me wonder if I had just stepped into an auction...as the item to be auctioned.
"I'll give you forty!" "Fifty! Fifty!" "No, fifty-five!" The men were offering money for my credentialed media badge. Note to the media relations department at the auto show: I did not sell it. But there were some other items for sale that folks in the auto industry might want to know about.
Walking back to the subway station from the exhibition hall, I came across two men selling DVDs; a common sight in Shanghai, where pirated DVD vendors are as ubiquitous as noodle shops. But these DVDs were different. They carried the Chinese names of both US and Chinese auto manufacturers on them, in plain black font on a white background. "What are on these disks?" I asked one of the men.
"All the email addresses and cellphone numbers of every person at every automaker at this show," he calmly replied.
Beside his case of DVDs, neatly arranged on a blanket on the ground, were the paper versions. I paged through one of them. There were thousands of numbers, addresses, and names from not only auto manufacturers but parts makers, parts suppliers, nearly everyone who was currently inside the enormous convention hall across the street...all for the equivalent of three US dollars.
A warm Spring breeze kicked up, blowing the pages of the thick pamphlets open, causing the big yellow balloons over the auto show to sway to and fro. Below the shifting balloons in the convention center stood tens of thousands of men, ogling bikini-clad women stretched out on concept cars. Nearby, bags of discarded McDonald's french fries boxes from the day's lunch hour were being picked apart by pigeons.
"It may lack some of the refined touches of the auto shows in the US," said industry expert Dunne, "but there's an excitement in the air here that is missing at those other shows."
An auto show with Chinese characteristics.
Ｉam also studying abroad in China. Ｉhave seen some major differences between the United States and Chinese perceptions of commerce. From what I have seen in Beijing there are thousands of entrepreneurs roaming the street. There are old women selling water from her bike, young men with a grill on the side of the road and people shouting and following me desperate for my business. Most of this market is unregulated, therefore not having to set a certain price for their products and allowing bartering. This is positive because the people that value the product more can pay more for it while still allowing the people that don't value it as much to buy the product closer to cost. This is a new way to think about business. It can also cause problems because food and safety hazards are not being identified in these markets. 　
Ｉwonder if that type of selling is profitable and allows the people on the street to make a living.
China has a rising interest in automobiles, and currently from what I've seen, the most desired cars are foriegn cars. Yet, even though cars are expensive, butbecause of this the purchase would be most likely expensive compared to a Chinese manufactured brand. I can only guess what they would have done with your badge; but overall with that and the DVD's sold outside, all that is for the sake of spreading and gaining information. Aside from the obvious assumption of seeing what other automakers are doing, the access to anyones personal information is a step further than people would like think. Especially at only 3 dollars, it is a risk to automakers and its employees, as your information could literally be sold on the street next door to your exhibition. Yet that notion to reach potential consumers, especially with China's large population and rising economy entices companies to invest there time and takes risks in China. The payout must be worth it, since so many companies invest in China. I don't the auto shows in China will every be like the US, unless China reaches a status where people can most likely afford, or save to purchase a car. The class gap is too wide.
I have always wondered what the police is supposed to do in these situations. I have seen many of these "shops" on the streets and I'm pretty sure they're not legal, but I have also seen the police patrol by without even questioning the vendors. It's like the government wants get rid of these shops but they're not putting enough efforts into the regulation.
I am currently studying abroad in Beijing, it is almost overwhelming the way that items are bought and sold in the markets around the city. It seems as though there is no regulation on anything that is produced. You can find a "knock off" of just about anything imaginable. The income disparity is very present throughout Beijing, and is very prevalent when you see the large numbers of street merchants selling pirated DVD's and other goods. While the government is working to bring the income gap to a reasonable rate, there will continue to be these gray and black markets throughout China. This leads to a disincentive for intillectual property, and will in turn make it harder for companies to prosper in China's growing economy.
The atmosphere in China is like non other out there. Whether in the shops or on the streets there is a sense of urgency for money. When I was on my way to the Silk Market yesterday a few guys approached me and they had brand new movies on DVD in their possessions. For less than one USD you can buy a brand new DVD of a movie that just came out in theaters across America! I was so shocked at how quickly they are able to mass produce counterfeit products here in China. When I was in the Silk Market, there were a lot of counterfeit products and the people that work there do not care about their customers. They want your money and they want it quickly. There is no since of honest customer service here. No wonder China has the second biggest economy.
