China's New Retail Economy

Retail is the essential link between production and consumption, and the dynamics of a nation's economy cannot be fully understood without a good understanding of its retail sector. This volume provides a comprehensive assessment of the changes in consumption patterns brought about by extensive economic reform, the current size of the Chinese consumer market, and regional variations within the vast country. It also outlines the transformation of China's retail economy in the last three decades, including the entry and expansion of foreign retailers, the development of indigenous retail chains as a national strategy to modernize China's retail industry, changing retailer-supplier relations, and the resultant structural changes in the retail sector.

1. Introduction 2. The Consumer Market: Size, Consumption Patterns, and Regional Variations 3. Building a Modern Regulatory Regime 4. Trajectories of Growth and Changes in Retail Structure 5. Penetrating the Great Wall and Conquering the Middle Kingdom 6. Nurturing National Champions 7. The Setback of Best Buy and Media Markt: an Analysis of China's Consumer Electronics Retailing 8. Development of Shopping Centers as New Consumption Space 9. Luxury Retailing 10. Conclusions. Appendix 1: Cluster Analysis of the Chinese Cities. Appendix 2: The Hierarchy of China's Urban Markets by City Tier, 2010 (with Data for City Proper)