The Chinese Seafood Market: Marketing Opportunities & Culture Considerations

China is the largest importer, exporter, producer and consumer of seafood in the world. China is the second largest economy in the world with a nominal GDP of $9,2 trillion. There is international focus on the opportunities in the Chinese domestic market. This hungry domestic market will provide various opportunities for different companies around the world. The Chinese market will be challenging for any international business. China, although it is one country it is in various stages of development and there are regional differences within the country. All factors that need to be considered for effective negotiation and marketing planning. Understanding the Chinese market, consumers and how to successfully market products to this consumer will be very important in successfully entering the Chinese market. A consumer preference study was conducted with a 20-question questionnaire to investigate consumer preferences when it comes to buying and consuming fish and seafood. With 144 participants taking part in the study, the main findings of the study were,97% of people eat seafood 2 times per week. 63% prefer to eat fish at dinnertime compared to eating at other times in the day. Only 12% have no concerns when it comes to food safety (fish & seafood) where as 45% are concerned about pollution in the water.56% of people are willing to pay 30-50 RMB per 500g.44% of people buy seafood because it is good for their health and 39% because they think it tastes good. The supermarket is the most popular place where people buy seafood at 56%, the local wet market is not far behind at 30%. Internet sales for fish and seafood were found to be only 3%. The majority of people still prefer to buy whole fish 56%, but 31% prefer fillets or pre-portioned fish and 8% pre-prepared fish. This has various practical applications such as helping marketers considering the Chinese fish and seafood market.