We have interviewed Luca Qiu, young CEO of Value China, a digital solutions company which offers help to companies intending to enter the Chinese market with effective marketing strategies.

What is the current situation in China with respect to Corona virus emergency?
China is making great efforts to contain the virus, the news circulating are alarming compared to the real situation in China. There are not many cases of contagion if we relate them to the total Chinese population (1,433,783,686 according to the UN, ed.): there are 30,000 people, many of them in old age with an average of 55 years.
Everyone is collaborating to keep this virus under control and in order to return to work as soon as possible, but I must say that in China there is less alarm than in Italy. As for the business, China will certainly have a drop in the second and third quarters of this year but it has already taken shelter by developing a remote work system.

What will be the main repercussions of this health emergency on the Chinese market in your opinion?
The Chinese market has always had a strong development, and now it has the most advanced supply chain. Companies with open orders that have to receive goods or have to send them are the ones that are in greatest difficulty, the logistics are a bit blocked. The other aspect is that in this quarter the Chinese Central Bank has already guaranteed that it will provide incentives and will cut taxes. I think the government is doing good targeted actions for companies and workers.
For those who want to maintain or create partnerships with China, I suggest to keep the contact. If Italian wineries back down, China will know where to turn, since everyone is interested in its market. If there is no such ability to look further, some other countries will take the place of Italy.

What should Italian wineries do in order to develop effective strategies on the Chinese market when the situation in China will come back normal?
Just look at what the Australians have done. Italian companies should invest in Chinese human resources, promote communication campaigns, work on the brand. In China you either sell large numbers or work on the brand, on digital and social channels. On the contrary Italian wineries work a lot on the product and a little on the brand. The Chinese market is young, dynamic, it moves faster, you have to be more flexible and work on brands and communication.