Back in the day, selling into China was simply a matter of opening up a retail outlet and putting in the same styles and sizes as brands were selling in their home markets. The status of being an international brand was enough. Luxury brands paved the way and mid-tier to fast fashion soon followed. A lot has changed in recent years. The biggest change is the maturing of the Chinese consumer. Today China’s shoppers are confident in their own choices and rely less on brand names to convince them of the style value or quality of a garment. <h3>Consumer Confidence</h3> "Chinese consumers are becoming more rational, and they are not blindly following the crowd to imitate others," said Zhao Ping, deputy director of the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation of the Ministry of Commerce, in an interview with the China Daily. "Most foreign fast fashion brands are not doing a good job in localization, as they are not familiar enough with the commercial culture and consumer mentality in China. They think that since fashion brands originated in developed countries, Chinese consumers will buy into them easily. That's not true now. "Localization of multinational corporations must keep pace with the times," she said. "Otherwise, they will easily be abandoned by consumers." <h3> </h3> <h3>Sizing Up the Market</h3> Most Western brands gave little thought to even the most obvious differences between their home markets and the Chinese market. However by overlooking sizing and color preferences, for example, many brands failed to connect with consumers. Iconic foreign brands including Victoria’s Secret, Forever 21, New Look, and others have not succeed in China. Chinese consumers now look for high quality (often defined as durability, fabric quality, and workmanship). There’s also a strong desire for unique designs. After years of relying on online shopping, consumers are embracing the experiential aspect of shopping in physical stores – especially ones that offer good service and a dynamic atmosphere. <h3>Fitting In, Standing Out</h3> On the other hand, Japan’s Uniqlo has been a huge success story in China. Uniqlo catered to the new consumption pattern of China's young consumers, who are willing to pay for quality rather than quantity. From 2014 to 2018, its market share climbed from 0.7 percent to 1.2 percent in the Chinese market. By comparison, H&M has a 0.4 percent of market share in China, while Zara has a 0.5 percent market share, according to Euromonitor. Being a Japanese brand, garment sizes are already a lot more suitable to Chinese consumers. However, Uniqlo’s commitment to quality gives them a lot of credibility in China. Unlike in other markets, the China market is defined by a massive number of small local to regional brands. Even the biggest brands have only single digit market share. The proliferation of brands means that consumers have a lot of choice – and brands have a lot of competition. Even big brands need to think small and carefully target specific subsets of the market. The nationwide brand rollouts that have worked in Western markets are a recipe for failure in China’s highly fragmented market. On the other hand, smaller brands that might struggle to gain traction in their home markets could find faster success in China – offering something that’s special and good quality to a market that is looking for exactly that.