Louis Vuitton- Big Brand Effect

Everytime i walked by Habour City at Tsim Sha Tsui, there are lots of famous big brand shops, such as LV, Gucci, Chanel, etc. And LV is the most eye-catching shop because it has the biggest poster and display ever, and there are a lot of people queued up outside the shop. If i don’t know the brand of LV, i probably will think if there’s any free gift for people. Actually i think this is the company’s strategy as they want people to queue up outside to prove that their brand is very famous in order to draw people attention. And obviously it is very sucessful because i am one of those who will look at their shop too. Also, those advertisements help them a lot, just like i can see their products on every magazine, they also use the famous models to sell their products.

Back to the topic, the big brand effect really influence people a lot, whatever what kind of products they sell, pretty or ugly, there are a lot of fans will buy it because the magazine tells us it is the trend, if you don’t follow it, you are out-dated. Not because of their design, but because they got such a big name- LV, very well-known in Hong Kong, if u try to pay attention on people on the street, u will see that at least one person wears their product in five people. We can see how popular is it. There is one product i think is very impressive and that is also why i said whatever they sell people will also buy it, i remember they have a red, white and blue nylon bag with a big LV logo on it this year, i have no idea why people are crazy about it as it only worth $10 if without the big LV logo. But then many models, stars wore it in many functions. When i first looked at that bag on the magazine, i think it is ridiculous and i probably will laugh out loud if i saw people wear it on the street, but the truth is “it was famous and accepted by people again”. So maybe next time they make a plastic bag and just change the Circle K logo to LV one, it can sell at ten thousand and people will crazy about it again.

The big brand effect makes us forget everything, we become no judgement in buying stuff. Anything with the big brand logo, we will love it. Does it worth that price sometimes? People seem do not care. Let’s imagine if a local brand design such a red, white and blue nylon bag, will people still buy it? Definately no. Or let say the same product, same design but it is not produce by LV, also no one will buy it. Actually i think those designers do not have to be creative or artistic, maybe everyone can work for LV too because the design is not what people concern about when buying their products.

I am not saying all their designs are bad, but just not all are worth to buy and worth that price.

by karen

Consumer Culture (by Bruce Lam)

In the economic theory, human’s wants is infinite. So we have to use limited money to satisfy our desire. Consumption is an act that we do it everyday; such as buying products of a specific brand, going to a particular restaurant, a specific journey to a country or Disneyland etc.  

Shopping is a happy activity to everyone. It can also differentiate people in the society. Nowadays in Hong Kong there are lots of basic levels residents, so that they wish to buy the goods with superior quality and reasonably priced. Especially housewife, their duty is look after everything at home, then they needs to lighten the burden of the expenditure. Also they will request the goods are easy to use and hard to break. So that price and quality are the two primary considerations for them. Hence they will do the price comparison in the market. To fulfill their wants, there are some shops always promote advertisements about themselves are selling the cheapest price of goods, such as Park’in and Wellcome.  

By the images and values are associated with the product or service, consumption is not only simply eating or drinking to satisfy our bodily needs. Therefore besides basic level’s consumer, we still have people who are pursuing famous brand. They want the goods with high quality but won’t care about the price. Such as a polo shirt, maybe the prime cost is only fifty dollars, but people will wish to buy a Burberry brand. Those raw materials are almost the same as Balano brand; however the price is nearly about twenty times to the Banlano brand. Why people wish to do the foolish act to waste money? That is because they want to build up their high class image, and the goods which they use are scarce. That means what we wear, eat and what kind of car we drive can tell others who we are and consolidate our identity. 

Sometimes we will buy a product affect with external factor. Though we watch the advertisements in television or magazine or if a pop star being a spokesman of a product. We would like to try having one to become more likely what the advertisements said. Especially youngster, they will not hesitate to buy the entire product which sell by their favorite pop star. Moreover, the power of advertisements also very forceful; they are ubiquitously around our life. Everyone will be fascinated easily because it can be visual or sound. Then they would like to buy and have a try with it. 

Social relationships can be produced in consumption. For example, children exchange the trading cards, student use the stationery together, girls share the cosmetic, family go shopping together etc. By the communication with others in our daily life, we will know how to use and consume something appropriately.

Internet vs. Newspaper

Nowadays in the 21^st century, people have already got into the age of Information Technology.  Most people in the world have got their own computer in their home in which most of the computers can be connected to the Internet.  Internet was grown into public interest by late 1994 and it was commonly used in public in 1996, starting from that year, news published on the World Wide Web has influenced the survival of the newspaper.  News became more instant, once something has happened, the Internet can report to the public immediately.  It is known that many of the resources on the Internet are free of charge, people could easily get the information by using only the search engine to surf through the Internet.  This really save much time and is more convenience than the traditional method.  As Hong Kong People always concern about their “fast culture”, the Internet really make our lives more convenience.

Consequently, people may concern that the Internet would challenge the survival of the traditional newspaper and print media.  Some people may consider that the news from the Internet is free of charge, which may affect the sales of the printed newspaper.  Also, people may concern that reading newspaper on the internet is faster than holding a real printed newspaper, since some people may choose only specific topic to read, surfing through the Internet could be faster and easier to help readers to identify the specific type of topic which could help people to save time searching the topic and reading other news that are not relevance to the theme they wanted.  When people surfing through the Internet, they can simply get the information easily by just typing the theme on the search engine and then all the information you want would be found immediately.  Although we can also find the things we want in the newspapers and print media, the time we need to use to get the information would definitely be longer.  Because of this, Internet has some influence on the newspaper.  As we all know that, reading newspaper is a habit of many people, both the youngsters and the adults, therefore, newspapers and the passages on the Internet is something that indispensable.  In the past, young people would only consider reading the newspaper since the Internet is not so common.  Nowadays, more and more people would choose reading newspaper on the Internet rather than the traditional newspapers

On the other hand, as nowadays people spend more time on Internet than on the newspaper, advertisement would be posted on the web gradually, rather than posted on the newspapers which very few people would bother to notice the information written on the newspapers.  Developing online newspaper edition is believed to be a growing trend to compete with other newspaper companies. 

In conclusion, surfing through the Internet currently becomes a standardized activity for people to do after work or school.  Everyone’s home has a computer, they would check their e-mail or obtain information from the web.  Surfing through the net is now become a popular culture while reading newspaper becomes an inferior culture since less people are willing to spend their time on the paper.

Cosplay Café ~ Why there is not in Admiralty MTR Station? (by Harry.F)

Last Sunday, when I was walking in Causeway Bay, I found a cosplay café. Although I did not visit it, I had search the information on Internet when I back home and it shows that there is only a very little number of cosplay cafe in Hong Kong include the one I saw. The culture of cosplay café was originated in Akiba (あきはばら/秋葉原) in Japan and had launched Hong Kong for a period of time. Today I am going to concentrate on cosplay café‘s development in Hong Kong.

People go to the cosplay café is not for the food, is for the service. Waitress dressing like a maid will serve you, or play games with you. On the other hand, you can also think that the customers are trying to enjoy the fun of being served like a noble in federal age in ancient Europe. But by your common sense, you will not see girls dressing like a Gothic Lolita walking everywhere in Hong Kong’s street, nor the cosplay café as common as there is always McDonalds nearby, cosplayers may only appear on the annual animation or comic show, cosplay café only appears on the second floor of commercial buildings. According to Raymond Williams’s definition on popular culture which is “a particular way of life, whether of a people, a period of group”so such a cosplay café still cannot be define as a popular culture in Hong Kong.

Why cosplay café culture cannot hit the market like a normal café such as Starbucks? In general, there is a common image on us that customers of cosplay café (mainly are male) are otaku, which have strange looking and living style, even some are having extraordinary sexual tendency, they will be only excited when served by a waitress dress in Gothic dressing under a relationship of servant and master. So that is why the waitress in cosplay café must call the male customers as “master” (ごしゅじんさま/御主人様).

Also under the “promotion” by the Japan TV drama “The train man” (でんしゃおとこ/電車男), the main character Yamata always visit cosplay café with his strange friends, being served by those maid. This gives a very bad image on cosplay café to people in Hong Kong. They thought this is not only a problem of sub culture, but also established an image of cosplay café is a place of abnormal sex, insult on female (because maid is always the first impression of cosplay to normal people),etc. So an ideology of cosplay café is equal to a place of “concentration camp of people having aberrant personality” is built. Everyone will think that if you visit the cosplay café, you must be the same as those people having abnormal mentality.

Maybe there are really some of them are abnormal, but as I knew that most of the”cosplayers”are just simply a normal high school student or teenagers in age around 20 ~ 30 having healthy life and good jobs. Cosplay café also is not an insult on female, cosplay is not equal to maid only, there are also lots of different kind of cosplay which take part by men. Cosplay café is not a market of abnormal sex (at least in Hong Kong), where it is a place for cosplayers to share their hobbies, reading comics, just like Starbucks is a place for fun and relax. So next time when you heard about cosplay café, don’t think in something worst immediately!

Reference

http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%82%B3%E3%82%B9%E3%83%97%E3%83%AC%E7%B3%BB%E9%A3%B2%E9%A3%9F%E5%BA%97 

http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%82%B4%E3%82%B7%E3%83%83%E3%82%AF%E3%83%BB%E3%82%A2%E3%83%B3%E3%83%89%E3%83%BB%E3%83%AD%E3%83%AA%E3%83%BC%E3%82%BF

Fastfood culture- done by Kitty Fung

Mc. Donald has some similar criticisms of socialism, the production and distribution is firmly controlled by the company, where everything has to be the same and everything is standardized. The wage of the employers working in Mc. Donald is extremely low, however the pay is marked by work done, since they are paid by hourly rate. The so- called equity and fairness rather than market principle are being emphasize in their operating system, but the exploitation of the workers is still seen in here. The Burger Kings are almost all closed down in Hong Kong, only except the one in the airport is left, the Wendy’s fastfood has all closed down in the past few years, and as well as the Hardees is almost all close down, having only a few stores left in Hong Kong. The Gramsci’s concept of hegemony can be applied to such a phenemenon, especially when we talk about a capitalist culture.

 For example, the Maxim, Fairwood and Cafe de Coral . These kind of big corporation holds almost half of the fastfood stores in Hong Kong. Their success in the marketplace cause them to expand and grow bigger as for their economic power and resources is very large. This effect can lead to economy of scale, as a result of that, smaller private companies cannot easily penetrate into the market and earn profit. Competitors which are lack of resources tend to forced out of business, and applying Marxist theory into the consumerism culture, politics and cultures enter the market, the ideological domination of those ruling capitalist class successfully develop their ideas and commercially won the favour of the people in our society. This will lead to the exploitations of the subordinate companies and classes by their maintenance of the system of inequality. As for audiences, we should not just focus on the greater attention that we receive from their tvcs and advertisements, because what they do is dominate our thoughts and brainwash us into buying their food. In that way, we can try a bigger variety of other fastfood chain stores, instead of those of the big companies, and enjoy a more diversified of choices in choosing what to eat, and not let the limited ownership of fastfood stores control what we consume.

Material life conditions the social, Karl Marx suggested that th mode of production of our life process has determine our consciousness, as well as impose ideas and gave us an ideology of “false consciousness”, as we are social beings, the oppressive mediation of cultures and communications forms has naturalizes the power, and we tend not to realize such problem and be convinced instead of concede.

 Antonio Gramsci would considered such a phenomenon as hegemony of the spread of ideologies, as those ideas constructed has influence other classes of society to accept its own moral by persuasion and such coercive control manifest through direct force by distributing tremendous amount of commercials and advertisements. The consensual control which brought by individuals “willingly” or “voluntarily” induced audiences to follow such ‘law and order”, therefore the reason why we always go to those three big fastfood chain stores is because those assimilation has got deeply into our minds of what and where to eat. We always recall from such mass political and cultural dominance.

The “speedy” culture in Hong Kong (By Ivy Cheung)

  Even if you were not locally born and bred in Hong Kong, you must notice that “fast”, “quick” and “speedy” are the three most important element in Hong Kong.  For example, it is not suprised to notice that a lot of poeple are rushing in the MTR station –  even though there will be a train in every 2-3 mininutes, still you will see many people are running across the plantform and using different kind of method in order to jam into the train. It is quite difficult for them to line up and wait for the next train, especially in the morning.

  The “speed” for Hong Kong people to take their breakfast in the morning is very fast and in hurry also. It is not easy for them to sit down and enjoy their breakfast for at least 30 minutes. They will usually hold the newsapaper in one hand and their breakfast on the other hand while they are walking.  Unlike the foreign country, they would like to have a place to sit  and enjoy their breakfast and coffee in the comfortable place rather than just eating blindly.  

  The “Speedy” culture is not only occur among the working class in Hong Kong, the situation is also growing worse among the students. According to a survey which conducted by Chinese University of Hong Kong, it discovered that nearly 70% of students who are studying in university consider that they do not have time to work on their own things, therefore they would rather to stay up late or all night to finish their work. The survey has found out that almost 60% of the university students are lacked of sleeping.

  “Efficiency” is what Hong Kong people stress for nowadays, everything in here is required for “speed” during the process.  The culture is also slightly changing in Hong Kong.  One of the obvious example is -the eating culture, more and more fast food restaurants are opened for businesss and most of them are provided with the delivery as there is an increaseing number of people who likes to eat while they are working. “Takeout” is one of the habbits of most of the Hong Kong people.

  A new city concept is now widespread in lots of other countries which called “Citta Slow” (慢城運動). It was first originated in Italy, called slow food (慢食文化). ”Snail” is the logo of the “Citta slow”, it represents of moves slowly and eats calmly through life. And now, many countries are willing to join in this new city culture one by one. The essential requirments of those cities to become “Citta Slow” are - prohibit of all “Fast food” and “supermarket”, bicycles are the only transportation in the cities, only 5 working days in a week, people are not required to work on every Thursday and Sunday.  ”Efficiency” and “speed” are not the attitude of those cities, what they stress for and required for are the “quality of life” and “relaxation”.

  I don’t know what would Hong Kong people react if the movement of “Citta slow” was apoted in Hong Kong. I would like to know is that we are really like to do everything in speed or we just get use to it already. Personally, I would willing to live in one of these cities, at least I would have a chance to relax myself and have a look on everything which surrounding me.

 

Reference:

http://www.citymayors.com/environment/slow_cities.html