Jenny
(Yan) Yu
Lauren Holt
English Second Language
Mar.6th
The March of Starbucks to China
During last summer, while wandering around on the streets, I started to notice one thing held in everyone’s hands again and again---a drink with a green “Starbucks” logo on it. This phenomenon raises a question in my head: since when and how has Starbucks proliferated in China and permeated Chinese culture?
In this project, my topic mainly focuses on the rapid growth of the Starbucks Company and the role it has played in changing Chinese culture. Nowadays, coffee culture has become a developed and influential type of culture in the world. Among all coffee brands, Starbucks can be seen as the leading coffee enterprise. Its rapid development and wide impact both domestically and globally are marvelous. Arisen as a small coffee store, Starbucks exploded onto the global scene and swept through Chinese culture during the past few years. It gradually formed a cultural trend in which Chinese people interpret buying Starbucks as a pursuit of fashion and modernity, shaping Chinese people’s lifestyle and attitude. The tentative title for this project is “The March of Starbucks to China.”
Lauren Holt
English Second Language
Mar.6th
The March of Starbucks to China
During last summer, while wandering around on the streets, I started to notice one thing held in everyone’s hands again and again---a drink with a green “Starbucks” logo on it. This phenomenon raises a question in my head: since when and how has Starbucks proliferated in China and permeated Chinese culture?
In this project, my topic mainly focuses on the rapid growth of the Starbucks Company and the role it has played in changing Chinese culture. Nowadays, coffee culture has become a developed and influential type of culture in the world. Among all coffee brands, Starbucks can be seen as the leading coffee enterprise. Its rapid development and wide impact both domestically and globally are marvelous. Arisen as a small coffee store, Starbucks exploded onto the global scene and swept through Chinese culture during the past few years. It gradually formed a cultural trend in which Chinese people interpret buying Starbucks as a pursuit of fashion and modernity, shaping Chinese people’s lifestyle and attitude. The tentative title for this project is “The March of Starbucks to China.”
The
importance of this topic is reflected in the large influence that Starbucks has
had in changing Chinese culture. It is in a sense that Chinese people move
their old, traditional lifestyles and attitudes towards more novel and modern
ones. China is a huge country in terms of population and area; therefore, its
cultural change with respect to the coming of Starbucks is noteworthy. By
studying and exploring this huge impact on Chinese culture and people’s lifestyles,
we are able to gain a better understanding of how commercial globalization will
eventually lead to a cultural transformation. In addition, paying attention to
this topic will enable us to foresee a trend which Chinese culture will emulate.
This is a crucial characteristic of a developing country.
Basically,
I want to address three main questions in my project. The first one is: what is
unique about Starbucks that empowers it to shape Chinese culture? There were
already many coffee brands in the world prior to Starbucks. However, there was
very little coffee culture development in China until the appearance of
Starbucks. Therefore it is very necessary to recognize the distinctiveness of
Starbucks which elevates it to the worldwide stage and leads to change in
Chinese culture.
The second question is: how does the globalization of Starbucks result in a different Chinese lifestyle and attitude? Based on the discovery from the first question, I will explore the process of this cultural transformation and the mechanism that directs this whole transformation process. Also I will describe the new lifestyle of the Chinese and compare and contrast with the older one.
The third question is: How can we interpret this cultural transformation in a deeper sense? China is still a developing country and it has undergone many changes caused by globalization. Through the cultural change by the globalization of Starbucks, China has showed its openness to globalization and its tendency to combine western culture with its own culture. We can see how Chinese people view coffee, especially from Starbucks, as an embodiment of their pursuit of fashion, modernity, wealth, and social status. Because China is still a developing country, getting closer to cultures in developed countries (i.e. American coffee culture) is definitely favorable.
The answers to the three questions will illustrate a clear picture of how Starbucks is embedded into Chinese culture. For the tentative organization, I will first briefly talk about Starbucks’s history and development together with its distinctiveness. Secondly, I will explore its impact on changing Chinese lifestyle and the new meaning of Starbucks as interpreted by Chinese people. Finally, I will analyze the trend toward cultural transformation and combination under globalization.
Work Cited
Fowler, A. Geoffrey. “Converting the Masses: Starbucks in China.” Far Eastern Economic Review. Review Publishing Company Ltd., 17 July, 2003. Web. 4 Mar, 2014.
This article discusses the way that Starbucks attracts Chinese people and then changes their lifestyles. The author’s main point is that one experiences a different kind of lifestyle when he or she buys one cup of coffee from Starbucks. I chose this article because this article offers similar ideas to my topic and considering them will be helpful to develop my own argument. I will connect his idea about the different lifestyle and experience to my topic.
Kang, Liu. Globalization and Cultural Trends in China.United States of America: University of Hawai’I Press, 2004. Print.
This book discusses in detail about the structural transformations occurred in Chinese culture and society. The thesis the author argues is that globalization creates a cultural paradox in which some cultural elements combine while others diversify. I chose this book because it is a scholarly monograph and its contents are well-supported and reliable. I plan to analyze the discussion about the new cultural formation in China and make parallels to my argument between coffee and culture transformation.
"Starbucks is Not Only A Cup of Coffee in China.” Baidu Wenku. n.d. 4 Mar, 2014.
This short article elucidates the symbolic meaning of Starbucks coffee in China. The author argues that Chinese people view Starbucks coffee as a representation of success, wealth, and high social status, which results in the widely spread coffee culture in China. I chose this article because it is well-written and has good analysis related to my topic, and I will use the author’s idea about Starbucks as a symbol.
“Starbuckization: International Expansion and the Export of Americanized Culture.” Yahoo Voices. n.d. Web. 4 Mar, 2014.
This article mainly describes the globalization of Starbucks and the spread of Americanized culture. The author introduces Starbucks’s history in America and its rapid spread globally. Mainly, the author discusses Japanese and Chinese markets that have been significantly affected by “Starbuckization.” I chose this article because it is well-written and contains a lot of statistic data and history information, and I will use it to briefly describe Starbucks’s history and rapid development during the past few years.
Venkatraman Meera, and Teresa Nelson. “From Servicescape to Consumptionscape: A Photo-Elicitation Study of Starbucks in the New China.” Journal of International Business Studies. Vol. 39, No. 6 (Sep. 2008): 1010-1026. Web. 4 Mar, 2014.
The authors in this research journal article use Starbucks as an example to demonstrate a culture trend in China. Through their study and research, they have discovered that Starbucks stores have been transformed from servicescape to consumptionscape by Chinese consumers. The authors conclude that although global brands like Starbucks have made huge impacts on local cultures, they are being transformed by local cultures as well. I chose this article because it has a lot of research background and it is well-analyzed. I plan to include the idea of correlation between Starbucks and local culture, and to analyze the product of their combination.
The second question is: how does the globalization of Starbucks result in a different Chinese lifestyle and attitude? Based on the discovery from the first question, I will explore the process of this cultural transformation and the mechanism that directs this whole transformation process. Also I will describe the new lifestyle of the Chinese and compare and contrast with the older one.
The third question is: How can we interpret this cultural transformation in a deeper sense? China is still a developing country and it has undergone many changes caused by globalization. Through the cultural change by the globalization of Starbucks, China has showed its openness to globalization and its tendency to combine western culture with its own culture. We can see how Chinese people view coffee, especially from Starbucks, as an embodiment of their pursuit of fashion, modernity, wealth, and social status. Because China is still a developing country, getting closer to cultures in developed countries (i.e. American coffee culture) is definitely favorable.
The answers to the three questions will illustrate a clear picture of how Starbucks is embedded into Chinese culture. For the tentative organization, I will first briefly talk about Starbucks’s history and development together with its distinctiveness. Secondly, I will explore its impact on changing Chinese lifestyle and the new meaning of Starbucks as interpreted by Chinese people. Finally, I will analyze the trend toward cultural transformation and combination under globalization.
Work Cited
Fowler, A. Geoffrey. “Converting the Masses: Starbucks in China.” Far Eastern Economic Review. Review Publishing Company Ltd., 17 July, 2003. Web. 4 Mar, 2014.
This article discusses the way that Starbucks attracts Chinese people and then changes their lifestyles. The author’s main point is that one experiences a different kind of lifestyle when he or she buys one cup of coffee from Starbucks. I chose this article because this article offers similar ideas to my topic and considering them will be helpful to develop my own argument. I will connect his idea about the different lifestyle and experience to my topic.
Kang, Liu. Globalization and Cultural Trends in China.United States of America: University of Hawai’I Press, 2004. Print.
This book discusses in detail about the structural transformations occurred in Chinese culture and society. The thesis the author argues is that globalization creates a cultural paradox in which some cultural elements combine while others diversify. I chose this book because it is a scholarly monograph and its contents are well-supported and reliable. I plan to analyze the discussion about the new cultural formation in China and make parallels to my argument between coffee and culture transformation.
"Starbucks is Not Only A Cup of Coffee in China.” Baidu Wenku. n.d. 4 Mar, 2014.
This short article elucidates the symbolic meaning of Starbucks coffee in China. The author argues that Chinese people view Starbucks coffee as a representation of success, wealth, and high social status, which results in the widely spread coffee culture in China. I chose this article because it is well-written and has good analysis related to my topic, and I will use the author’s idea about Starbucks as a symbol.
“Starbuckization: International Expansion and the Export of Americanized Culture.” Yahoo Voices. n.d. Web. 4 Mar, 2014.
This article mainly describes the globalization of Starbucks and the spread of Americanized culture. The author introduces Starbucks’s history in America and its rapid spread globally. Mainly, the author discusses Japanese and Chinese markets that have been significantly affected by “Starbuckization.” I chose this article because it is well-written and contains a lot of statistic data and history information, and I will use it to briefly describe Starbucks’s history and rapid development during the past few years.
Venkatraman Meera, and Teresa Nelson. “From Servicescape to Consumptionscape: A Photo-Elicitation Study of Starbucks in the New China.” Journal of International Business Studies. Vol. 39, No. 6 (Sep. 2008): 1010-1026. Web. 4 Mar, 2014.
The authors in this research journal article use Starbucks as an example to demonstrate a culture trend in China. Through their study and research, they have discovered that Starbucks stores have been transformed from servicescape to consumptionscape by Chinese consumers. The authors conclude that although global brands like Starbucks have made huge impacts on local cultures, they are being transformed by local cultures as well. I chose this article because it has a lot of research background and it is well-analyzed. I plan to include the idea of correlation between Starbucks and local culture, and to analyze the product of their combination.