Following the death of 20 Indian soldiers after the India-China border class last week, scores of people have called for a boycott of Chinese products and services. Several protests and demonstrations took place in different parts of the country.
Shops displaying Chinese products were also destroyed in several places. Amid the protest and demonstrations condemning the violent attack on Indian soldiers and boycotting Chinese products, the Indian Institute of Human Brands (IIHB) conducted a ‘gun-shot’ telephonic survey over June 17 & 18 to gauge consumer sentiment on celebrities endorsing Chinese brands, post the news of the loss of life of 20 Indian soldiers in the Galwan Valley. 408 respondents were asked some quick-fire questions.
Is TikTok a Chinese app?
56 % said Yes
32 % said Yes
12 % said Maybe
Would you un-install TikTok because it is a Chinese app?
21 % said Yes
62 % said Maybe
11 % said No
16% Did Not Answer
Respondents were also asked if they knew the country of origin of the mobile brands mentioned? How many associated a brand with a celebrity? And how many wanted the celebrity to desist from peddling the said brand because it was Chinese?
- 92% respondents knew that Apple is from the US.
- 37% respondents said Oppo is Indian. Only 42% said it was Chinese.
- 41% thought Vivo is from US/Europe, 12% said it was Indian while 40% said they knew it was Chinese.
- Samsung, 62% said was Korean; 22% from US.
- One Plus was felt to be European by 30%, US by 22%, Indian by 14%. 30% said it was Chinese.
- Only 27% knew Realme is Chinese and 26% knew Redmi’s actual origin.
- Nokia was said to be Indian by as many as 32% respondents.
- 88% said Sony is Japanese. 92% said Panasonic is Japanese.
There is low knowledge of actual country of origin of all the Chinese brands despite all the media hype. Overall only 32% of respondents got country of origin correct in the case of China, which has two implications: 1. The Chinese brands have done a good job in masking their Sino identity, and many consumers actually believe they are local brands, perhaps because of their ubiquitous presence in media and on retail shelves. 2. Consumers actually don’t care for country of origin. All the ‘backlash’ is largely media/political hype.
Association of celebrities with brands:
1. Vivo – Aamir (42%), Sara Ali Khan (6%)
2. Oppo – Ranbir (22%), Katrina (11%), Badshah (7%), Deepika (3%), Sonam Kapoor (2%), Hardik Pandya (2%), Rohit Sharma (4%), Ashwin (1%)
3. One Plus – Amitabh Bachchan (14%)
4. Realme – Salman (21%), Shraddha Kapoor (3%)
5. iQoo – Virat Kohli (9%)
Should these celebrities continue to endorse Chinese brands?
84% of respondents said they don’t want the celebs to support or sell Chinese brands because
1. It is unpatriotic
2. Our soldiers are dying at the hands of the Chinese
3. China is responsible for coronavirus
4. We should support Indian brands
Should a Chinese brand, Vivo, be title sponsor of IPL?
72 % said No
12 % said Yes
12 % said Maybe
Rest were non-commital
Was it good that Byju’s replaced Chinese brand Oppo as sponsor of the Indian team?
85 % said Yes
14 % said Yes
1% said Maybe
Would you still say that if we told you that Byju’s too has big Chinese ownership?
76 % said No
5 % said Yes
14 % said Maybe
Rest were non-commital
