Katrina Yu: Their pacing is precise, their spacing is seamless, and their
pours are perfect. This is China’s first butler academy and they’re practicing
the exact vintage pour. Their six-week course includes centuries-old
traditions. But these students aren’t being trained to serve old wealth. Their
future employers will be members of China’s new rich. In Communist China,
millionaires are being minted faster than anywhere else. They’re filling harbours with multi-million dollar
yachts. Watching laser light shows at $3,000 a night hotels
and buying luxuries. Sara Jane Ho knows all about the possibilities and
pressures of being wealthy in China.
Sara Jane Ho: “Average price here is probably $1000 US, not too expensive at
all.”
Katrina Yu: The 34 year-old has been called China’s
'Millennial Martha Stewart.’ And founded the country’s first finishing school.
Many of her students are second generation rich, born in the 80s and 90s and
born into millions.
Sara Jane Ho: In no other country other than China have you had such a great
amount of change in such a short amount of time. And now they have so much
money that the last thing they want to do is see their kids go through any kind
of hardship. For the kids, a lot of it is about individuality. They want to
spend on something that other people don’t have.
Katrina Yu: Sara Jane is an expert on where to shop, what to wear, and where
to be seen. At an up-market Italian restaurant in downtown Shanghai, Sara Jane
shares her Michelin-starred meal with her social media followers.
Katrina Yu: Lunch costs about $400 that’s the equivalent of a monthly
middle-income salary.
Sara Jane Ho: When you make so much money in such a short amount of time, it actually places a lot of pressure on an individual. There’s
no old money in China because of historical reasons. A lot of people were very
poor, I mean everybody was very poor, up until the 90s.
Katrina Yu: Accumulating wealth in Communist China was once considered counter
revolutionary. Mao Zedong came to power in 1949 vowing to eliminate class and
abolish capitalism. Affluent families lost their wealth
and many lost their lives as Mao pursued his utopian vision of communism. That
vision resulted in the deaths of tens of millions from famine,
and left almost 90 percent of the population living in extreme poverty.
That all changed in the 1980s, when leader Deng Xiaoping loosened state control
over China’s economy and permitted private enterprise, reforms which would turn
the country into the world’s second largest economy. 40 Years later, Chinese
cities have become shopping meccas catering to China’s rapidly expanding
middle-class, and upper class. Chinese consumers make up a third of the $1.3 trillion dollar global luxury market. And luxury spending is
expected to grow by over 10 percent this year.
TAO LIANG: ”Hi I’m Mr Bags, welcome to my show.”
Katrina Yu: It’s a trend Tao Liang has in the bag. The 26
year-old is known as “Mr. Bags,” an entrepreneur and one of the
country’s top online influencers. He has millions of loyal fans who hang on his
every recommendation. During an online campaign last year, his company sold
half a million dollars worth of bags in just six
minutes.
Tao Liang: Definitely some Chinese girls buy bags
because they want big brands, they want people to know they’re rich, they want
people to know they’re tasteful. But nowadays, I think a lot of Chinese women
when they buy bags they really buy bags because they
want to pursue happiness.
Katrina Yu: International brands are working hard to contribute to the
happiness and handbag collections of Chinese consumers. But they don’t always
get it right. Last november, Dolce and Gabbana stoked
fury after releasing this advertising campaign in china.
Campaign: “It’s way too big for you, isn’t it?”
Katrina Yu: Chinese social media users accused the brand of reinforcing racist
stereotypes. Consumer backlash resulted in Dolce and Gabbana being banned from
major Chinese online retailers. Last month Versace, Givenchy and Coach issued
apologies after printing t-shirts describing Hong Kong and Taiwan as separate
from China. Fall outs with foreign fashion labels have demonstrated the power
of China’s increasingly wealthy population. But being wealthy in China has its
limits. When it comes to the Chinese government, being too rich can be risky.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has launched an anti-corruption campaign and
overseen investigations into the country’s wealthiest and most powerful. More
than 100,000 have been jailed for embezzlement and bribery, others fired for
throwing lavish parties and indulging in expensive liquor. Ostentatious wealth
is regularly denounced on state media and primetime TV. The hit television show
‘Father Where are we Going?,’ Was cancelled because of
its portrayal of spoiled second generation rich children. Commentator and
academic Zhu Dake says it’s in the government’s
interest to reign in ‘crazy rich’ behavior.
Zhu Dake: The Chinese government knows that if rich people show off their
wealth too much, it will deepen the impression of the social polarization by
ordinary people. The Chinese government requires rich people to be low-key, and
poor people to be contented with their life. Then the country would be stable.
Katrina Yu: China’s ultra-wealthy must closely align themselves with the government.
Jack Ma, a tech tycoon with an estimated $40 billion fortune, is a member of
the communist party. Movie star Jackie Chan routinely defends Beijing, and
attacks international critics. Last month, the Hong Kong resident described
pro-democracy protests in the city as “sad and depressing,” and called himself
a protector of the Chinese flag.
Zhu Dake: You must firstly be on the same side as the government, so the
government can feel they made you successful. All of
the successful people should stand on the same side with the government. If you
do not support them, they will make you unsuccessful.
Katrina Yu: The government has vowed to eradicate poverty by 2020, saying it’s
lifted 83 million rural poor out of poverty over the last six years. But according
to the World Bank, many more remain behind. 40 percent of the country’s
population, 500 million people, continue to live on less than $5.50 a day. And
while some struggle to put a roof over their head, others build roofs, for
their dogs. Zhou Tianxiao spent half a million
dollars on a pet paradise for his border collie Sylar.
Complete with a training gym, a dog-themed party space, and an indoor doggie
pool. Zhao Tianxiao grew his fortune selling pet
products online. He showed us a wall decorated with photos of his best friend
who he credits with lifting him out of depression.
Zhou Tianxiao:
It’s like raising a child. I have deep affection
for my dog, I rarely take photos of myself. When someone asks me, how should I
introduce you, I say ‘call me Sylar’s dad.’ He’s
integrated into every part of my life.
Katrina Yu: In China, the richest one percent own a third of the country’s
wealth. Zhou says he’s bombarded online by critics who question his choice to
splurge on a dog while millions must fight to survive. But the only opinion he
cares about is Sylar’s.
Zhou Tianxiao:
He never cares about who you are or your social
status. People think I’m some silver-spoon kid wasting my parent’s money by
giving my dog a life of luxury. That’s not true. I’ve worked hard and
experienced challenges.
Katrina Yu: And as the gap between China’s rich and poor continues to grow
Zhou refuses to apologize for his lifestyle.
Zhou Tianxiao: It’s normal to be criticised, I don’t
care. Part of the money you earn pays for the criticism you bear. My mind is at
peace.
Katrina Yu: In China, it seems there’s very little money can’t buy. For the
PBS NewsHour, I’m Katrina Yu, in Beijing.
##
|
TIMECODE |
LOWER
THIRD |
1 |
1:23 |
SARA JANE HO FOUNDER, INSTITUTE SARITA FINISHING SCHOOL |
2 |
2:25 – 3:10 |
FILE |
3 |
4:00 |
(SUBTITLE) DEFINITELY SOME CHINESE GIRLS BUY BAGS BECAUSE THEY WANT
BIG BRANDS. |
4 |
4:02 |
(TOP OF ABOVE SUBTITLE) TAO LIANG INFLUENCER |
5 |
4:05 |
THEY WANT PEOPLE TO KNOW THEY’RE RICH. THEY WANT PEOPLE TO KNOW |
6 |
4:08 |
THEY’RE TASTEFUL.
BUT NOWADAYS, I THINK A LOT OF CHINESE WOMEN, WHEN THEY |
7 |
4:11 |
BUY BAGS, THEY REALLY BUY BAGS BECAUSE THEY WANT TO PURSUE
HAPPINESS. |
8 |
5:02 |
BEIJING KATRINA YU SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT |
9 |
5:07 |
BEIJING KATRINA YU @KATMYU |
10 |
6:07 |
ZHU DAKE CULTURAL COMMENTATOR |
11 |
8:55 |
ZHOU TIANXIAO ENTREPRENEUR |