China's Resurrection Of The Tang -- Long Shelf Life Is Key
I spent 11th grade in Istanbul, Turkey, attending Robert College (a high school). In Istanbulback then, for some truly unknown reason, Maverick jeans were the jeans to have. As an American, I would never have been caught dead in Mavericks. I mean, they were being sold at K-Mart in the U.S. and people in places like Paw Paw and Vicksburg were wearing them. However, because they were so desirable among the Turks, I arranged for a friend of a friend to bring me ten pairs (at a total cost of $50) and together we leveraged those ten pairs into a beautiful leather coat for the both of us. Taught me coolness is location dependent.
Seems Tang is China's Maverick. Yes, that Tang -- the disgusting powdered fake orange juice drink I am proud to say I never liked. The one the astronauts drank. Bet you have neither seen that drink nor thought of it for at least ten years. Until today.
For it seems Tang is making a comeback. In China.
Crain's Chicago Business recently did a story entitled, "The Tang Dynasty: China loves it," on Tang's fast rising popularity in China and elsewhere outside the United States. Made by Kraft Foods, Tang sales grew 7% last year, with all of that growth coming from "places like China, Saudi Arabia and Mexico." U.S. sales are down 75% in the last four years "where it went from the pinnacle of 1960s cool. . . to the depths of 1970s derision as the choice of 'Saturday Night Live' nerds Lisa Loopner and Todd DiLaMuca, played by Gilda Radner and Bill Murray."
Tang's China sales rose 12% last year and in an effort to create its own Tang Dynasty, Kraft will be introducing Tang with Milk and Tang Fruit Tea. There is even talk of trying to revive the brand here in United States some day.
I would love to hear ideas for more Tang like products out there that would do well in China.
Comments (8)
Read through and enter the discussion by using the form at the endlayered - September 12, 2006 1:57 AM
Tang seems to be popular in Viet Nam now, too -- as seen on the shelves of the larger supermarkets.
China Law Blog - September 12, 2006 8:44 AM
Layered --
Thanks for checking in. Anything else there in VN that is roughly equivalent?
Sorry I missed you in VN. You were in Hanoi when I was in Saigon. Next time.
Transnational Law Blog - September 12, 2006 9:09 AM
Tang Jello! Tang yogurt! There's already a bottled orange drink in China that is very popular but I have yet to see Tang soda pop! Perhaps a really inventive person could figure out a way to put Tang in those large bowls of noodles--Tang noodles!
Ah, once you leave the country, how can you ever take fashion trends seriously again? I really enjoy reading posts like this one.
--Travis
China Law Blog - September 12, 2006 10:31 PM
TLB --
Thanks for checking in. These are the fun ones to write, so I am glad somebody likes 'em.
Robert Luedeman - September 13, 2006 8:10 AM
I doubt if anyone except I will get the jab about Paw Paw and Vicksburg. Wap Wap, as we called it was a nice place and Vicksburg attained national fame as having more Elvis sightings than Memphis. In any event either was of more substance than Schoolcraft, which is where I lived. You might have conveyed the point more effectively by using Kalamazoo or Dubuque-and they, too, are nice liveable cities.
But Tang? I'm astounded. Yeccccccch.
China Law Blog - September 13, 2006 10:57 AM
Mr. Luedeman --
I mentioned Vicksburg and Paw Paw because, other than my one year in Istanbul, I was living in Kalamazoo and, as you know, Kalamazoo was the "urban center" to places like Vicksburg and Paw Paw and Schoolcraft, all of which were to those of us in Kalamazoo, the definition of uncool.
I picked Vicksburg becuase I still have a thing about Vicksburg. It was a nice night. Four of us from Kalamazoo Central had gone to the High Wheeler (your remember the place right, the huge ice cream emporium). We were leaving when 4-5 guys asked us if we went to Kalamazoo Central. We said yes. Then they asked if any of us played football there and two of us said us. One of them then asked why we never "came out to play Vicksburg," implying we had never gone out there before for fear of getting beaten. At that point, Jake Harley from my crew replied that we had looked into going out to Vicksburg, but decided against it because "nobody wanted to get cow shit on their shoes when stepping off the bus." Punches were thrown, the High Wheeler people came out and informed us we were all banned. Hence, Vicksburg.
Elvis actually moved to Vicksburg where, I understand he still lives and still goes to the Burger King there in the middle of the night to avoid being seen.
Paw Paw was becuase of the name and becuase I had a friend who would invite me to his cottage on the lake there and the place just always struck me as so rural.
Not sure if I ever made it to Schoolcraft, but I certainly remember the signs.
Ah, rural Michigan ..... I miss it.
IP Dragon - September 17, 2006 2:31 PM
Hi Dan,
Don't forget Shanghai Tang http://www.shanghaitang.com who is reclycling century old fashion.
Cheers,
IP Dragon
China Law Blog - September 17, 2006 7:23 PM
IP Dragon --
Thanks for checking in. Shanghai Tang makes great stuff and I have been in many of their stores in China, but they certainly do not give "the China price," it's more like the New York City or the Paris price.