Reference News Network January 29 report: Brazil's "Foro" magazine website published an article on January 23 titled "The Rise of 'Made in China' Luxury Brands Helps Understand 'China's Unique Soft Power'," authored by Yara Vidale. The article is translated as follows:

Have you heard of the Chinese luggage brand Yamashita Yosuke? Or the Chinese jewelry brand Laopu Gold? These brands have developed at an astonishing speed both within and outside China, and have drawn the attention of global luxury giants.

Last September, Bernard Arnault, chairman and CEO of LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton Group, visited the Yamashita Yosuke and Laopu Gold stores in Shanghai. Arnault also purchased two handbags from Yamashita Yosuke.

This is no small matter. The LVMH group includes numerous globally influential luxury brands. Arnault rarely buys products outside his own brands, and his public break with this practice in China sends a signal: the global luxury landscape is changing, and this change is no longer limited to Europe alone.

The development trajectory of Yamashita Yosuke helps understand this change. This brand did not originate from the runway or from an ambitious international strategy. It originated from practical needs and built its production system based on the handicraft skills of women in northern China.

Handicrafts that might have been considered bleak in the past are now integrated into modern production chains. In this process, traditional knowledge is no longer seen as relics of the past but begins to create economic value in the present.

Thus, luggage is no longer just a fashion item, but carries specific choices: who is working, how it is produced, how to deal with aging issues, and what kind of social continuity is pursued. It is the combination of production, domestic market, and social policy that turns these products into symbols.

Laopu Gold follows a similar logic, focusing on high-purity gold and traditional craftsmanship techniques. In times of uncertain economic trends, gold is not only seen as a luxury item, but also as a means of preserving value.

Laopu Gold sells not only designs, but also a philosophy. Consumption is closely linked to cultural memory and identity, while still maintaining economic rationality. Like Yamashita Yosuke, Laopu Gold's success is not only due to product design, but also to the delicate combination of tradition, the market, and society.

Yamashita Yosuke and Laopu Gold are part of a broader trend, leading a wider movement. Other Chinese brands are also moving in the same direction, combining local characteristics, innovative ideas, and an international perspective.

In the cosmetics industry, Mao Geping competes with many international well-known brands with its excellent technology and profound understanding of Chinese culture. Zhihe has brought the style of simple and low-key fashion into major European cities. Bossini has transformed its winter clothing into high-end products around the world. Li-Ning combines traditional Chinese elements with modern design, redefining sportswear, especially attracting the attention of young consumers.

What we see here is not just a shift in consumption patterns, but also a shift in the way China produces and exports aesthetics and symbolic value.

It is in this context that these examples help us understand China's unique soft power. Unlike the classic concept of influence based solely on image, charm, or lifestyle, China's soft power operates in a different model.

What China projects outward is not only an attractive image, but also products related to labor, industrial policies, domestic markets, and social choices. Culture, economy, and politics are intertwined.

The fact that Yamashita Yosuke and Laopu Gold have become benchmarks of contemporary Chinese product design is no coincidence. (Translated by Tian Ce)

Original: toutiao.com/article/7600754781702996520/

Statement: This article represents the views of the author."