China has become the world’s largest spirits market. Imported spirits account for around 40% of all alcohol consumption, and the proportion is expected to grow due to Chinese female millennials’ increasing interest in premium spirits.
A luxury spirits group asked Cherry Blossoms to decode the new communication codes, in the liquor & spirit luxury industry in digital communication in China:

Understand the evolution of communication codes: what has changed, new communication trends – topics & formats

Identify what are the main communication drivers – symbolics, aesthetics, brands’ incarnation (ambassadors), storytelling, concept & representations of luxury/exclusivity, values, emotional resonance

Identify innovative ways to transpose ad campaigns into a Chinese context and show respect to China

Decoding good & bad examples of localized brands’ communication – resonating or not for the Chinese audience
We provided recommendations for the group’s brands to improve the localization of their communication in China – resonate at a deeper level with the Chinese audience – especially the younger generation, men & women – raise desirability and show respect to Chinese culture.
We analyzed an extensive corpus of luxury brands’ communication campaigns on social media via:

Cultural decoding / semiotic analysis – from a Chinese perspective:


Crossing various disciplines: aesthetics, design, sociology, psychology, history, cultural studies


Taking into account the resonance of Chinese traditional culture, as well as recent trends in China

Qualitative social media listening: analysis of web users’ comments on Chinese social media