Operations Director Of China (Beijing) International RV & Camping Exhibition Discusses Changes & Family Dynamic At Show
RVing has become a global business. The key is bringing the ideas together but making them right for the country they exist in. China is one of the fastest rising adopters and interested areas in this outdoor industry. The China (Beijing) International RV & Camping Exhibition in Beijing is considered one of the premier destinations for manufacturers, builders, owners and RVers to come together to both see new advancements, share ideas and enjoy the love of the RV Lifestyle. In this continuation of their discussion, MRV: The Buzz Editor In Chief Tim Wassberg sat down with Managing Director Judy Zhu to discuss the texture of manufacturers and cultural differences that both shape and fuel the burgeoning China RV industry.
The Buzz: When we talked to a lot of the RV manufacturers yesterday, and it seems like they’re trying to figure out what's happening and how to best embrace the customer. Can you talk about that?
JZ: Just now I listened to…I was several minutes in the meeting [symposium] about “How to Buy the Proper RV for You”…the listeners, they asked us a lot of questions…
The Buzz: What questions?
JZ: They asked the speakers to recommend brands for them, because, for them, they know nothing. They don't know because RVing is new for them. A lot of Chinese, they have cars and they look at the TV advertisements and think, "This cost fits me." so, they buy, but, for an RV they hesitate and they doubt because it's bigger…much bigger than car. So they might doubt the safety, because they might decide to use RV for long distance travel. They will mostly think about the facility, equipment, and the safety. As far as space, it's not a problem because, as a couple, it's enough for them. So [here at the show] they ask a lot of questions they don't know, because all these brands arenew for them. No TV advertisements.
The Buzz: No TV advertisments?
JZ: No TV. For most of the RV companies, [there is] not much profit [yet]. So they always say that we are the organizer. We make a lot of profit from this show, but we actually built up the platform and then we send the service for them. Without us, who would promote for them?
The Buzz: True.
JZ: We promote for them. We use our WeChat. We use our website and our RV Family to help promote the industry. The RV Family party tonight is sponsored by a brand That company is not new one, but in the past two years they developed very, very fast because of they found a designer from Intelli to design everything. They purchase all their accessories from Intelli…one container just for one RV…just to assemble in their factory. So, this is a very good right now for the Chinese because [with] the factories, they know, the quality is very important. We just can’t produce so high-quality an RV [yet]. So, we push with everything from foreign, just the partners from Germany and the US.
The Buzz: But you want to make it so it’s all China at some point.
JZ: Just to assemble everything in China [because] the price is much cheaper than import.
The Buzz: But going forward [it is the thought that] it will all be able to be manufactured in China…
JZ: Yes
The Buzz: I think WeChat is a very interesting way for people to communicate. We have Facebook in the US, but WeChat's even more personal. Can you talk about it as a camping and RV application?
JZ: I think WeChat is only the communication source. It's not the most important one. The most important one is to talk face-to-face. Every year we have two chances with the shows so RV Family people can meet face-to-face. We have a party and they can stay four days or even longer in our campsite. They love this kind of a meet. Every year we have a camping rally and during those we have more than 2,000 people.
The Buzz: The thing I’ve found here is that the RV experience in America is very different from the RV experience in China. Can you talk about the differences? Because for our readers…when you go RVing in the US, you just drive. You sometimes meet people. That's the American RV experience. Can you talk about the Chinese RV experience? What that means from your point of view?
JZ: I think the main difference between the China and America RV experience is the habit. In Australia and also in Germany, I saw a lot of couples. They enjoy having a life together but in China, you will find it's a little bit different. The younger people, if they go because they have little children, they will invite the parents.
The Buzz: So grandparents…
JZ: So grandparents go with them, together. I think this is the difference. Now in China, the younger couples, they have one or two children, and they have the two grandmas and grandfathers. So four to six people.
The Buzz: That’s different – and very new.
JZ: So five or six people together…for maybe three or four days…not a long distance trip for them.
The Buzz: Because the vacation time is short here in China?
JZ: The vacation depends. The Spring Festival is eight days vacation. For National Day, it also eight days. So during the spring festival, my family…I have one son…with three people, we drive from Shanghai to Beijing which is more than 700 miles. So we spent eight days. So the whole trip is more than 2000 miles. I'm planning to take my mother to enjoy [the RV], because I think she is very interested. She thinks it's very comfortable, because if she tries, she can't sleep. And if she wants to cook, she can do something for us for breakfast. Compare this with the normal road trip, because the pace is too limited. M ymother informed me that my elder brother took her to Cheayoung during Spring Festival. And my family, we went to Fujian Province the first time. My mother decided to spend three hours trying to find hotels. Each hotel was completely occupied. Three hours to find hotels, and it is very expensive during the holidays.
The Buzz: There is the new policy to build many more campgrounds in China by 2020. How is that completely going to change the RV industry in China?
JZ: That's a really good question. The central government announced that we'll build modern one thousand campsites by 2020. So first the RV rentals…and the business. Now there is a lot of big growth.
The Buzz: Can you talk about the rental business here in China. That is another big difference between America and China. People rent here, to try. They have a trailer that they try out before they buy. Can you talk about that sort of progression and how that changes how people buy and look at RVs here in China?
JZ: It's very interesting that just during these three days, you have already heard a lot of very interesting stories.
The Buzz: I have also heard about RVing being used as a stationary mobile hotel in a cold winter setting. You don't hear that in the US. We saw this with Deeson RV with fully heated floors which is very foreign to America. That's very new. That's something I know American people would come and be like, "You RV in the winter?" That’s a good hook for tourism too.
JZ: Just this last winter in China, I think the snow was just half meter here. But yes in North China… But just in Xinjiang during spring festival, [there was] very big snow. But a lot of people, and some young people, they just don't want to try. Some want to see snow, but as you know, in China, a lot of people, they live all their life in winter. They want to see another view. But also some Chinese here, they want the challenge. They will drive more than two thousand miles. They will go to the desert…to the mountain,
The Buzz: Many people in the US don't realize how big of a distance there is between North and South China. Or even West China. China is very big. But I also know a lot of RVers from America would love to come over and see China as well as the reverse. Can you talk about that exchange of RV lifestyle between the two countries and the importance of it if you could?
JZ: I have been to America for some business trips several times, but I haven't seen RV life in America. So, in my understanding, it is that American people just want to use RV for holidays, but the culture and the holiday lifestyle is different. Even just because of this difference, the RV style follows the holiday lifestyle which makes it different in China.
The Buzz: How would you define the Chinese RV lifestyle?
JZ: After I joined 21RV, the more and more I loved the work. I think this project is very right The RV business is evolving but I also enjoy meeting a lot of the people. They really love RV life…the outdoor. If you are talking about RV with them…their eyes, they shine. They shine and are very excited inside.
The Buzz: Where do you see the China RV industry going? It seems like the growth now will become organic…like a groundswell. But you don't want specifically this show to get so big that it can't be managed so how do you keep it personal? How do you keep it intimate while still retaining the amount of business that needs to happen?
JZ: This is a challenge because our place is almost filled, yes? It is almost fully occupied. So just for the opening ceremony we invited our local governor to join us and he said "Oh, here is completely occupied!" So we hope -- and also for the governor to think about – in finding a better and bigger place for our show. 21 RV is very important in promoting the RV lifestyle and the RV industry in China. So they have a lot of reason to support us in the future.
Tim Wassberg
A graduate of New York University's Tisch School Of The Arts with degrees in Film/TV Production & Film Criticism, Tim has written for magazines such as Moviemaker, Moving Pictures, Conde Nast Traveler UK and Casino Player. He enjoys traveling and distinct craft beers among other things.
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