Lebron James from the Miami Heat recently signed a "multi-year marketing partnership" with Dunkin' Donuts and Baskin Robins in China, Taiwan, India and South Korea. The company will not release how much the basketball player is being compensated.
I found this article interesting because it shows how much of an effect western culture has on business in Asia. In Asian culture people don't typically favor sugary or sweet foods. By having an American athlete as the face of the company, it will help influence and attract these various demographics.
http://money.cnn.com/2012/03/05/news/companies/lebron_james_dunkin_donuts/index.htm
March 5, 2012
Jenny Christensen
Having lived in Taiwan for 2 years this was definitely a smart move by the Dunkin companies. There is a huge influence of western culture, especially in the more westernized cities such as Taipei. Having LeBron James pitching their business and being a part of other marketing strategies will help them greatly. However, with the recent craze about Jeremy Lin, I wonder if it would have been smarter for them to sign him to a contract rather than LeBron.
ReplyDeleteThis is interesting. I've never lived in Asia, only Europe, so I've never known that there is so much influence by western culture there as well. In some ways it makes me sad because I feel that there are so many unique people with rich cultures around the world, but many of these unique elements are changing or being forgotten in order to adopt the "popular" culture.
ReplyDeleteI guess they should have waited to sign Jeremy Lin. Lin is blowing up in Asian markets, and the New York Knicks are quickly becoming the team of choice for the Asian population in most countries.
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree that this is a smart move. Western culture has a big influence on Asian culture and American celebrities are really popular. I'm sure Jeremy Lin would also be a good candidate. I just wonder how much they're paying LeBron.
ReplyDeleteAnother side note about Jeremy Lin, he went to Harvard, and is an intelligent guy...which is opening up a different type of advertising market with different different tech companies. He could be sponsored by Nike just as much as he could Apple. A huge market indeed! Probably a broader market than any other athlete now. boom!
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