China is No Longer a Short Nation, and Stereotypes Need to Change
There is an old stereotype that Chinese people are short. And that used to be true. Many Chinese people, especially the ones that emigrated to western countries over the past 100 years or so, were shorter, partially because of nutritional deficiencies, and partially because many of the early immigrants came from Southern China, where people tend to have a shorter stature and smaller frame.
But this has changed. If you go to any major Chinese city, particularly Beijing, and other cities in Northern China, it is easy to find many young men and women over 5’9” and even many men over 6 feet tall. I should know, I am one of them.
When I am in western countries, my friends always remark that I am really tall for a Chinese guy. But I remember growing up I never felt like a giant. In fact, at 6 foot 3, I was the second shortest guy in my high school basketball team.
Chinese people are getting taller, that’s a fact. According to a report by NCD·RisC published in the Lancet medical journal, which included data from over 65 million participants across 200 countries, over the past 34 years, the average height of 19-year-old Chinese men has increased by a full 8 cm (3.1 inches) and the height of Chinese women by 6.1 cm (2.4 inches). In other words, a 19-year-old Chinese man in 2021 is 8 cm taller than a 19-year-old Chinese man 34 years ago.
The report says the average height of 19-year-old Chinese males is 175.7 centimeters, making them the fifth tallest in Asia and the tallest in East Asia; the average height of Chinese females is 163.5 cm, the tallest in the region.
More importantly, from 1985 to 2019, the average height of Chinese males saw the biggest rise among all the 200 countries and regions surveyed, while that of women ranked third.
Why are Chinese people suddenly becoming taller?
Since 1979 China has had one of the world’s fastest-growing economies, all thanks to the government opening the country to foreign trade and investment and implementing free-market reforms. That “Made in China” stamp you see on almost everything has made a lot of people rich, this boosted the living standards, from my grandparent’s rice porridge era to my meat and seafood age.
Nutrition
Nutrition played a major role in making people taller. In 1978, China only produced 883,000 metric tons of milk, that is if you have the food stamps to get it. Jumping forward to 2018, the nationwide milk production was 30.75 million tons.
Milk is only one example, amino acid rich meat and egg consumption also gone up dramatically. For my parents it was rare to eat meat when they were growing up, for me it was a daily occurrence. Also, nutritional supplements have become popular, taking protein shakes and multivitamins is very common now.
Exercise
Exercise also played a role. I was born in 1990, and when I was growing up, very few gyms are open to the public, most of them are dedicated to professional athletes, and the concept of paying for exercise was somewhat of a joke, let along hiring a personal trainer.
However, time has changed, now going to a gym to workout has become a trendy thing to do, not only for young people, but older generations are also catching up and recognizing the benefit of exercising as well.
The Chinese government also recognized the importance of exercising and has implemented free public outdoor gyms at almost all the parks and residential communities.
What does this have to do with brands?
While there are still plenty of petite people in China, there is also a significant increase in demand for “larger sized” products and brands should consider this when allocating stock or deciding which products will enter the market.
Growing up, and even now, it can be hard to find clothes and shoes that fit me, especially trendier items. I often saw clothing and shoes from popular brands that I liked, but they never had my size. It would be great if more brands in China offered tall sizes like they do here in the US.
One brand that has always been my favorite is Nike. Not only because the NBA boomed in popularity in China when I was younger and images of legendary players wearing the coolest Nikes while jumping in midair has been embedded into the souls of a lot of young Chinese boys, but because Nike always had American-sized shoes.
Growing up with size 12.5 feet made it hard to find shoes in China, but Nike stores always had my size, naturally making me a loyal fan and customer of the brand.
While apparel and shoes are the obvious industries that should take note of this trend, the automobile industry is another one.
With the horrible traffic in big cities like Beijing, a comfortable car is a must. For me, western brands have always been my favorite because they are spacious and fit my tall frame.
For example, Buick. When the Buick regal entered the Chinese market in 1999, it took the Chinese consumer by surprise with its large legroom and most importantly very wide seats. I clearly remembering sitting in the rear seats of my dad’s Regal and falling asleep as comfortably as if I was on a cushy sofa.
Key takeaways:
- Chinese consumers have gotten a lot taller, and it is likely they will continue to get taller as Chinese parents are willing to spend on the highest quality food and nutritional products for their children
- Brands need to recognize this and start adjusting their inventory and offerings accordingly
- Brands can also leverage this phenomenon to create marketing content that resonates with taller consumers and makes them feel recognized.
