The impact of economic liberalization on marketing practices in the People′s Republic of China

Abstract

China′s ambitious economic reforms, which began in the late 1970s, were designed to revitalize existing enterprises. As part of this reform, various Western marketing practices were introduced into the economy. Since the current Chinese economic system is a hybrid, combining elements from both planned and market economies, the role of marketing in this setting may be quite different from that in Western countries. Through an analysis of empirical data collected from 282 Chinese enterprises, explores the adoption and nature of marketing practices among Chinese enterprises and the extent to which they differ between the state‐owned and collective/privately owned enterprises; between enterprises in the coastal cities and inland cities; and between small and large enterprises.