How Brand China Can Succeed

HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL—China has come a long way during the past decade. Its double digit economic growth rates—especially for a country of over a billion people—have been enviable. China has become factory to the world. The Chinese are rightly proud of their achievements and the 2008 Olympics promise to be China’s coming out party, much as the 1994 Barcelona Olympics helped Spain present itself to the world as a modern, up-and-coming member of the European Union.

However, a series of recent setbacks threaten China’s new and improving image. As a result, China looks like a country that loves the world’s markets but does not play by the world’s rules. China is hardly alone in these behaviors, but its size as the third largest economy in the world now commands attention—and the expectation of better behavior. Read article.