Abstract:

Youth (defined as 16-25) in Latin America is both an actor and a target of change. At that age, they are either at school (High school or University) or entering the productive world. Not only are they consumers (and vectors of fads, new values, fashion, technology) they are also the leaders of tomorrow. 15, 20 years from now, they will impose their own agenda to the world. In this globalized world, a new player has emerged: China, now competing fully with Latin America for a share of the world market. Youngsters in China are now 300 million (27 Million in Mexico, 51 in Brazil), Chinese Youth historic frame of reference is post Deng xiao Ping. They are fully immersed in China's latest revolution: Consumerism. And (a major difference from other emerging markets such as Latin America) as they enter the consumer world they lack the expertise passed on by former generations: Cosmetic consumers in China cannot refer to their mothers or aunts for advice on how to use lipstick, because their mothers and aunts never used the product! So 16-25 Chinese youth have to invent everything from scratch, not re-invent as in Latin America. This paper will present a cross-cultural study involving selected Latin American countries (e.g. Mexico, Brazil) and China to measure values, attitudes and behaviours of 16-25 urban respondents in Mexico, Brazil, and China and its possible impact on manufacturers and Brand global strategies.