Beauties, eyeballs and business
By Zhu Qi (Shanghai Star)
Updated: 2004-08-22 16:11

Open any web portal in China and you're sure to find a section on "Beauty". Fancy pictures are splashed on the mass media to catch eyeballs and generate traffic.

Eyeballs mean business, which is well understood by shrewd business people. International-level beauty contests have been introduced into China, a country that used to despise them as "Western cultural nonsense".

The Chinese have experienced the thrill of the Miss World Pageant at the beach of South China's Sanya, Miss China, Miss Shanghai, the China World Model Competition and the International Advertising Model Competition. Shandong is bidding - along with Mexico, Thailand and Chile - to host the Miss Universe Pageant in 2005.

A money machine has been well established for such contests. The change of government attitude is a big victory for international high profile pageants, which for years tried to persuade Beijing to their view that pageants were harmless. Mass audiences can produce fortunes for international pageant organizers and sponsors.

Many of these sponsors are the beauty products manufacturers who are eager to access China's huge market. Plummeting viewing numbers in countries such as the US have added urgency to the quest to tap untouched territory such as China, where there is a growing desire by women to look glamorous. The number of viewers for the latest Miss World is expected to reach 2.5 billion in some 165 countries, surpassing last year's 2 billion.

Local organizers and sponsors are winners, too. Organizers in the pioneering city of Guangzhou have been made rich by expensive advertisements inserted into live television broadcasts. A host of companies have been established to engage in this sector. Besides the TV broadcasts, they have created a number of related activities to attract eyeballs and cash.

These activities range from charity, environmental and wild animal protection and literacy to children's welfare. Meanwhile, such sensations do not only create sponsorship but also accommodate the still cautious Chinese Government.

Sponsors and advertisers have benefited enormously from the frequent media exposure. For instance, more than 100 beauty queens were gathered in China for the Miss World Pageant and domestic media feverishly followed their activities. Sponsors and other advertisers will have great opportunities to promote their products and improve sales. It is reported that Duoer Capsule, a beauty care product, saw its market grow by a dramatic 70 per cent the year after it hosted "Beauty in the Flower City" in Guangzhou.

On the other hand, the prosperity of the beauty sector also requires professionalism and regulation. With more international contests held in China, the governments and enterprises concerned will have a good chance to learn more about international pageant rules and to improve their operations so as to create win-win solutions.

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