Profiles

Car model craze in China

By Li Qian (Chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2007-05-22 16:50

Models pose for a car at the Auto Qingdao 2007 exhibition in Qingdao, Shandong Province, May, 18. [Chinadaily.com.cn]

New Trends

Besides beautiful women, foreign female and male models are more frequently seen during car exhibitions in China.

"Our foreign models are mostly overseas students studying in China's universities. Some exhibitors would like them or male models to perform," said a model manager.

But there is always noticeable contrast between booths featuring men and women -- "most visitors and photographers are men," she said.

Chinese Specialty

Having women get more attention than cars is unique in China. Most other major auto shows outside of China seldom emphasize models. The people there visit the exhibitions just to find out the latest technology and trends on cars, while visitors in China care more about the models. Some Chinese auto websites even have more photos of the models than cars.

"Models are not our pursuit but the web users'," said a photographer with a portal website. "Pictures of car models always lead to a large number of page views."

Which is why exhibitors compete at China's auto shows to employ attractive models in a bid to draw visitors' attention, though there aren't many professional car models in China. These women work for various companies when there are no car exhibitions going on, and modeling for cars is just their part-time job.

A veteran reporter who covers the car industry said that in China, people still see cars as a representative of wealth and modern lifestyle. And the popularity of car models reflects the differences between China and foreign countries in the culture of cars and people's affordability.

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