As I went to China on a cultural exchange program, we got very little time for shopping. On our last day, they kept a particular time for Walmart and other shopping centers. As I was an undergraduate student, I only took 200 dollars with me for these purposes and had to buy small gifts for everyone.
We all know China is the most diplomatic country and is a mastermind in the marketing sector. The money we took with us, didn't return to Bangladesh because their products were so eye-catching and persuasive that you had to buy their things!
As China always tries to analyze their customers' minds, on our first day, one teacher of Yunnan University took a communication class where they taught us some basic conversations. There was a segment called shopping conversion from where we only kept one sentence in our mind, "duōshâo qiàn" which means what is the price. And to survive for the rest of the conversation, I made my plan!
Whenever I asked duōshâo qiàn, they told me the numbers in Chinese which I generally don't understand. So I showed them the calculator to type the digit. If they type 40, I make it half and type 20. The vendor refused for a long time and when I tried to go to another stall, s/he shouted back showing 30. Lastly picked the product in 25, I know that's our classic bargain style from the new market!
The saddest part is, that I traveled to almost 20 spots covering 3 districts but none of them can speak English. Like from Walmart to their local vendors, I had to use google translator for any specific products. Sometimes, our volunteers helped to find our products.
As most of the time, we were in the tourist spot, mostly we got encountered their local ornaments, dresses, and bags.
To be honest, most Chinese people are so productive and they try to work till their last breath. The local ornament vendors are always engaged in their crafting while selling those things. In this traditional jewelry, they use local beads and gems which are mind-blowing! I wanted to buy their special carving jade earrings but those are way more expensive! These local vendors try to maintain the business from generation to generation. I fell in love with their engraving art on silver and metal. They tried to represent their local trading culture through these handicrafts which are spreading throughout the world!
One interesting thing is, that these local traditional items have some common patterns in their design, which can't be found in items in shopping malls. I mostly tried to collect their local products which had the indigenous touch.
As Yunnan is very diverse and full of different ethnic people, we see lots of variation in their costumes, and bags. They have very rich collections in shawl and orna and those are surprisingly cheaper compared to Bangladesh (each of them is 10 RMB=130bdt). I tried to buy some of these shawls for my family. Those are very long-lasting with so different colors.
China has a huge industry for pottery and ceramics. The way we sell aluminum hari patil in vans, they sell ceramic products in the same way. I was amazed seeing the blue and white pottery bowls which are so costly and famous in Bangladesh. I got these 3 items for 20 RMB! (260 bdt). As they are fragile and heavy products, I only bought these three pieces.
But the best part for me is their art and craft section. I literally got lost for hours in their craft section seeing those beautiful sketchbooks. I have to admit that they are the best in designing art materials and I had to hesitate for a long time to pick mine among all the gorgeous materials. From the rich collection of copic markers to pencils, all the items are so attractive.
I bought some sketchbooks, a fountain pen, ink, lead holder pencil, and a calligraphy practice sheet.
This is an epic product where you can draw strokes with water and the watermarks will turn the black! And within a minute, the color will dry out where you can paint again.
I can go on with these local products but then it will turn into a book!
So lastly, I want to say that the way they nurture their handicrafts is really appreciable. They also got full support from their government which helped them to sustain their local businesses and this support will help them to survive in the long run!
