by Chen Jiaqi

 

SHANGHAI, Nov. 8 (China Economic Net) - As the birthplace of Indus Valley civilization, Pakistan is rich in cultural IP. Is it possible for them to take root in the Chinese market? The China International Import Expo (CIIE) offers a solution.

 

The monthly sales of the related products of a seemingly ordinary doll cat showcased at the CIIE on Taobao, China's major e-commerce platform, are more than 3,000 items. Who would have thought that the prototype of this cat is the Egyptian Gayer-Anderson cat housed in the British Museum, 8,000 kilometers away from China? Chinese people do not need to go to the British Museum, instead they only click the mouse to buy the cultural and creative products developed by the British Museum.

 

 

"After we’ve got the IP of Gayer-Anderson cat, the treasure of the British Museum, we carried out further development to make a cute version of the Gayer-Anderson cat," said Zhu Yixuan from ALFILO BRANDS in an interview with China Economic Net (CEN) at the CIIE.

 

 

 

Nowadays, the cute Gayer-Anderson cat is among the star IP of the British Museum and they’ve made a lot of money. The monthly sales of its related products, including scarves, ornaments, weather forecast bottles, on Taobao, are over 1,000 items.

 

So why are the cultural and creative products developed by the British Museum sold in China and favored by Chinese consumers? "About five years ago, by chance, we signed an agreement with the British Museum to obtain its exclusive IP operation and authorization in China. We help them cooperate with Chinese brands, develop cultural and creative products, promote them in China and realize the commercialization of art products," said Zhu Yixuan.

 

 

 

Which products in the museum can get more popular once they are developed into creative products? Zhu Yixuan told CEN that the Egypt-related products are well received, as their artistic and mysterious elements are the selling point. The themes of paintings by artists like Van Gogh, Monet and Mondrian and fairy tales like Alice in Wonderland, Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, are favored by Chinese consumers. These original manuscripts are collected in museums. We conduct research and development of beauty products with cosmetics companies on fairy tale themes popular among girls.

 

 

 

Today, museums in China are entering cultural and creative era. For example, the Palace Museum and the National Museum of China have launched stationery, makeup and other creative products that blend cultural and fashion elements to attract the young while generate revenue for museums. Currently, the Palace Museum's flagship cultural and creative store has 4.5 million followers on Taobao, while the British Museum, operated in partnership with a Chinese company, has 2.16 million followers on Taobao.

 

Since the British Museum's creative products are favored by Chinese consumers, can Pakistan, with a longer history, try to create creative products? As the birthplace of the Indus Valley civilization, Pakistan is home to one of the oldest civilizations in the world. In addition, the Mughal art and architecture are globally recognized, so the related royal products have the potential for IP development. The ancient city of Taxila is the world-famous center of Gandhara art and one of the destinations during Xuanzang's journey to the west. Chinese people are familiar with the story of Xuanzang, and the legendary Tianzhu, the destination of Xuanzang's journey to the west, is full of mystery to the Chinese. In addition to the IP related to the ancient Silk Road represented by Xuanzang' Pilgrimage, Pakistan also has the Lahore Museum and the Peshawar Museum. Can Pakistan cooperate with Chinese companies to develop cultural products and promote them in China to achieve a win-win result and generate revenue?

 

In this regard, Zhu Yixuan said that at present, it has cooperated with the British Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, the National Gallery and others for exclusive authorization and operation in China. We hope to cooperate with museums in more countries around the world. "We are very interested in cultural exchanges and blending. For example, a cultural cooperation program between the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Shanghai Museum has been launched with the theme of cultural blending. We hope there will be more such cases in the future."