BEIJING/SHANGHAI — Y&R and Sinomonitor have embarked upon a strategic co-operation to conduct proprietary in-depth research and analysis into China’s rural consumers and its changing middle class, and how its evolution is impacting their attitudes and relationship with brands. The announcement was first made to attendees of the 2012 China Media and Consumption Trend Forum held both in Beijing and Shanghai. “We are excited about this new partnership and, importantly, what it offers to our clients. Y&R is already world-renowned for its global BAV (Brand Asset Valuator) and regional Generation Asia studies, and this cooperation with Sinomonitor further strengthens Y&R’s insight armory to help give our clients the competitive edge,” said Y& R Greater China CEO Charles Sampson. Explained Y&R’s Head of Strategy Kaiyu Li, “We see an increasing demand from clients for insights into China’s rural consumers and the middle class, hence our decision to focus on these two immensely important segments. Sinomonitor is one of the best-respected marketing research companies in China, so coupling Sinomonitor’s extensive research capabilities with Y&R’s insights and analytics expertise made perfect sense,” said Li. The collaboration between Sinomonitor and Y&R will look into how demographic and policy changes are transforming rural consumers’ attitudes and behavior. With an increasing number of people working in urban centres as “migrant workers” and subsidizing their household incomes, rural consumers are upgrading their choice of products and services beyond the basics. During this transformation, they reprioritize their spending and readjust their expectations for products and services. This collaborative insight initiative will aim to identify trends that have implications for brands to communicate to this segment with growing importance to marketers. The Middle Class has also been the topic of much discussion. This is a constantly shifting segment and is undergoing internal stratification. The joint insight initiative will take a more in-depth view of the dynamics of these changes to bring out their ways of perceiving and consuming brands.