An Italian company in China: an analysis of Fabbri 1905's marketing strategies

Abstract

The aim of this thesis is analyzing how the Italian company Fabbri 1905 operates in China from different points of view. The company at issue operates in the food and beverage sector, directed both to end consumers and professionals. Since 1905, it sells a wide variety of products as ice-creams, syrups, jams, and liqueurs, which are usually labeled as Made in Italy. Therefore, in the first section, we present a general analysis of the market in China for these kinds of products. Selling in more than 100 countries worldwide, the thesis focuses on Fabbri 1905’s market presence in China, a profitable opportunity that brings with it some challenges. Among these, the company has to face linguistic challenges: after a general overview of the different strategies used to translate European brand names in Chinese, the thesis shows the features of the company’s Chinese name 法布芮 fǎ bù ruì and the translation of Fabbri 1905’s products sold in China. Another example of challenge that the company had to overcome is the one of counterfeit products: Fabbri 1905 took to court two Chinese companies accused of imitating the iconic Amarena Fabbri’s packaging. Additionally, we analyze Fabbri 1905’s presence on the Chinese social media: how it communicates and through which channels. Lastly, the thesis presents the way Fabbri 1905’s competitors behave and operate in China, focusing especially on the French company Monin as a successful example of online branding on WeChat.