Why Chanel and Cartier are still winning China’s cautious consumers

8 Jun 2026

TD Cowen report suggests Chinese consumers may distrust property, but demand for Chanel, Hermès, Cartier, skincare, and fragrance remains remarkably resilient.

For much of the past three years, the narrative surrounding China’s consumer economy has been dominated by weak property prices, sluggish confidence, and rising household savings. While confidence remains subdued and property concerns continue to weigh on household sentiment, a new survey from American investment bank TD Cowen suggests that fears of a broad consumer collapse may have been overstated. Instead, Chinese consumers are becoming increasingly selective about where they spend, prioritizing value, quality, and categories that offer either emotional reward or practical utility.

The survey, conducted among 2,029 consumers across China in April, paints a picture of an economy operating at two different speeds. Manufacturing and exports continue to provide support to economic growth, while domestic consumption remains restrained by cautious household behavior and lingering uncertainty surrounding property prices and income growth. Yet despite these pressures, consumers are not retreating entirely. They are simply becoming more deliberate.