Targeting China's Well-Heeled Travelers, YUE Magazine Launches In New York

Bilingual Magazine Releases Debut Issue This Weekend Cover of the first issue of YUE magazine Wealthy Chinese tourists may love New York -- spending an estimated $877 million in the city last year -- but until now this prized demographic has often been left to its own devices when trying to find out where to go, what to see, and how to find sights "off the beaten path." Looking to educate affluent Chinese tourists on all that New York has to offer, November 12 marks the launch of YUE, a new print magazine jointly produced by the Observer Media Group and China Happenings. Covering everything from events to interviews, arts and shopping, YUE aims to give China's emerging high-end tourist a broader view and better understanding of New York, beyond the typical rushed tour group or double-decker bus jaunt. As publisher Chiu-Ti Jansen told Jing Daily this week, China's wealthy outbound tourists are currently in a "transitional period," where they find group travel restrictive but truly independent travel intimidating. With the goal of giving these travelers a solid base of understanding about what life in New York, Jansen feels YUE is a combination between a guide book and a primer on New York life. This extends in many ways to YUE's spotlight on shopping and consumer trends. Noting that more than half of luxury purchases made by Chinese consumers last year were overseas, Jansen noted that YUE also provides a bilingual platform for luxury brands to reach out to and educate the key mainland Chinese demographic. Despite the broader digital push we're seeing among luxury brands in China, print remains a highly trusted media segment in China, particularly among high net worth individuals, and luxury brands that have spent the last several years investing heavily in the China market are well represented in the pages of YUE. In the magazine's inaugural issue, advertisements for premium brands abound, with Fendi, Ralph Lauren, Chanel, Audemars Piguet, Piaget and Dior among the labels featured throughout. Special sections on new jewelry and watch trends further help illuminate visitors on new collections available in New York (and sometimes only in New York). Chiu-Ti Jansen In addition to the advertisements included in the issue, content in YUE is highly localized for a Chinese audience. With each article and event listing written in both English and Chinese, content in the inaugural issue ranges from a "Sex and the City" tour of New York to a feature on exclusive luxury watches, from a look at the Chinese artifacts on view at the Metropolitan Museum of Art to a history of Qing Empress Dowager Cixi's use of photography as an early PR tool. Reading the first issue, it doesn't take long to see that the editorial team understands the priorities of Chinese tourists in New York. Advertisements for real estate, high-end watches and cosmetics, and a feature on the Chinese pianist Lang Lang reflect the cultural and economic interests of China's affluent outbound travelers. Perhaps more than anything else, however, education, both in terms of culture and consumerism, is the running theme of the first issue and of YUE as a whole. While the magazine is not the first to attempt to educate Chinese tourists on the outside world, as Chiu-Ti Jansen told us this week, YUE is the first to be completely geographically placed, written by New York insiders and fully comprehensive. YUE will be distributed to five-star hotels and select restaurants and retailers throughout New York, as well as to around 8,500 hand-picked influencers within the Chinese-American community in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. As Jansen told Jing Daily, a significant percentage of wealthy Chinese travelers to New York stay with or visit friends in the city and surrounding areas, and as such, sending YUE to the Chinese-American community ensures even greater reach. Sections in the inaugural issue include a New York Holiday Shopping Guide, Features, Fashion & Style and "In the City," a guide to dining, nightlife, events and real estate. Initial distribution will be 35,000 copies, and the magazine will be released quarterly, although a special edition will be printed in January just in time for Chinese New Year. According to Chiu-Ti Jansen, additional editions of YUE magazine are planned for the West Coast as well, with the aim of taking advantage of surging Chinese tourism in San Francisco, Los Angeles and Las Vegas. Along with these West Coast editions, look for YUE's mobile app and website to launch next year.

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Targeting China's Well-Heeled Travelers, YUE Magazine Launches In New York