On 21 August the press conference of the 3rd Germany-China Brand Summit, together with the International Brand Communication Symposium, was held in the rotunda lecture hall of the library at the Communication University of China. The event was jointly hosted by the General Management Office of China Media Group, the Communication University of China, Brand University of Applied Sciences, the German Federal Association for Economic Development and Foreign Trade and the International Academy of Brand Science, bringing together government representatives, academics, leading entrepreneurs, senior experts and major media from both countries. As a national benchmark platform for brand exchange, this edition of the summit runs venues in both China and Germany.
Building on the long-standing economic and trade relationship between the two countries, the summit examines international brand communication, digital industrial upgrading, low-carbon and sustainable development, cross-border investment compliance and the low-altitude economy — connecting strong companies on both sides, helping Chinese brands go global with quality, and helping German brands deepen their presence in China.
Opening addresses: new opportunities for German-Chinese brand cooperation
Representatives of the co-hosts each spoke on the significance of German-Chinese brand exchange from the perspective of their own field.
ZHANG Shuting, President of the Communication University of China, said that brands are an important vehicle of national soft power and that building international communication capability is central to the global development of Chinese brands. The university will continue to draw on its academic strengths, work with industry, academia and research on both sides, explore new paths for international brand communication, and build bridges for research, talent development and practice.
SHE Xianjun, Deputy Convener of the General Management Office of China Media Group, said that as the largest, widest-reaching and most diverse first-class international media organisation in the world, China Media Group uses its reach and influence in service of the national brand strategy and supports brand growth across every sector. Beyond helping brands grow in the Chinese market, the group is building two-way exchange platforms in the global communication landscape.
LIU Pingjun — Chair of the Advisory Group of the ISO Technical Committee on Brand Evaluation, former Deputy Director of the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine, and adviser to the International Academy of Brand Science — traced the history of the China Brand Day proposal. As a member of the 12th CPPCC National Committee, he submitted the proposal in 2015; in 2017 the State Council formally designated 10 May each year as China Brand Day, and the proposal was named one of the 100 most influential proposals in the 70 years of the CPPCC. Refining brand evaluation systems and building international consensus on brand evaluation, he argued, is an essential foundation for German-Chinese brand development.
Michael Schumann, Chairman of the German Federal Association for Economic Development and Foreign Trade, took part both on site and online. German manufacturing and brand development, he noted, rest on mature experience, and the industrial chains of the two countries are highly complementary. The association will continue to connect German companies with the Chinese market and promote brand cooperation in intelligent manufacturing, new energy and advanced equipment.
SHAN Fan, founding President of Brand University of Applied Sciences, spoke on building brand as an academic discipline and training talent for international work. A German-Chinese contemporary artist, member of the Free Academy of Arts in Hamburg and recipient of the German government's Order for Art and Science, he said brand development depends on creative talent and that he hopes to deepen cooperation between German and Chinese universities.
Symposium sessions: industrial application and international practice
The press conference was accompanied by a session of thematic presentations from senior figures in their fields.
XU Changdong, President of the Entrepreneurs Association of the Western Returned Scholars Association, spoke on international practice in the low-altitude economy, setting out the global opportunities in this sector and the routes to brand building and cross-border cooperation.
LI Lelu, partner at ADVANT Beiten, addressed foreign investment review in mergers and acquisitions, drawing on cross-border investment cases between China and Germany as professional guidance for overseas acquisitions and compliance.
SHAN Yubing, Chairman of CHOREN Industrietechnik, spoke on efficient clean fuel gasification technology: development, direction and purpose in meeting international goals for low-carbon, sustainable energy and chemicals, and on the global outlook for green low-carbon technology.
Participants included China Railway Rolling Stock Corporation, Sinopec, China National Offshore Oil Corporation, TCL and CHOREN Industrietechnik, alongside media including China Media Group, Xinhuanet, People's Daily Online, Economic Daily, Workers' Daily, China Energy News, China City News and China.org.cn.
Looking ahead: a lasting platform for brands in both directions
ZHANG Hongming, Vice Chairman and Secretary General of the Organising Committee, presented the preparations, positioning and priorities for the year. As a national benchmark platform, he explained, the summit follows a model of launching in China and holding the main summit in Germany: following this press conference, the main summit will take place in Berlin on 14 December.
The summit concentrates on artificial intelligence, intelligent manufacturing, the low-altitude economy, new energy, green and low-carbon development and cross-border compliance. Its central output, the Germany-China Brand 30 Report on Outstanding Brands, will be published at the event, setting out how benchmark brands in both countries have grown, their experience in international communication and cases of industrial cooperation.
Looking forward, ZHANG Hongming said, the organising committee will maintain a standing two-way exchange system: regular government and business visits, industrial matchmaking, academic discussion and brand development activities that connect policy, industry, academia, capital and media — strengthening the foundation of German-Chinese brand cooperation and deepening work in artificial intelligence, intelligent manufacturing, new energy, the low-altitude economy and green chemicals.