Summary of a number of articles in Billed Bladet #50, 2012.
All written by our man in Asia, Ulrik Ulriksen.
(This covers the actual visit. There is also an interview, which will follow later).
The purpose of the visit was to promote Danish products at the Business of Design Week in Hong Kong. Hong Kong is not only one of the main gateways to China it's also the "in-place", which the rest of China look to to and follow.
The Chinese are a bit snobbish in regards to products. Brands are very much a status symbol in China, and the more expensive the better. Some Danish companies that has had problems with the Chinese market, because even though thier product are fine, cheaper and often better, they are not exclusive enough and they are not expensive enough, so there is no status in having them and as such the Chinese don't want the products.
But exclusive brands like Georg Jensen and Royal Copenhagen and B&O sell like warm bread! (Which is also why we love Chinese tourists here in DK and are prepared to carry them from the cruise ships to the stores and back. They spend a seriously lot of money and are no trouble. Tourists from heaven!)
So the Chinese are wonderfully snobbish and having representatives from a monarchy with a 1.000 years of history helps a lot when it comes to promoting our wares. (*) Mary also made sure to wear several pieces of jewellery from Georg Jensen it has been noted.
So M&F were here there and everywhere promoting Danish goods, so it was hardly a holiday. Starting on day one with a long visit to the Danish stand at the exhibition. Then time for a lunch at a villa owned by A Danish billionaire, Hans Michael Jebsen (**). Before continuing to the local Yacht Club. (***) here they boarded a yacht and went for a cruise around the harbour.
They also posed obligingly with Frederik asking the photographers: "Where would you like us to stand in order to get the best picture"?
After this maritime experience it was off to a Nordic restaurant, where the photographers caused a short traffic jam - no doubt to the delight of owners of the restaurant.
Then it was off to Beijing and very different temperatures. Including an outdoor fashion show, where Mary was visibly freezing an certain body part off, while the Sirius-acclamaticized Frederik coped better with the minus twelve degrees C temperature, not counting the wind chill factor!
M&F also visited the Danish embassy, where the among others met the badminton player Peter Gade, whom Frederik claimed is much better known in China than the DRF. He and Peter Gade played an outside match with the Chinese player Chunlai - wearing winter coats.
The long day in beijing ended with a Christmas dinner at Kempinsky Hotel, complete with a somewhat early Lucia procession consisting of Danish children. Here Mary wore an Elise Gug dress, worth 12.500 DKK.
There were 200 guests at the dinner, who were served mouthwatering Scandinavian dishes. A couple of hours after the dinner ended M&F were on the way to the airport and on the way home. - A very busy trip!
It is mentioned en passant that the manager for Georg Jensen, Ulrik Gade Due, is a friend of M&F.
(*) I've said it before, when it comes to commerce we Danes are basically used-horsetraders and all means count. Which is why we smile all the way to the bank afterwards...
(**) In some of the pictures you can see M&F posing next to a couple. Mary in blue and the wife of Michael Jebsen with ehh, chubby knees wearing a greenish dress.
(***) Yes, we export costum build yachts to China as well.
Thanks, Fairy Tale 
