Ling and Chun are going steady in Jilin.
Ask girls in low tier cities what makes a good husband, and the answers are pretty consistent.
“He’s got to have a good job and an apartment,” says Lin, 24, a sales clerk in Xuzhou. “Looks aren’t that important.”
But when it comes to boyfriends, that’s another story.
“Most important, he’s got to be good to me,” says Lin. “Plus he should be good looking.”
Low tier youth may be conservative at heart, but with marriage further off on the horizon than it was for their parents’ generation at their age, a culture of dating to have fun is developing before these 20-somethings in lower tier (smaller) Chinese cities tie the knot.
Live for today
Jun, 19, is a student at Hunan City University, and she plans on letting her parents choose her husband even though she is dating on her own now.
“My parents know what’s best for me,” says Jun.
Traditionally low tier youth marry young for stability, and arranged marriages are still common practice.
“Our younger customers are very practical,” says Ms Li, proprietor of Beautiful Wedding Dress bridal shop in Jilin. “They marry older guys for money.”
But today’s young bucks need to work longer and harder to meet the necessary requirements for marriage, and parents and kids are more open minded about relationships. So many low tier youth are marrying later.
My girlfriend buys me clothes. I buy her cute trinkets all the time.
— Bai Song, 21, student, Dongbei Electric University
“My customers are mostly 27 or 28 years old,” says Ms Li. “They waited to find the right guy.”
That’s a long time to wait for a little loving, and plenty of Jun’s classmates don’t. Business is good for an increasing number of cheap campus hotels, or ‘love hotels’, where students can escape their packed dorms and shack up for around RMB 50.
Low tier youth often feel that their future holds stress and responsibility. They want to enjoy themselves now, spending on things like entertainment and travel. So they seek out partners that can provide good memories, even if they can’t provide for a family just yet.
Ling and Chun, 21, study together at Dongbei Electric in Jilin. They’ve been dating for a couple of years, and plan to marry some day.
“But I need a career first,” says Chun. “Right now we’re happy just to be together.”
The consumption connection
Clothing and personal grooming are important for singles on the prowl, and industries are developing in lower tier cities to meet the needs of the growing young, single class.
“A guy has to have clean shoes,” says Lin, 25, a boutique clerk. “He has to take care of himself.”
More than merely looking good for each other, “gifting” has become a prominent behavior for lower tier young couples, although they aren’t breaking the bank, preferring smaller tokens of affection.
“My girlfriend buys me clothes,” says Bai Song, 21, student at Dongbei Electric University. “I buy her cute trinkets all the time.”
Believe it or not, snacks are an important category for couples. Snacking is considered more of a female habit, so a guy has got to stock the cupboard for his lady.
“When I go for groceries I get chips and chocolate for my girlfriend,” says Bai Song. “I don’t usually eat that stuff.”
And while they don’t represent a big category as far as gifting goes, sex shops are also on the rise.
“Hey, nobody is going to talk about this with you,” says Mr Xu, proprietor of a sex shop in Jilin. “But we get plenty of young people in here. I wouldn’t have opened this place if I thought I was going to starve, you know what I mean?”
