Brands from around the world are keen to appeal to China's evolving middle market. But what do Chinese people want from foreign brands, and how do they choose between them? We spoke to marketing professor Lily Dong to find out.

Chinese consumers are buying up luxury goods both domestically and abroad at an unprecedented rate, and there seems to be no limit to the growth in their luxury purchases. But the question remains – why do they buy?

Luxury brands have enjoyed a meteoric rise amongst the expanding Chinese middle class, but with anti-corruption laws dampening the spirits of conspicuous consumers, shopping habits are shifting dramatically.

Though mainland China's luxury market is slowing down, Chinese shoppers still account for a large portion of the worldwide luxury market. Could market calculations be missing out statistics like these? Do mainland markets no longer represent a population's habits?