Quite a few countries in Europe have been gradually ending the state of emergency and easing COVID-19 restrictions. The situation is instead critical in Shanghai: as Coronavirus cases increased in the last few days, authorities declared the start of a large-scale lockdown this week, in line with China's strict zero-COVID strategy to stamp out infections.
At first authorities stated they weren't entering a lockdown, but only closing housing complexes to test residents. Then a two-phase lockdown was announced with the Eastern half of Shanghai closing at 5 a.m. Monday for eight days of mass-testing, while the Western half will follow on Friday for four days.
After authorities announced the lockdown, people started panic buying. Shops and markets also extended opening hours to cope with the demand. While those who test positive are sent to hospitals or quarantine centers (where living conditions aren't often ideal as spaces are cold and men and women are quarantined together), irrespective of the severity of symptoms (also mild or asymptomatic Covid cases are sent to quarantine centres), people who are waiting to be tested must stay at home. There has therefore been a demand for deliveries that also caused a shortage of delivery drivers.
This is not the first time that residents are left without food in a lockdown in China: late last year Xi'an experienced food shortages during a lockdown.
People started complaining on Chinese social media platforms asuch as WeChat and Weibo about the current situation in Shanghai, questioning the government's ability to provide the city with enough food while also drawing humorous comparisons between fresh vegetables, that rapidly became difficult to find and purchase, and luxury products. Some users also posted images of vegetables packaged in boxes from famous luxury houses including Hermès and Prada.
Luxury houses are actually playing an active role in supplying fruits, vegetables and other basic groceries, albeit only to their VIP customers. Porsche Club, the official club for all Porsche owners, sent its local customers food baskets with fresh apples and celery; Cartier sent takeaway meals from the prestigious restaurant Yongfu, a Michelin-starred high-end eatery specializing in Ningbo cuisine; Bulgari offered takeaways from fine-dining chain Shilu and Louis Vuitton boxes of desserts.
Some of these meals - at times including 10 courses and expensive foods such as mackerel, croaker, cuttlefish and king prawns - are ordered by sales associates and sent to wealthy clients.
At the time of writing, there is even a dedicated hashtag on Weibo's Hot Trend List with more than 120 million views (#ShanghaiLuxuryStoresWereExposedToMaintainingCustomerRelationshipsWithGroceries)
In many cultures offering food is an art based on the best ingredients around and for most luxury houses (especially those ones who own restaurants, cafes and pastries shops), food is part of the luxury experience. In this case, giving food, though, is a way to keep your customers, something perfectly understandable after the fashion industry has been hit by two years of pandemic and now, indirectly, by the war in Ukraine and the sanctions on Russia.
Preserving their customers' loyalty is certainly crucial for these luxury brands. That said, there's enough material here for a dystopian work of fiction about some apocalyptic situation in which, while in some places in the world people may be starving or caught in a conflict or panic buying, in another place, wealthy luxury customers get their meals or baskets of food delivered at their doors for free by fashion houses.
As Germany prepares an emergency plan to manage gas supplies as it could ration power if a standoff over a Russian demand to pay for fuel with roubles disrupts or halts supply, you wonder if one day, in the next emergency awaiting us, VIPs customers will be offered other complimentary services by luxury houses. Food for thought, food for thought (pun intended).
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