Chinese Are Convinced 一分錢一分貨

choi

(1) The Dirty Secret of Pricing Luxury Goods in China. China Real Time Report, Apr 25, 2013 (video ONLY; no text)
http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealti ... ury-goods-in-china/
("Makers of luxury goods have found a way to add to their profits: Charge Chinese consumers more than their counterparts in the U.S. and Europe. The WSJ’s Wei Gu tells Deborah Kan why luxury cars and fashion brands are more expensive in China")

choi

(2) Mina Choi, Creating Chinese Couture. Scene Asia, Apr 25, 2013 (interview: Guo Pei)
http://blogs.wsj.com/scene/2013/04/25/creating-chinese-couture/

Quote:

"I had very few clients at the beginning, but the price I set helped. I knew if it was expensive, it meant getting one dress commission was enough to give me the space to work. I could survive by making just a few dresses.

"The focus of my work, traditional hand embroidery, was getting more expensive, and we started using imported silk. To this day, most of our silk is imported directly from Italy. [Q: Why do you get it from Italy and not China, considering China’s established silk industry?]"

Note:
(a) GUO Pei  郭培
(b) ZHANG Ye  张 也
(c) "Traditionally in China, it was prêt-a-porter that was expensive."
(i) prêt-à-porter (n; French for "ready to wear"; First Known Use 1959):
"ready-to-wear clothes"
(ii) Pret a Manger
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pret_a_Manger
(section 1 History)
(iii) French to English dictionary:
* prêt (adj, adv): "ready"
* manger (v): "eat"
* porter (v): "carry [an object], wear [clothes, glasses, jewelery]"

compare English word
portable (adj; from Latin portare to carry)
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/portable