Blog | @creativity

About

I started as an English teacher in the university and have come across interdisciplinary areas, editing and translating architecture monograph, serving the patrons in vegetarian bistro, while working in marketing agencies serving local and international brands on insights, design and strategy. Currently, a trend and culture spotter for luxury and premium brands.
My past years of “mass” mutation have empowered me to see the clarity in the complexity with a savvy sense of culture and trends and identify the patterns through connecting the dots to help brands defy the odds in this ever-changing business world.

Europe vs. China: Different Time, Different Universes, Different Rhythms (Part 2)

Europe’s Art of Uselessness vs. China’s Practical Usefulness In my last post, I mentioned that Europe and China are living in different time spaces, with a roughly 20-year gap in digitalisation. This week, I turn to a different universe: aesthetics versus practicality. First: Lesson learned Small revelations in a vintage Paris hotel taught me that being unconcerned with making every inch of space useful leaves room for what truly matters. It began with a vintage hotel where I

gracemu1020

5 days ago5 min read

Wrap Up 2025 and Leave “Resilience” Behind

On the last day of 2025, I cooked myself a bowl of noodles in the traditional Chinese way. It was the taste of my childhood, made with: a sunny-side-up egg a handful of dried wheat noodles an abundance of tender, fresh pea shoots some soy sauce, a spoonful of rendered lard, a pinch of salt, and a touch of chili oil, mixed into boiling water to form the noodle soup Credit: Xiaohongshu The soul of this bowl of noodles is the pea shoots. In my hometown and across the Sichuan reg

gracemu1020

Dec 30, 20252 min read

Europe vs. China: Different Time, Different Universes, Different Rhythms (Part 1)

Time: Europe’s Gracefully Slow vs. China’s Efficient Fast I often slip into a kind of constant hallucination when traveling in the European continent, that familiar sci-fi feeling of being on a space cruise ship moving through time and space. Especially when I’m on the road, taking a train to the next town, hopping on a bus to the next destination, or crossing those historic streets lined with old buildings that have stood for centuries. Moments like these remind me again and

gracemu1020

Dec 16, 20257 min read

Decoding Future Retail: What Shanghai’s Most Modern, Trendsetting Stores Signal

Shanghai is a city that beautifully merges modern dynamism with historic charm. Its retail landscape is constantly evolving, driven by innovation and creativity, and often delivering surprising results. Last Monday, two designers and I, with the ambition of building the coolest stores in the city, took an unusual tour to explore Shanghai’s latest cluster of hype-driven shops. As far as we could see, a new wave of retail revolution is quietly unfolding, with many of the most

gracemu1020

Dec 2, 20254 min read

City Observer: The Magical Scent of Autumn

I still remember vividly a moment from long ago, when I first started my career working on a coffee project, helping Suntory’s RTD coffee brand enter the Chinese market for the very first time. Our team head, a true maven in branding and consumer insight, leaned over and shared his thoughts with me quietly: “The first thing that attracts you, the thing you remember most when you step into a café, is the aroma from the coffee beans in the machine. Long before you are ever enti

gracemu1020

Nov 24, 20253 min read

As the Economy Slows, China Turns Into a Paradise for the Frugal.

There is not nothing good about an economic slowdown or consumer downgrading. Yet after being bombarded with apocalyptic forecasts about China’s economy by major global think tanks over the past three years, Chinese people have finally learned how to find a small pothole to curl up in and make peace with this harsh reality. One unexpected boon of the slowdown is the incubation and mushrooming of warehouse-style discount stores that have crawled into every corner of the city.

gracemu1020

Nov 19, 20252 min read

City Observer | France: The Best Place to Taste Authentic French Gastronomy? The Marché.

Like most people who have never set foot on the land of France before, I believed the best place to experience authentic French cuisine must be in a Michelin-star restaurant in Paris, or at least at a well-known Parisian table. Listening to My Life in France by Julia Child on the flight to Europe, I fantasized that I would have the best gastronomic experience of my life in Julia’s favorite city - Paris. However, the food in Paris was a disappointment for me. I deliberately c

gracemu1020

Nov 9, 20254 min read

Two Tales of Coffee: From Milano’s Rituals to Shanghai’s Innovation

Milan was my first stop in Europe, which left me with a lasting impression that a typical European day starts with a freshly brewed cup of coffee in the morning. I stayed in a charming attic loft in a lively neighborhood near Centrale. This community is brimming with small bistros, bakeries, and a fresh market where you can experience authentic local life. Across the street from the loft was a local bakery offering a cup of espresso or Americano for around €1.5 to €2, along w

gracemu1020

Nov 4, 20254 min read

Which Matters More for a Car Brand: Building Trust or Splurging on Technology?

Not long ago, I co-drove an engaging conversation with John Jörn Stech from The Auto Ethnographer on the dynamics of global car markets — exploring the trends and innovations driving the shift from conventional cars to EVs, and the resulting impact on global giants such as BMW Group, Mercedes-Benz AG, and Tesla. (If you haven’t listened to it yet, don’t miss it. Here is link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prXpu8f4Ovk ) Credit: Luciano Consolini After that thought-provoki

gracemu1020

Oct 15, 20252 min read