Chinese in Guangzhou Go Nuts Over Snoopy

0 Comments | Insight on the News, July 2, 2001 | by Stephen Goode

On the revolutionary front, readers of this column no doubt will be fascinated to learn that an opportunity to purchase 8-inch-tall Snoopy dolls at McDonald's restaurants in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou led to rioting this spring. The rioting was followed by enterprising Chinese turning big profits on the much-desired dolls.

It all started when McDonald's fast-food sites in Guangzhou began offering the dolls for 10 yuan, or about $1.21, apiece with the purchase of a "value meal" as part of a two-days-a-week promotion, according to a dispatch from Reuters that quoted state-controlled media.

The trouble began when stocks of the Snoopy doll dwindled rapidly after entrepreneurially minded customers started picking up six and more, hoping (evidently) to sell the cute and popular dog later at a big profit. The front window of one McDonald's was smashed, according to reports, and unhappy Guangzhou residents hit McDonald's hotlines with loads of complaints after having queued for hours without getting a stuffed Snoopy.

Parents complained loudly that their children's education was in jeopardy, since disappointed youngsters who got anything less than a complete set of six dolls were becoming so depressed they couldn't continue their studies. A headline in Southern Daily, a newspaper, lectured: "McDonald's please pay attention to public morality. McDonald's don't make mischief anymore." Meanwhile, the Website, www.sina.com, reported that enterprising citizens of Guangzhou were selling Snoopies for about 50 yuan, or $6, a big markup over the cost of the doll at the restaurant, even when the cost of the meal purchase is taken into consideration.

Let us hear your ideas for this feature. Write to Insight, For the People, 3600 New York Ave. N.E., Washington, DC 20002. Or fax us: (202) 529-2484; E-mail: editor@insightmag.com