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Now for our special series on Smart Spending. The market for street culture in China is more booming than ever with the help of the internet and a young generation that's willing to learn and spend on new things. Let's take a look.
Street culture is developed from hip-hop culture, a subculture and art movement developed in the United States during the 1970s by the black people. It was introduced to China in the late 1990s with the development of the Internet, street culture is becoming increasingly popular in big cities in China. With accelerated urbanization in China, more and more people began to learn breakdancing, cycling and skateboarding, leading to huge demand for professionals.
WU ENMING PROFESSIONAL LONGBOARDER "I started with traditional skateboard when I was in high school. I moved on to longboard in 2012 and have been practicing in the past 6 years. I learned everything by myself as there were no professional training classes. Now, I develop my own skateboard brand with my partners, work as a judge in competitions and engage in commercial performance. The market is becoming larger. More and more investors are willing to spend money organizing competitions and events. Now, we have all kinds of studios providing VIP courses. These changes really made the market better and larger."
LUO ZHENFANG PROFESSIONAL BREAKDANCER "I've been dancing for about 10 years. Later on, as I moved from amateur to professional, I began to teach and engage in activity and competition planning. However, with the efforts of related TV programs and our own Underground teams, breakdance is increasingly popularized. Now, students come to our studio and directly tell us what kind of dance they want to learn. For teachers and studios, the market is a lot larger than it used to be."
WU YANG PROFESSIONAL SELF-BALANCING SCOOTER COACH "I began cycling very early in 2002. From 2000 to 2008, Trial Bike, which I was engaged in, was highly commercialized with many competitions. In recent years, I shifted my focus from being a professional cycler to being a coach for children. Many parents think that it is could help the children to have a strong body and mind. This also led to changes in the market."
Conventions have been broken up, street culture is embracing a new journey in China. Faced with an increasing larger Chinese market, what do these professionals have in mind for the future?
WU ENMING PROFESSIONAL LONGBOARDER "I will probably take my team on a video-making tour nationwide, make short videos and put them on the Internet."
WU YANG PROFESSIONAL SELF-BALANCING SCOOTER COACH "Now, I have schools in Beijing and Hohhot. My goal is to increase the number of students by 300 a year and hold 4 to 5 competitions on an annual basis."
LUO ZHENFANG PROFESSIONAL BREAKDANCER "My goal is to gradually develop such a system to nurture dancers who really love the sport and allow dancers to constantly improve their skills through competitions, which will, in turn, contribute to the development of the industry as a whole."