(ASIA) STRATEGY
How is DUMPLING different from other agencies, consultancies, strategists, trend forecasters, cultural researchers, design firms, futurists?
DUMPLING runs on the signals we read and the strategies we recommend to our clients. If we tell a client through DUMPLING Agency that people in Asia want to rely on their kampung (village) again, we build that way too. That's why we built DUMPLING 100 and have a rolling open call to join our village. Asia has many companies past their 100th birthday, still run by the families that started them, and we want to help build brands that last that long, which is why we started DUMPLING Ventures. As a mother, Jess holds the wellbeing of the future generation forever in her heart, which is why we started DUMPLING U.
Our answer to that question
Skin in the game
HOW WE HELP BRANDS
HOLISTIC
LANDSCAPE
SEE THE WHOLE SYSTEMBefore we move, we map everything the brand sits inside: competitors, categories, the people it serves and the ecosystem around it. Nothing in Asia moves alone.
Market and competitor insights
Consumer and category trends
Brand and ecosystem audits
COUNTER-FORCE
STRATEGY
EVERY FORCE HAS A COUNTEREvery signal has a force pushing back on it. We map the tension, then build strategy and tactics in the white space between the two.
Tension mapping
Strategy and tactics
White space analysis
BRAND
REGENERATION
PLAN THE NEXT CYCLEBrands move in cycles. We read where yours is, picture the futures ahead of it and build the pipeline and the world that carry it into the next one.
Scenario planning / foresight
Innovation pipeline
Design / creative world-building
METHODOLOGY TOOLKIT
Our own tool for seeing which signals are gaining ground in Asia and where your brand can stand.
Long conversations with the people who run your category in each market, drawn from our DUMPLING 100 village. They tell us how decisions are really made.
Conversations with the people who buy and use your category, run in their own language by researchers from their own market.
We spend time in homes, shops and kitchens to see how people actually live with your category, not just how they say they do.
We walk the streets, malls and markets where your category shows up and note what is selling and what people queue for.
In a few days we turn a question into something people can react to, like a mock product or a packaging idea. It is quicker and more honest than a survey.
We bring your global, regional and local teams into one room with the evidence, so everyone leaves with the same view of what happens next.
Once interviews show what matters, a survey tells us how much and to whom. We run it market by market with local panels.
We track what people say about your brand and category on the platforms that matter in each market, from Weibo and TikTok to Naver and LINE.
We look at what people search for, how it has changed and how it differs by market. Search shows demand before anyone is asked.
We keep watch on early signals across society, technology, the economy, the environment and politics, in Asian languages as well as English.
We take the two biggest uncertainties facing your brand and build four possible futures. Then we test your strategy against all four.
We look at an issue on four levels, from the headline to the systems, worldviews and stories underneath it, to see where change would really have to happen.
A simple grid of four ways to grow, with existing or new products in markets you know or markets you do not. It forces a clear choice about where growth comes from next.
We read the pressure in a category by looking at the power of suppliers, buyers, new entrants and substitutes, and how hard the rivals compete.
A review of context, consumer, competitor, company and collaborators, so nothing that shapes your position in a market is missed. Most Holistic Landscape work starts here.
QUESTIONS
Who leads the work?
Jess Tang, DUMPLING's founder, leads every project. She was Head of Asia Insights in the consultancy business of WGSN, the global trend forecasting company, and is Resident Futurist at a Fortune 500 hospitality group.
Which markets do you cover?
Our 13 core markets are China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, India, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines and the United Arab Emirates. In each one we work with people from DUMPLING 100 who live there and speak the language. Through the wider network of our village, we can also reach markets beyond these 13.
What kind of brands do you work with?
We work with brands in the same fields our village knows first-hand: food and drink, hospitality, retail and other spaces, beauty, health and wellness, fashion and luxury, art, music and design, sports, and play, from games and toys to entertainment. Most are global brands that want to grow in Asia, or brands from Asia that want to grow across the region.
What does a project look like?
Our work follows three pillars. Holistic Landscape shows where your brand stands, through market insights, trends and brand audits. Counter-Force Strategy finds the tension your brand is best placed to resolve and sets out the strategy to get there. Brand Regeneration looks ahead, with scenarios, new ideas and design. A project can be one piece from one pillar, such as a trend report, or run through all three, and we choose the methods from our toolkit to fit your question.
How do we start?
Write to Jess at jess@dumplingand.co. We will set up a call to understand what you need, then send a short proposal with the scope, the timeline and the investment.