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Jay Chou's wedding sparks Chinese interest in Yorkshire

Chinese interest in Yorkshire, UK surged dramatically following the recent grand wedding of Chinese superstar Jay Chou at Selby Abbey and Castle Howard.

Hundreds of fans have been swarming into Selby – a town and civil parish in North Yorkshire – clamouring to visit both venues of the superstar’s fairytale-like wedding with his model fiancée, Hannah Quinlivan.

While Selby Abbey, which is over 1,000 years old, is a historical landmark in North Yorkshire, it had never received much attention from Chinese visitors prior to Jay Chou’s wedding.¹ Castle Howard, too, has confirmed a definite spike in enquiries from Chinese tourists and tour operators after Chou tied the knot.¹

The power of Chinese celebrity influence

As popular celebrities and high profile figures in China are increasingly watched and followed by China’s ever growing online population, the impact this massive audience has on international economies is becoming more and more apparent.

From A-listers to athletes, politicians to reality show stars, celebrity influencers in Asia – particularly in China, Japan and South Korea – can significantly impact consumer trends as they are looked upon as symbols of aspiration and credible trust.

Taiwanese singer Jay Chou is considered to be one of the most influential celebrities in China, alongside top Chinese actress Fan Bingbing and Hong Kong actor/singer Andy Lau.²

Celebrity impact on international real estate

This phenomenon extends towards property too. After China president Xi Jinping’s visit to New Zealand, Juwai Co-CEO Simon Henry told the Australian Financial Review that Chinese buyers have gone from “oblivious to curious” about Tasmania, highlighting a 114% increase in searches for Tasmania on Juwai.com after the visit.

Also, after Chinese actress Zhao Wei’s purchase of a vineyard in France last year, we had a Chinese buyer on Juwai.com call us to seek assistance in buying a French winery too, solely because he saw this Chinese celebrity buy a property there.

Read more on how Chinese media and celebrities propel outbound property investment here.

Now, with so much attention showered upon Shelby, it will be interesting to see how this may influence the real estate market there.

Stay tuned for more news!

Sources: 1. SCMP; 2. Euromonitor International “Celebrity Power and Its Influence on Global Consumer Behaviour” report

[Image source: 周杰倫 Jay Chou's Facebook Page]