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Daniel Zipser

Senior PartnerShenzhen

Leads McKinsey’s consumer and retail work in Asia; advises Asian and multinational companies on growth and performance, bringing deep expertise regarding Chinese consumers

Daniel leads McKinsey’s consumer and retail efforts in Asia. He works with local leaders to transform their businesses by driving profitable growth in China and delivering successful global expansion. He also works with some of the world’s largest consumer companies to drive their performance in China and throughout Asia.

He began his McKinsey career in the Frankfurt Office in 2001 and transferred to the Shanghai office in 2007. He led the Sales & Marketing Practice in Greater China between 2010 and 2015 before assuming leadership of the firm’s consumer and retail work in Greater China and across Asia since 2020. Daniel works with a broad set of consumer companies spanning beauty, apparel, fashion and luxury, food and beverages, and automotive. His primary focus is sales and marketing, but his client work often spans broader, more holistic topics including digital, organization and operating-model design, and operations.

He is a frequent author, publishing articles to help companies better understand consumers in Asia and specifically China. He also publishes a regular LinkedIn blog where he explores consumer and retail trends across Asia with a focus on China.

Published work

Getting Granular: In Search of Pockets of Growth in China,” McKinsey & Company, July 2024

China Brief: Consumers Are Spending Again (Outside of China),” McKinsey & Company, April 2024

What can we expect in China in the year of the dragon?,” McKinsey & Company, March 2024

China consumption: Start of a new era,” McKinsey & Company, November 2023

China Consumption: Still Cautiously Optimistic?,” McKinsey & Company, July 2023

China Brief: China on the Move—274 Million Travelers During the May Day Holiday,” McKinsey & Company, May 2023

China Brief: The Return of the Chinese Consumer?,” McKinsey & Company, April 2023

Powering growth in China with social and live commerce,” McKinsey & Company, April 2023

Winning in China: Top priorities for global apparel and fashion brands,” McKinsey & Company, March 2023

2023 McKinsey China Consumer Report: A Time of Resilience,” McKinsey & Company, December 2022

Beyond income: Redrawing Asia’s consumer map,” McKinsey & Company, September 2021

Seven segments shaping China’s consumption landscape,” McKinsey & Company, July 2021

China: Still the world’s growth engine after COVID-19,” McKinsey & Company, November 2020

A perspective for the luxury-goods industry during—and after—coronavirus,” McKinsey & Company, April 2020

How China’s consumer companies managed through the COVID-19 crisis: A virtual roundtable,” McKinsey & Company, March 2020

China consumer report 2020: The many faces of the Chinese consumer,” McKinsey & Company, December 2019

The innovations behind China’s Singles Day shopping phenomenon,” McKinsey & Company, December 2019

Insights into China’s dynamic auto market from Daimler’s Hubertus Troska,” McKinsey & Company, October 2019

China digital consumer trends in 2019,” McKinsey & Company, September 2019

The Chinese luxury consumer,” McKinsey Quarterly, August 2019

How young Chinese consumers are reshaping global luxury,” McKinsey & Company, April 2019

Can the Chinese consumer keep the economy humming?,” blog entry, McKinsey & Company, October 2018

The global battle for the hearts and wallets of Chinese consumers,” AmCham Shanghai, July 2018

How retailers in China should restore growth and profitability,” McKinsey & Company, June 2016

Finding a cure for China’s luxury hangover,” McKinsey & Company, May 2016

Finding the fast lane: Emerging trends in China’s auto market,” McKinsey & Company, April 2016

Here comes the modern Chinese consumer,” McKinsey & Company, March 2016

Education

WHU - Otto Beisheim School of Management
PhD, finance
MA, economics and business administration