Companies who “celebrate” Chinese/Lunar New Year in the name of fortune

Happy Chinese New Year!

It’s the Year of the Tiger so we can expect many brands to hop on the trend of using images of tigers and tiger prints in their Lunar New Year collections.

But when they’re also hopping on the trend of releasing products and lines to “celebrate” the New Year, what purpose does it achieve other than pandering to one of their biggest consumer groups? How can some do more for the Chinese and East Asian talent and communities other than use their design skills once a year and attempt to sell them products that only look to boost their sales?