It's been a few weeks since all that spiel about having an order of "freedom fries" to go with your hamburger. The rumblings among U.S. consumers to boycott products from
France, Germany and Russia have quieted down since the war is now all but over. But boycotts know no boundaries. A five-country Asian survey, which was conducted by Publicis
Groupe's Lee Burnett Worldwide, asked 1,000 people in China, India, Indonesia, the Philippines and South Korea about the perceived origin of 20 major brands, including Coca-Cola,
Pepsi, McDonald's and KFC. A few of the major findings:
- 65% claimed to "buy the brands I like regardless of where they came from."
- 36% of respondents in India said they rejected U.S. brands.
- 19% of respondents in Muslim-dominated Indonesia said they rejected U.S. brands.
- 13% of respondents in China said they rejected U.S. brands.