Above, all of the name brand paper joss items available for this week's Qing Ming Jie or Tomb Sweeping Day when Chinese burn items to send to ancestors in the afterlife. Qing Ming is now big business.

China is the second largest economy in the world and every significant brand's future is impacted by its growth (or collapse)—but who's got the time?! Here's the week's reads that will make you look like a keen China observer in case you find yourself immersed in a cultural conversation.

This week: Apple still in trouble... China's anti-"fixie" rhetoric... infant formula saga... Celebrity China clout... PETA... counterfeit beer... Porsche... Startup Asia 2013... fly home to vote... "Baidu Glass"... W Hotels... McDonald's... Iron Man 3 to World War Z... cheap Bollinger... iPhone joss... "vulgar" Birkin brand... and more.Continue reading...

The death of Jean-Louis Dumas, former CEO of Hermès, on Saturday raises questions about the future of the family-held luxury brand.

As the Wall Street Journal notes, Dumas rejuvenated a brand that got its start as a saddle maker. WWD noted his contributions to growing the company into a global powerhouse, hiring Jean-Paul Gaultier as designer for women’s ready to wear in 2004 and expanding into emerging markets including Asia.

A fifth-generation member of the Hermès family, the 72-year-old Dumas was its patriarch and kept dozens of family members around the company's managerial ranks. Son Pierre-Alexis Dumas still works as artistic director. 

However, when Jean-Louis stepped down as CEO four years ago, outsider Patrick Thomas was hired, signaling a shift of more than just bloodlines.Continue reading...