Super affordable products have enabled the Chinese online shopping apps to dominate the US market - Shein, for example, surpassed Amazon in downloads to become the top shopping app in 2021. But just how do Shein and Temu keep their price tags so competitive? And do their low prices come at a cost?
The history of South Koreans migrating into Malaysia dates back to the 1960s. The trend continued as the two countries maintained good diplomatic relationships over the years. Koreans, like Park, sold all his assets and moved to Kuala Lumpur to start a restaurant as a retirement job. And there’s Mo, who married a Malaysian, and together they impart a holistic education to their children.
Sri Lankans Tamils began to arrive in France in the 1980s when the civil war took more casualties. Asylum-seekers found refuge in France which had friendly immigration policies. Today, France is home to 100,000 Sri Lankan Tamils with half of them based in Paris. Initially dispersed throughout the city, they begin to form networks centred in La Chappelle and within a decade the area became known as Little Jaffna, a vibrant, flourishing Parisian quarter that is now undeniably Tamil.
Now, the second generation of Sri Lankan Tamils are finding a firmer footing in their adopted country. Speaking fluent French and growing up in Paris, couples like Islaine and Ragis specialise in distinctive Tamil folk dance and more recent immigrants like Sugeetharan could be mistaken for French when he is winning national competitions in traditional baking.
In the early 20th century, Kolkata was home to 20,000 Chinese. It was India’s first Chinese community, made up of labourers who had migrated mainly from the Guangdong province. While the early Chinese migrants in Kolkata had to find work in the city's famed tanning and leather industries, newer generations are broadening their horizons.
Ethnic Chinese like Dominic Lee are continuing their family’s legacy with Pou Chong - an iconic company that introduced Chinese sauces to Kolkata. On the other hand, there are entrepreneurs like Monica Liu who is building an F&B empire with her chain of Chinese restaurants.