With Chinese New Year upon us, tradition will see many of Asia’s people considering their chances of a prosperous year ahead, and maximising the chance of one that is full of good fortune.

This year’s Spring Festival begins Friday, when the current Year of the Rooster will be replaced by the Year of the Dog. If you want to stay lucky this year, then you could follow these Chinese traditions.

Spring clean your house

In the run up to the Chinese New Year, it’s believed to be fortuitous to thoroughly clean and declutter your house to get rid of stagnant energy. But this must be done beforehand, as cleaning during the holiday can bring bad luck.

Hang red lanterns

In Chinese culture, red is the color of happiness and celebration, and around Chinese New Year, the colour can be seen everywhere.  Hang red lanterns in your doorways, put red cardboard decorations on your walls, and even wear red to attract positive energy.

Watch Some Fireworks

In Chinese lore, firecrackers were used to scare off Nian, the evil spirit. On the first day of the New Year the beast would wreak havoc in villages, so the tradition is to bang drums and use fireworks to scare the Nian away. Fireworks are a big part of New Year festivities, with impressive displays put on in major cities.

Give Red Envelopes With Money

Called hongbao in Mandarin, or lai see in Cantonese, these little red packets of cash are often given to children, family and friends during the Chinese New Year. The envelopes should always contain new banknotes and the sum should be an even number, but not denominations of four – because the Chinese word for four sounds like the word for death.

Time with the Family

Chinese New Year is about spending time with family. Hundreds of millions of people travel before and after, which is considered to be the largest movement of humans on Earth. Central to family time is the New Year feast, also known as the “reunion dinner.”

Certain dishes are eaten for their symbolic meaning and some are part of traditions going back thousands of years. Fish, spring rolls, dumplings and noodles each have significant meanings in different regions. Mandarin oranges and tangerines are known as ‘Good Fortune Fruit’ and are eaten to bring fullness and wealth, so eat plenty.

We hope our guide has been useful. To avoid the need for luck altogether, our advice is to consider the global supply chain solutions that Uniserve Group are providing to some of the world’s leading brands.

For further information on how we can help you to add leverage to your supply chain please email info@ugroup.co.uk or call 01708 259400.

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