Five major development directions of China's stationery market in the future
2006-05-15
The stationery industry is the fastest growing and most complete industry in China's light industry. The capacity of China's stationery market has exceeded RMB 100 billion. In recent years, the development pace of the stationery market has been above 10. With the development of the domestic economy and the increase in the group's purchasing power, the development of the stationery industry will be accelerated. Many large foreign stationery manufacturers and distributors have set foot in the domestic market, taking a fancy to the broad consumer market prospects of Chinese stationery.
The development direction of the stationery industry
If the development of the stationery industry is divided into the primary stage, the competition stage and the mature stage, the stationery industry has now entered the post-competition stage, that is, gradually Entering the era of branding, the competition method in the stationery industry has shifted from single price competition to multi-faceted brand competition in service, management, shopping environment and other aspects. Faced with a wide variety of stationery products, consumers have more and more choices to choose from. The influx of foreign competitors will continue to intensify the competitive pressure on the entire market, and future competition will become more brutal.
At present, the market development of the stationery industry is highlighting five major characteristics:
1. Large market potential and increased purchasing power. Our country currently has about 190 million primary and secondary school students, about 40 million college and middle school students, about 5 million adult students in school, and about 34 million leaders of enterprises and institutions. The development of society requires further enhancement of the cultural and educational quality of the people, and investment in education has increased significantly. The stationery industry has a very broad consumer market.
2. A diversified and multi-level consumption structure for stationery products has been formed and is developing towards high-end products.
3. With the development of computer network technology, traditional office and study methods have undergone new changes.
4. In terms of commodity circulation, foreign-funded enterprises have entered the wholesale and retail industry, such as Wal-Mart, Yichu Lotus, etc., and they also have strong development momentum in e-commerce. Last year, the opening of “an international office supplies flagship store chain” in Shanghai intensified the brand flagship competition in the industry.
5. Government procurement has expanded from trial operation to general practice. Higher-value office supplies such as copiers and fax machines will soon be included in the scope of government procurement, and ordinary office supplies will also gradually be included in the scope of government procurement.
As stationery stores and specialized markets mature, the influence of the wholesale market gradually decreases. This requires the management level and service content of operators to be extended to the top. Brand-based mid-to-high-end products will become the mainstream of consumption. In addition, as people’s awareness of environmental protection increases, non-toxic and recycled stationery products will also be used. will become the mainstream of consumption.
The development barriers of the stationery industry
As a rapidly emerging light industrial product in China, the stationery industry plays an increasingly important role in the international market. Every year, no less than 1,000 domestic stationery companies participate in international and domestic stationery industry exhibitions or light industrial product exhibitions. The stationery industry made in China is displayed to the world in a colorful manner. According to statistics, there are nearly 5,000 professional stationery manufacturers in China, about 3,000 companies specializing in the production of office stationery, and about 10 companies with annual sales of more than 10 million yuan. Traditional office and related stationery is still the key to the development of domestic stationery companies. The reason is that the domestic economic level is still relatively low, labor is cheap, and competitiveness is weak. Traditional stationery still has a huge consumer market, which is what traditional office stationery depends on for its survival. soil.
However, in the process of industrial development, domestic stationery has inevitably followed a vicious cycle of competition, lacking clear and orderly regulations, single product lines, low-price competition, and serious waste of resources. etc., have become barriers to the development of the current stationery industry, seriously restricting and hindering the healthy development of new domestic stationery brands.
Mainly manifested in the following aspects:
1. Single product structure and small scale
Due to the wide coverage of the stationery industry and low technical content , extremely low entry barriers, low investment, quick results, and huge demand market, etc., have led many small and medium-sized enterprises to invest in the stationery industry, and it is not limited to relatively large stationery such as notebooks, pens, photo albums, filing cabinets, etc. Industry, even stationery products as small as a bottle of glue, a box of paper clips, and a plastic ruler can even create stationery companies. More than 40 domestic enterprises have assets of no more than 5 million yuan, and many enterprises only have a single product, making it difficult to develop two or more products. These have seriously restricted the professional and branding operations of the stationery industry.
2. OEM cooperation lacks brand-led industries
Needless to say, most domestic stationery companies are still doing OEM processing and manufacturing, that is, taking orders, and they are just Processing and production of finished products, and OEM production of stationery products of other brands. This production model was necessary in the early stages of the development of the stationery industry, and was the most effective way to accumulate capital and experience. However, now that the stationery industry has become crowded, and "big fish eat small fish", if it is still just positioning For pure processing and manufacturing, I am afraid it will disappear or be annexed soon. In 1996, when the author went to Germany to participate in a stationery products exhibition, I was surprised to find that the price of the photo albums we produced were labeled with other brands, which was more than 300 yuan higher than the original price of our processing and production. We were so touched that we immediately registered the "Guangbo" trademark after we came back. Last year, a large European stationery company wanted to acquire the brand "Guangbo" for millions of yuan, but the author refused. Because I know that the Guangbo brand means not only millions of yuan, but more of a company. A “passport” for long-term survival and development.
3. Vicious competition lacking industry standards
Currently, there is no official official stationery industry association in China, which to a certain extent has led to intensified disorderly competition in the stationery industry and lack of Constraint means going your own way. At present, many private economies in the country can register a company with just a few hundred thousand yuan to produce stationery, and engage in vicious competition at ultra-low prices. There are even phenomena such as passing off inferior goods and passing fakes off as genuine. Some small enterprises The processed notebooks, books and other products are sold at trade fairs at prices even lower than those of waste paper, which seriously affects and restricts the pace of branding of domestic stationery in the international market. It is reported that Ningbo City is now planning to establish a stationery industry association, which will play a key role in guiding Ningbo's stationery industry base to a certain extent.
4. Pan-international culture in the stationery industry
Most of the current stationery industry companies are linked to the international market, so there are many slogans about "going abroad". But what is the reality? As we all know, the stationery industry is a low-cost, low-tech light industry. Only by relying on high value-added branding operations can companies maximize profits. Therefore, this is also the first choice for many domestic stationery companies to become the OEM of well-known international stationery brands. Therefore, the internationalization of the domestic stationery industry by “going abroad” is a pan-international culture.
Before joining the WTO, domestic large and medium-sized enterprises were exclaiming "the wolf is coming", but one year of practice shows that the "wolf" is not as scary as imagined. But in a certain aspect, the opening of the tariff door is not just a "crying wolf" alarm, but a flood. The stationery industry can deeply understand this after more than a year of practice. Because only floods can make many domestic stationery companies rise and rise. Dozens of well-known domestic stationery companies have all experienced the baptism of the international market, but it still takes a process to truly become international.
Brand Breakthrough in the Stationery Industry
Economists believe that the most essential change in China’s economy in 2002 is that as the world’s largest emerging market country, China’s economic and social transformation is accelerating. Market forces are becoming increasingly powerful. This adds a lot of color to the increasingly prominent symbol of "Made in China".
Under the pattern of global economic integration, capital always flows to countries and regions with low production costs. Last year, China surpassed the United States and became the country that attracts the most foreign direct investment in the world. American multinational companies have moved their factories to China, which has caused a crisis for American small and medium-sized enterprises. According to Baltimore carton manufacturer John Pauley, not long ago, one of the company's largest customers moved its factory to China. Without this customer, his annual sales of $10 million suddenly dropped by 30%. It can be said with certainty that China is different now than before. In the final analysis, the globalization between China and the world is two-way. Europeans and even Americans always emphasized that the Chinese should adjust and adapt to globalization, but now Americans themselves We are also facing the challenges of globalization. Therefore, this is an opportunity and a challenge for many Chinese enterprises. If they do not seize this opportunity, they will lose a lot; if they do not meet this challenge, they will only be eliminated.
Therefore, to seize the opportunities and meet the challenges, the domestic stationery industry should proactively approach the international market and implement various efforts to break through the branding of Chinese stationery.
1. Building a stationery industry circle
Looking at the country, stationery companies across the country have basically formed the Yangtze River Delta represented by Ningbo and the Yangtze River Delta represented by Shantou after years of hard work. The two major industrial circles of the Pearl River Delta. Ningbo has well-known domestic and international stationery companies such as Guangbo, Deli, Binbin, and Beifa, and Shantou has well-known brand companies such as Qixin and Yafu. However, when we see these two major industrial circles, we should also see the small stationery manufacturers that are mixed in or outside these two major industrial circles. They don’t even have brands, no environmental protection measures or are completely Hand-processed type. How to integrate these stationery industries into one, two or more large industrial circles and form a stationery industry alliance group, so that we can develop and make progress together, and compete with the large international stationery flagship stores. Only then can we obtain more labor benefits and manufacturing profits.
The stationery industry also has many related industrial chains. For example, paper products and stationery not only need raw materials that can be supplied in large quantities, with good quality, and low cost including transportation, but also need to establish a complete printing, Packaging and other industrial chains. Before Guangbo Stationery started to actually produce stationery, it was engaged in color printing and packaging, so making paper products and stationery was just a derivative.
To sum up, the construction of a stationery industry circle under global economicization is the key to the flagship development of China's stationery industry and the development of stationery branding.
2. Formulate industry standards and build networked alliances
Although some Chinese companies only limit "Made in China" to pure OEM or ODM interfaces, some Some entrepreneurs with macroeconomic ideas for global economic development are still actively seeking to shape the development of their own brands, in order to try to get rid of the constraints of being attached to the processing or semi-processing industrial chain.
The author believes that most of China’s stationery industry is privately owned or joint ventures, which are lacking in scale and specialization. Therefore, by formulating industry regulations and constructing network-based consortiums, not only can intellectual property rights be protected , avoid vicious competition, and build flagship development of stationery through reasonable division of labor and matching of interests. The "American flagship, all in one store" model can also be replaced by domestic stationery online consortiums. Of course, this is just an idea, but we can at least build multi-level collaboration. Some time ago, when Guangbo Group received an order to make more than 12 million notebooks for Iraqi students, it was cooperating with other companies that made school bags, ballpoint pens and other stationery. What was imported to Iraq during customs clearance was a complete set of student supplies. In this way, to a certain extent, a complete series of stationery is produced, and it also strengthens the overall ability of domestic stationery to participate in competition.
3. Globalization in building brand culture
When it comes to economic globalization, some people say it is trade globalization and capital globalization. These are actually superficial. The root cause is Global economic structural adjustment. If we do not grasp this global economic structural adjustment, we will lose all opportunities.
Only by placing the connotation of corporate culture in the adjustment of the global economic structure and constantly adjusting the corporate mechanism and industrial structure can we globalize the brand. What KFC operates around the world is not just a simple catering business, but an advocacy and mainstream catering culture. Limited by the inherent attributes of the stationery industry, the development of the stationery industry can only be based on "brand, market, and quality."
Domestic stationery companies are facing a lot of pressure. They are not only suffering from low-price vicious competition from domestic stationery peers, but also being impacted by the continuous penetration of international capital in the past two years. For example, OFFICE1, Spuma, etc. have already taken the lead. And opened its own chain stores in Shanghai, Guangzhou and other places. The development trend of economic globalization requires Chinese stationery companies to choose their position in the new economic structure from the perspective of the world's great division of labor and comparative cost advantages. China's comparative advantages are its increasingly mature processing capabilities in traditional industries, its large pool of cheap labor, and its mature and advanced management capabilities that are consistent with productivity.
To do a good job in the global management of brands in the stationery industry, it is necessary to do a good job in the global penetration of the cultural connotation of the stationery brand itself. This infiltration is not "borrowingism" or simple "bookism", but real cultural integration and infiltration. This is just like when a multinational group enters the domestic market, it needs a running-in period to gradually penetrate. The marketing models of KFC and other companies achieve unity through persistence and flexibility.
In 1997, Guangbo Stationery, which had already highlighted its brand advantages, seized the inevitable close trade contacts after the return of Hong Kong. It previously established Guangbo Enterprise Asia (Hong Kong) Co., Ltd. in Hong Kong to radiate the products represented by Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand. Southeast Asian consumer market communities. The Middle East is the world's largest oil production base and one of the main distribution bases for stationery consumption in the world. This is basically a paradise for Arabs, so the consumption of stationery has a different cultural trend from other countries and regions. In 1999, Guangbo Group established a company in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, which laid a good foundation for Guangbo Stationery to implement development in the Middle East. In the first half of 2003, Guangbo has seized the business opportunities of post-war reconstruction in Iraq, and its orders have increased by more than 320 yuan compared with the same period last year. The United States is one of the largest stationery consuming countries in the world. The establishment of Guangbo America Co., Ltd. in 2001 set sail for Guangbo Stationery to fully enter the U.S. market.
Through the comprehensive and successful penetration of brands, talents and culture, we believe that creating a global brand culture is the top priority for stationery companies committed to international development.
IV. International competition and cooperation between “going out” and “bringing in”
Stationery enterprises must be made bigger, stronger, and more refined, with professional and differentiated design and production will be the dominant factors in long-term development. However, how to compete and cooperate with international stationery manufacturers and buyers requires learning from and exploring a more complete development path.
Ideology determines ideas, and ideas determine the way out. The way out for the stationery industry is to closely combine "going out" with "inviting in" on the basis of consolidating the traditional foundation, and pool various resources to be pragmatic and enterprising. Find and go all out to support your own comparative advantages and development space, introduce external cooperation and internal cooperation, complement each other's advantages, and combine strong forces to move from competition to coopetition with competitors to achieve low-cost expansion.
A basic basis for our industrial development decisions is to look at issues from a global perspective. When choosing an industry or investing in a project, you should first consider the feasibility of the project from the perspective of demand and supply in the international and domestic markets, and always focus on the international division of labor. This concept of globalization is not a "flat" concept of "going to the international market", but a three-dimensional spherical concept, that is, it is not just exporting domestic products abroad or importing foreign products into the country, but also importing products from all over the world. Choose market entry points, production bases, and partners from different perspectives.
In addition, Disney must be mentioned. In reality, Disney can be said to have created a commercial fairy tale.
The industrial chain of Walt Disney Company includes four major industries: movies such as "The Lion King", "Tarzan", "Mulan", etc., and the recent "Finding Nemo" which is popular all over the world; TV such as the three major wireless networks in the United States One of the television networks, NBC, and cable television network ESPN, etc.; four major theme parks; online business, etc. Guangbo Stationery has had a lot of troubles in participating in Disney’s online business. For example, Disney’s online business procurement has extremely strict requirements for product manufacturers, including child labor, involuntary labor, coercion and harassment, non-discrimination, association, health and safety, and wages. , environmental protection, other laws, subcontracting, etc. all have extremely detailed and detailed requirements. However, after passing three nearly harsh assessments and evaluations, Guangbo Stationery was suddenly listed on Disney’s global online procurement red list. This is more conducive to the collision and integration of Guangbo's corporate culture and overseas stationery culture. We have invited nearly 50 overseas people from more than 20 countries and regions around the world, including the United States, Canada, France, Italy and the United Arab Emirates, to work for Guangbo. They provided timely feedback on stationery consumer market information on how Guangbo Stationery can tap into the local market, providing a convenient channel for Guangbo Stationery to make timely new changes in design.
The world is coming to us
Joining the WTO has become the best opportunity for domestic enterprises to cry "the wolf is coming". However, long-term practice shows that it is not the wolf that is coming, but the wolf. It is a real flood. What is worth thinking about is that in the face of the flood, domestic enterprises did not take care of themselves and did not stick to the city. Instead, they took the initiative to compete with multinational groups, actively get closer to the front lines of the international market, and find their own "carrying power" in the flood. "Noah's Ark" is gradually moving towards progress and maturity.
Not only building a network of domestic stationery chain cooperation, but also cooperating and communicating with international stationery companies, turning competition into competition and cooperation, will be China's The only way for the stationery industry to become fully globalized and branded. Therefore, only by fully and systematically predicting the development of global economic integration can we remain calm in the face of the ever-changing market and truly achieve development. (Source: HC)
Stationery market development trends
1. Multi-functionality
The new semester has begun. For students, in addition to changing In addition to new textbooks, stationery, large and small, also inevitably needs to be updated. Merchants have targeted this business opportunity and launched various novel forms of stationery, which are very popular among students. In shopping malls, we see that pens, pencil cases, measuring tools, notebooks and other stationery are not only rich in styles and have multiple functions, but manufacturers also design stationery into toys or gifts based on children's nature. Just like pencil cases, there are more than 30 different styles, some are designed as cars, some are designed as cabins, and some are printed with cartoon patterns such as Snoopy and Hello Kitty. In addition, scented erasers, beautifully packaged watercolor pens, and notebooks printed with popular cartoons such as Rascal Rabbit are also dazzling. Stores reported that these multi-functional stationery items are popular among students because they have the function of toys, are novel in form and are not expensive.
Some people say that nowadays, whether you are walking into a stationery store or a stationery store in a large shopping mall, it is more appropriate to buy handicrafts than stationery. Nowadays, there are countless varieties of pencil sharpeners alone. I saw in several shopping malls that the animal-shaped ones are cute and cute; the shellfish-shaped ones are exquisite and unique; and there are also various craft shapes, making the small pencil sharpeners not only loved by children, but also loved by adults. I couldn't help but buy it and take it home as a collection of handicrafts. Stationery supplies can be said to be as good as they can be. Craft designers spread the wings of their imagination and endow an ordinary item with various forms of beauty. Not only small pencil sharpeners, but also pencil cases with different fabrics, patterns and shapes, fruity and unique erasers, crystal clear plastic clips, etc. Traditional cultural items have disappeared. There are no traces of them, but in their place are new craftsmanship products that are hard to put down. The function of a schoolbag is no longer just for holding books. In addition to the continuous updating of fabrics, electronic watches, compasses, etc. are also added to the appearance of the bag. Vacuum massage is added to the back of the bag, and small pockets for water bottles are also added to both sides of the bag. This is really a small schoolbag with a big market.
A parent said that a few days ago, he took his son shopping. In a stationery store, his son was fascinated by a pencil box with 7 functions. Every time a button is pressed, the pencil box will Related stationery pops out, which can hold pens, erasers, pencil sharpeners and magnifying glasses, and can also be folded into a bookshelf. The price is more than 90 yuan. As soon as he saw this pencil case, his precious son refused to leave. The parents had no choice but to reluctantly buy it. The reason why children want to buy this pencil case is because they think it is fun.
2. Upgrading
Take a schoolbag as an example. In addition to its fine workmanship and elegant decoration, it also has large and small pockets designed to keep water bottles, rackets, etc. in their respective places. position, and its functions range from health massage to back posture correction. The pencil sharpener developed into a "pencil sharpener", like a piece of exquisite handicraft. Even the small erasers are endowed with rich shapes, bright colors and pleasant fragrances. At the stationery counter, some products are priced at eye-popping prices, but even so, sales of high-end stationery are still booming. Especially on the eve of the start of school, the sales of schoolbags, pencil cases and various pens are the best. Most students buy schoolbags because they recognize famous brands, and when buying pens, they also like to buy high-end products. They believe that the quality of these products is guaranteed and they have a long service life. Nowadays, mid-range products have good design and workmanship, and are also very beautiful in appearance. Judging from the actual sales of pens, pencil cases and other stationery, mid-range products also occupy a considerable part of the market, while those with simple shapes and cheap prices Low-end stationery has received little attention due to its unsatisfactory quality and has been left out.
3. Simplicity and practicality
The overall trend of stationery design should be towards simplicity and practicality. For example, pencil cases, an alternative to pencil cases, are popular for their simple design, easy use, small size and easy portability. The multifunctional pencil case, which was once very popular in the past, has a button on the left and a button on the right. It was very novel when it was first launched, but now it has no market because its design is too complicated and impractical. Also, for some loose-leaf books, students can buy loose-leaf cores and disassemble and assemble them by themselves, which is very convenient and naturally very popular. In addition, stationery production still needs to work hard on quality and establish its own brand image. Because of the excellent quality of many brands, even if the price is slightly higher, consumers will feel that they are worth the money. Like some hardcover notebooks, compared with old-fashioned notebooks, the paper is white and thick, and the printing is excellent, which has obvious advantages; another example is the gel pen, which writes smoothly and smoothly, and the refill is of good quality and will not leak oil. More marketable than ordinary ballpoint pens.
4. Toyization
Nowadays, student stationery supplies come in all kinds and varieties, which is dizzying. There are more "toy-like stationery" with many functions, the most typical of which are pencil boxes, pencil sharpeners and erasers. After a casual browse, I found that pencil sharpeners come in cabin type, goldfish type, locomotive type, animal type, car type, and amusement park type. These many styles are loved by students because they are "fun and fresh", especially a pink and transparent small house-shaped pencil sharpener that students can't put down. In a stationery wholesale store, a salesperson pointed to a car model (with four wheels and can roll) and a panda-shaped pencil sharpener and said that children like it very much. It sells for more than 20 yuan and can be used as a panda. Make toys.
Children are curious by nature, and such toy-like stationery is extremely attractive to primary school students with innocent curiosity. For merchants, this creates a big market for them. A stationery store owner said: "Toy-based stationery is the best-selling product now because it is both a toy and stationery. These stationery are fresh, interesting and exciting, so they can deeply attract the attention of children, especially at the beginning of school. The supply of these stationery is often in short supply. "According to the survey, the price of these toy-shaped stationery is generally expensive. For example, an ordinary eraser only costs about 1 yuan, but the toy-shaped eraser is sold for six or seven yuan. Some pens cost tens or even hundreds of yuan, while ordinary ones can be bought for only one or two yuan. Most parents are opposed to such stationery.
Many parents believe that once children have such toys, they will think about playing with them all day long, which will affect their learning.
Some teachers believe that toy stationery is good for stimulating students' imagination and interest in learning, but most teachers think that it is very detrimental to students. Using stationery printed with cartoons or other exquisite patterns and cute stationery is in line with children's psychological characteristics of thinking mainly in images and their love of beauty. However, the appearance design of stationery must have a certain degree. If it exceeds a certain level, it will make it difficult for students to focus on their studies, which is detrimental to students.