Ceramic industry nuggets consumption upgrade

In the face of severe and complicated economic situation, ceramic enterprises in China actively adapt to new changes in domestic and foreign markets, focusing on technological innovation, R&D and design, and many other aspects of pioneering and innovation. The awareness of corporate innovation has been significantly enhanced, the ability to innovate has been continuously improved, and the quality of products has been continuously improved. The brand influence gradually expanded, the marketing channels continued to expand, the international market share and private label exports grew steadily, and consumption upgrades promoted the ceramic industry to accelerate its transformation and upgrade. This is the information that the reporter learned from the Ceramics Industry Annual Meeting of the 2016 China Light Industry and Commerce Association.

According to Chen Jiangfeng, vice president of the China Light Industry Arts & Crafts Import & Export Chamber of Commerce, China is moving from a ceramic trading power to a ceramic trading powerhouse. At present, China has become the world’s largest exporter of ceramics, accounting for more than a quarter of global ceramic exports for many years, and more than one-third in recent years. Chinese ceramics enjoy a good reputation in the markets of developed countries such as Europe, America and Japan, and have a relatively high market share. In 2015, of the major ceramics markets in the world, nearly 24% of imported ceramics in the United States originated in China, and 45% of EU-imported ceramics originated in China. The daily market share of China's daily-use and craft ceramics exports is even higher, reaching more than 60% of the foreign market share. In 2015, China's exports of ceramics for daily use reached 7.075 billion U.S. dollars, which was 4.26 times that of 10 years ago, 12.94 times that of 20 years ago, and 67.38 times that of 30 years ago.

With the continuous improvement of the living standards of the Chinese people, the demand for high-end ceramic products in the domestic market has continuously increased, providing an unprecedented opportunity for ceramic companies that are dedicated to the development of their own brands. From the domestic market, fresh and elegant, comfortable and fashionable, warm and modern products suitable for home life are in short supply; and due to channels, brand recognition and other reasons, many consumers who can improve the quality of life can not find the required ceramics. product.

Chen Jiangfeng said that for a long time, the domestic ceramics companies lacked understanding of the external consumer brand, one is due to stable demand in foreign markets, export orders operating norms, the willingness of enterprises to export is greater than domestic sales; second, because the domestic high-end consumer groups are small, ordinary Consumers pay less attention to the quality and brand of household ceramics. With the growth of the middle-income groups in the country, the demand for consumption upgrades has become increasingly prominent, and the transformation and upgrading of the ceramics industry have continued to deepen, and both ends of supply and demand have changed.

According to reports, in the face of weak international market pressure, China’s ceramic manufacturers have realized the importance of building their own brands and mastering sales channels. They are no longer satisfied with the production of big brands and big buyers for foreign brands, and they begin to smile. The two ends of the curve - R & D, sales continue to exert force. In R&D and design, many companies employ overseas designers to launch a large number of marketable products each year, moving from OEM to ODM. Some ceramic companies also won the international top design award - the German Red Dot Design Award. In terms of brand building, many companies have registered foreign trademarks, and have been striving to promote self-owned brand exports while stabilizing OEM production.

In addition, ceramic export companies began to pay attention to the domestic market, adhere to the "walking on two legs" and made considerable progress. In recent years, many traditional ceramic export enterprises have established sales through agency sales, establishing brand stores, online stores, and micro-stores, and have achieved satisfactory sales in domestic sales. In particular, some companies tried to sell through online e-commerce, chain stores, and other channels, and tasted the sweetness of their own brands.