In the global Christmas supplies market, the small city of Yiwu in eastern China dominates with an 80% market share, making it the world’s largest “Christmas supplies factory.” So, how is the sales situation in Yiwu?
Zhejiang Yiwu: Christmas Supplies Exports Increase by 20%
The Christmas supplies zone in Yiwu International Trade City in Zhejiang Province gathers over 400 Christmas supplies merchants, and 80% of the world’s Christmas supplies come from here.
In a shop in Zone A of Yiwu International Trade City, shop owner Chen Xiaofang was organizing goods. The walls were filled with various Christmas products such as Christmas hats, costumes, and socks. There were over 500 different samples of Christmas hats alone. Chen Xiaofang said that over 80% of her shop’s products are exported, mainly to Central Europe, Russia, and various countries in Southeast Asia. This year’s sales are roughly the same as previous years, but the profit margin has decreased a lot due to rising raw material prices and labor costs.
Lu Minying, Merchant at Yiwu International Trade City, Zhejiang Province: The order volume has increased by 30% compared to last year, and the number of customers has also increased. This is because new designs have attracted more customers. When the Russian economy was good, most of the customers were from Russia, but now we have customers from all over the world, including Europe and America.
Lu Minying has been making Christmas trees for 17 years. Her two shops are filled with various styles of Christmas trees, from large to small, from simple to colorful with lights. She said that this year their performance has grown rapidly, mainly due to the introduction of several new products. During peak seasons, factory orders are fully booked, and they have had to turn down many orders that they couldn’t produce in time.
Ye Hang, Staff Member of the Statistical Analysis Section at Yiwu Customs, Zhejiang Province: From January to October 2019, Yiwu exported a total of 1.92 billion yuan worth of Christmas supplies, an increase of 23.9% compared to the same period last year. This growth rate is 10.6 percentage points higher than last year. The export situation for Christmas supplies this year is also very good.
Yiwu’s Christmas Products Evolve Rapidly, Innovating in Multiple Ways to Attract Orders
Currently, the number of merchants in Yiwu specializing in Christmas supplies has exceeded 500, which actually covers the entire Christmas supplies production, sales, packaging, and other related industrial chains. In addition to the continuous expansion of industrial scale, how do Yiwu’s merchants enhance their product competitiveness to capture the market?
1. Design based on user preferences
A green cedar tree with a snow-covered appearance, decorated with gold and silver bells, is a favorite among European and American customers.
Red, green, and blue lights combined with contrasting flower shapes are very popular among passionate South American customers.
In a Christmas tree factory in Yiwu, there are samples ready to be sent to customers around the world. The person in charge said that although this year’s Christmas hasn’t passed yet, they have already started designing and prototyping new products for next year. They have invested in a research and development team of more than ten people. Some of them conduct surveys, and based on the results, we upgrade our products, adding changes in lights, optical fibers, Bluetooth, music, and so on. This year, their overall performance has increased by about 10% compared to previous years.
2. Upgraded materials and craftsmanship
In addition to the appearance, the materials and craftsmanship of Yiwu’s Christmas products are also continuously improving. For example, the simplest Christmas tree ornaments now come in more environmentally friendly wood, fabric, iron, and even high-end acrylic materials, with painting processes meeting EU or Japanese standards.
Yang Yibin, General Manager of a Christmas Craft Company in Dongyang, Zhejiang Province: This wooden product is very well received in Europe and America because it is environmentally friendly and inexpensive. When our goods arrive, they are very well accepted.
Initially, the market sold PVC Christmas trees with a unit price of just a few dozen yuan, but now various uniquely designed PE Christmas trees are priced between 100 and 300 yuan. Previously, a bucket of foam Christmas balls could be wholesaled for just 10 yuan, but now a single LED light ornament can cost several dozen yuan.
Good products will see a slight increase in price, but no matter how high the price, it is still acceptable to foreign markets because they do not have the entire industrial chain for Christmas production.
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Post time: Sep-11-2024