Direct-To-Consumer (DTC) – The Next Trend For Consumer Goods DTC: A new Sales Model for Consumer Goods Brands DTC, direct-to-consumer, refers to a business model in which brands directly sell to consumers without intermediary channels. With the help of the internet, brands establish direct connections with consumers and can directly interact with them along the entire lifecycle from marketing to service. DTC brands are not simple e-commerce companies, even though e-commerce is a popular channel they choose to be closer to consumers. Brands are able to obtain real-time and efficient consumer feedback through internet platforms, so as to acquire consumer …
Sourcing In Southeast Asia: Diversifying Your Supply Chain To Gain More Resilience
Sourcing in Southeast Asia: Diversifying your Supply Chain to Gain More Resilience Unexpected Circumstances Result in Supply Chain Disruptions With the daily number of confirmed Covid-19 cases continuing to reach record highs, China’s financial mega-city, Shanghai, is being imposed to observe total lock-down since the end of March, resulting in shortage of transport and port workers. By beginning of April, the number of ships waiting for loading and discharge at Shanghai port reached 300+, tripling usual volume. As the largest export hub of China, consequence of congestion at Shanghai port is expected to impact in the next few months. Looking …
China Industrial Policy Snapshot: Medical Equipment
China Industrial Policy Snapshot: Medical Equipment During the „13th Five-Year Plan“ period, China’s medical equipment industry has developed rapidly, with its market size has increased from 480 billion yuan (~63 billion EUR) in 2015 to 840 billion yuan (~110 billion EUR) in 2020, with an average annual compound growth rate of 12%. This fast-growing trend is expected to continue, supported by multiple drivers including an aging population, rising incomes, and the continued enhancement of health services in hospitals and clinics throughout China. However, China’s domestic medical devices are still concentrated in mid to low-end products. The localization rate of the …
China’s Two Sessions: GDP Growth and Implications
China’s Two Sessions: GDP Growth and Implications Key Implications of GDP Growth Target in 2022 Despite China’s strong rebound in 2021 at 8.1% from 2020 at 2.35%, the target GDP growth for 2022 is set at a cautiously ambitious 5.5% as announced in China’s annual “Two Sessions” legislative meetings. In translation, this growth will encompass more than 11 million new urban jobs, a CPI increase of 3%, more than 650 million metric tons of grain output, 2.8% budget deficit-to-GDP ratio, and RMB 3.65 trillion domestic investment target. These plans are critical to China’s economic and social developments in 2022, as …
China Competitor Benchmarking – Value Add, Methodology, Reference Cases
China Competitor Benchmarking – Methodology, Value-add & Reference Cases Understanding the competition in China is crucial for your business – with implications for both your China as well as your global strategy. Benchmarking important competitors or industry players in China can contribute significantly in terms of market verification, go-to-market approach and general best practice learning.Over the past years, EAC has conducted several extensive benchmarking projects covering both international as well as domestic players in various industries and across the value chain. In this context, EAC has developed a white paper summarizing key insights why benchmarking important competitors in China can …
China’s Aged Population: Favorable Policies and Economic Opportunities
China’s Aged Population: Favorable Policies and Economic Opportunities Accelerating Demographic Shift and Start of an “Aged Society” In January 2022, Chinese elderlies aged 65 and above reached 200 million – accounting for 14.2% of the total population. According to UN standards, a country with more than 7% of the population over the age of 65 is an „ageing society“, more than 14% an „aged society“ and more than 20% an „ultra-aging society“. Thus, this marks China’s official demographic entry into an „aged society“. Meanwhile, China’s elderly service resources are not balanced geographically: especially in rural areas and in the case …
China Trade 2022 – Mutual Dependency instead of Decoupling
China Trade 2022 – Mutual Dependency instead of Decoupling Despite fundamental changes in the relationship of China with the rest of the world, there is a very different sentiment when it comes to consumption patterns and purchase decisions. In 2021, China traded more with the rest of the world than ever before. We shed light on some key attention points.Six trillion USD in export and import value shows that China remains deeply connected with the global economy. Pushed by demand from the EU and US, the country recorded its biggest trade surplus to date. Consumers in both Europe and North …
Start-Up landscape India – how commpanies can enhance their innovative capabilities
Leveraging India’s vast pool of innovative Start-Ups in several focus industries Many businesses are challenged by the speed of change and innovation and are handicapped through limited internal skills and resources. Partnering and collaborating with innovative start-up companies is a viable solution – India has a pool of over 50,000 possible partners India is expected to become the world’s 3rd largest economy by 2030 and developed as the third-largest start-up ecosystem behind the US and China in 2021. India’s government has started its flagship initiative “Start-Up India” to support and nurture innovation, boost entrepreneurship and economic growth. In this context, …
Volkswagen in China’s NEV Market: Challenges & Changes
Volkwagen in China’s NEV Market: Challenges & Changes How does VW perform in China’s New Energy Vehicle (NEV) market? In 2021, Volkswagen’s new energy vehicle “ID series” did not meet the Board’s expectations. It reached an annual sales volume of roughly 70,000 cars, lower than the target 80,000. The pioneer in this industry, Tesla, performed far better – reaching a significant volume of 936,000 shipped units. Besides that, the competition did not just come from Tesla. Local new energy automakers such as BYD, NIO, and Xpeng all delivered outstanding sales outcomes of 594,000, 91,000 and 98,000 units respectively. Together these …
Digitalization – a driving force fueling global business
Digitalization – a driving force fueling global business Digitalization is at the core of most strategies. The adoption of digital technology and the creation of platform business models helps companies get closer to their customers and derive data-driven decisions. Companies are using digital technologies and leveraging mobile and cloud solutions to bring all stakeholders together on one digital platform. This digital platform economy has successfully established a new business model, contributing to more than 22% of the global retail volume. It offers 24/7 convenient shopping experiences, and collecting data points to gain better customer insights. What should the digital strategy …
The Ice & Snow Economy behind the Winter Olympics
The Ice & Snow Economy behind the Winter Olympics “300 million people hit the ice & snow” When the Chinese government bid for the Olympics in 2015, it pledged to attract 300 million new winter sports participants as part of the Olympic legacy. In 2022, before the opening of Beijing Winter Olympics, China claims that the number of people who had taken part in outdoor and indoor winter sports-related leisure activities since 2015 has reached 346 million, surpassing the initial target. The “300 million” is not only a number that shows the popularization of winter sports in China, but also …
China FDI Boom in 2021
FDI into China reaches new highs in 2021: What does it mean? How is China performing in FDI inflows? Global Foreign Direct Investment fell sharply by 32% to 1031 billion USD in 2020, according to the OECD. However, China’s FDI inflows bucked the trend and rose to 212 billion USD by increasing 14%, surpassing the US to become the world’s largest recipient of foreign capital. According to data released by the Ministry of Commerce in China, the actual use of foreign capital in the country hit a record of 173.5 billion USD in 2021 – increasing by 20% YoY. We …