A pair of small slippers can move a big industry. Slippers are a major traditional pillar industry in Jinjiang Neikeng, with foreign trade as the main force driving the development of the slipper industry. However, this year, affected by the COVID-19, the time for enterprises to return to work and production was later than in previous years, the number of foreign trade orders decreased significantly, the production capacity declined significantly, and the employment was tight... These became the difficulties that slipper enterprises had to face.
It is self-evident that Jinjiang slipper enterprises are under pressure, but there is not a lack of opportunity. Externally, open new channels for online live streaming sales, deeply explore the domestic market, and cultivate new driving forces for development; Internally, continue to increase research and development efforts, control costs, and increase efficiency.
At present, it seems that active self rescue has achieved certain results, but through this epidemic, we have to face up to this industry with a history of over 40 years of development again. It still lacks strong risk resistance ability, and the entire slipper industry system is still not perfect. Seeking higher quality development requires the unremitting perseverance of Jinjiang slipper enterprises.
Double pressure bearing
The significant reduction in foreign trade orders, significant decline in production capacity, and tight employment... These words were frequently mentioned in an industry dialogue with organizations and enterprises such as the Jinjiang Slippers Alliance, Fujian Xinfucai Transfer Technology Co., Ltd., and Fujian Jiayi Shoes Industry Co., Ltd. when a group of people from the China Plastics Association Plastic Shoes Special Committee recently arrived in Neikeng, Jinjiang.
Indeed, the impact of the epidemic on foreign trade enterprises is widespread. The Jinjiang slipper industry, which mainly focuses on foreign trade, is no exception.
So far, compared to the same period last year, sales in foreign trade have decreased by 50% to 60%. For Fujian Zhenlong Shoes Co., Ltd., which focuses on high-end outdoor slippers, the European and American markets are an important market. "Compared to Southeast Asia and other markets, the European and American markets have been the most affected this year, and many orders have been suspended since the beginning of this year." Zhang Zhenjie, the general manager of Zhenlong Shoes, admitted.
A person in charge of a slipper enterprise who did not want to be named told reporters that its company regards Southeast Asia and other important markets in the foreign trade field, and its business has also been affected. The overall business of the company has decreased by about 20% compared to last year, It should be said that as long as foreign trade is conducted, enterprise orders are affected. The size of the impact this time is mainly related to the foreign trade market area of the enterprise's layout, as well as the competitiveness of its own product market, such as price and product quality. "The person in charge of the enterprise said.
For the vast majority of slipper companies, order crisis is a challenge they must face directly; For companies with relatively ideal orders, the issue of employee turnover cannot be ignored.
At present, our orders in August and September have been saturated, and the factory is also operating normally, but the employment problem is still very prominent. "Zhang Mingji, the general manager of Jinjiang Jixing Shoes Co., Ltd., told reporters that in March and April of this year, due to the sudden intensification of the foreign epidemic, all orders were suspended, and it was not until mid May that they were able to recover, There used to be a big problem with employment in the industry, but now the sudden changes in orders have led to a higher employee turnover rate, making the issue of difficult employment even more prominent
Many enterprises in the industry have also expressed that they have encountered the employment problem mentioned by Zhang Mingji. In addition to the employment pressure caused by the epidemic, labor competition among industry enterprises is also a major issue. "Zhang Mingji admitted that there are several other major slipper production areas in China, which also have labor difficulties. The competition for wage sources between different regions will inevitably become more intense, and labor competition among enterprises in this region is also inevitable, The direct result of employment difficulties is the increase in labor costs, which has indeed brought challenges to the operation of enterprises
Due to employment issues and industry transformation and upgrading, many slipper companies are considering investing in automation equipment. "There are still some difficulties in achieving automation in the slipper industry, after all, the exploration of automation in the Neikeng slipper industry has just begun." Zhang Wentong, Chairman of the Jinjiang slipper alliance, told reporters that there is an opportunity to organize the Jinjiang slipper alliance and go to areas such as Jieyang that have already begun to try intelligent production for exchange and learning, Learn their employment methods and introduce intelligent equipment into the pit to reduce employment pressure.
Testing e-commerce channels
Under the predicament, Neikeng slippers began to seek various ways to break through, and the top priority was to exert force on the channel end.
Since the beginning of this year, live streaming sales in Jinjiang have become popular in various industries, and more and more companies in Neikeng slippers are also "testing" online live streaming sales, choosing to "switch from foreign trade to domestic sales" and focusing more on domestic business, in order to seek more business opportunities.
In May, the "Source Good Goods Made in Jinjiang" Chinese slipper town Neikeng held a special live broadcas event. Neikeng slipper enterprises collectively appeared on the live broadcas platform, and the enterprise leaders transformed into internet celebrity anchors to bring goods to netizens. It is worth mentioning that 21 enterprise live streaming rooms have been set up in the live streaming base of Jinjiang Slippers Alliance, providing free use for enterprises, building software and hardware platforms for enterprises, and providing training courses for employees of slippers enterprises.
In April, at the Jinjiang Shoes (Online) Expo, many slipper enterprises participated in the exhibition as a group. "This time, nearly 30 enterprises of our slipper alliance participated in the online expo and moved offline business to online business, which is a new attempt for most of us." Zhang Wentong told reporters that foreign trade orders accounted for most of the production of slippers in the pit, and the COVID-19 really brought crisis to enterprises, But opportunities often arise during crises, and we need to try more new business and sales models
Zhang Wentong is also the general manager of Fujian Meikaiyuan Shoes Co., Ltd. He told reporters that Meikaiyuan has developed 15 products suitable for online channel sales in order to better integrate into online exhibitions. "We have always been doing offline products and taking the offline channel, and this is also our first attempt at online transformation. However, how has the effect been? At least we have taken the first step
Increasing investment in e-commerce channels has been a focus of Fujian Zhenlong Shoes Co., Ltd. this year, In recent years, Myanmar has been a relatively important market that we have been paying attention to. This year, the epidemic has indeed affected our offline business volume in Myanmar. However, through online e-commerce live streaming, sales in the Myanmar market have increased by 50% year-on-year since the beginning of this year
However, Zhang Zhenjie also admitted that many orders this year are mainly from domestic e-commerce brands, and slippers have entered the off-season of sales. "It is expected that the slippers business will still be not optimistic in the second half of the year, and we still need to closely monitor the market, actively seek opportunities, and 'generate blood' for enterprises
For the layout of the e-commerce field, some industry insiders have pointed out that live streaming outlets are short-term benefits after all, and how to make such benefits continue to work needs to be considered by enterprises.
Continuous R&D and innovation
If "testing e-commerce channels and converting foreign trade to domestic sales" is a breakthrough for slipper enterprises, then "continuous research and development innovation, cost control and efficiency improvement" can be called a breakthrough for slipper enterprises domestically.
Just this year, Fujian Jiayi Plastic Co., Ltd. made another major investment by renting a 1500 square meter site at Landport as a research and development center, and purchasing over 10 million yuan of machinery and equipment, increasing its technological research and development. At present, the R&D center has a mature new product that should be available soon. "Zhang Nianbo, Chairman of Jiayi Plastic, pointed out that EVA material has always been the core of Jiayi, and its application is very extensive. It can not only be used for slippers, but also extend many things and even replace many products, Our vision should not only focus on slippers, but also broaden our horizons. Only by stepping out of homogeneous competition can we have greater development space
In Zhang Nianbo's view, in order to be competitive in industry, core technology is necessary. In times of crisis, it is necessary to invest in product research and development, and to move towards the mid to high end in order to develop. "Raw material manufacturers actually need to be at the forefront of innovation and transformation. Material manufacturers have revolution, and manufacturers can be more innovative. Only then can the entire slipper industry chain achieve transformation and upgrading, and achieve high-quality development
Huang Weibing, Director of the Plastic Shoes Special Committee of the China Plastics Association, pointed out that continuous innovation is inevitable. Nowadays, consumers value product quality and functional attributes more than before. "Products are still the foundation of everything, and products cannot do without research and development and design. We hope that the Jinjiang slipper industry can increase investment in product research and development, and improve the inherent added value of products through innovation in functional new materials, new processes, etc
Continuously developing and innovating to enhance product market competitiveness, while also controlling costs and increasing efficiency has become a consistent approach among many slipper enterprises.
Thanks to the EVA granulation plant invested in 2017, Jixing Shoes has been able to better control the operating costs of the enterprise. "Currently, the granulation plant can achieve a production capacity of 5000 tons per year, which not only meets our own slipper production needs, but also partially sells to the outside world, reducing costs and generating income." Zhang Mingji told reporters that since the beginning of this year, the internal focus of the enterprise has been more on controlling costs and increasing efficiency, We will streamline some production processes and improve employee productivity
Meikaiyuan Shoes Industry has also increased its efforts in internal cost control and efficiency improvement this year. "In fact, we started lean management a few years ago, and this year we further increased our efforts. Cost control and efficiency improvement is not an easy task, and many internal established links are difficult to change without opportunities. We have also taken this opportunity to carry out multiple institutional reforms
Extended reading area linkage or the next step in slipper development
Through this epidemic, we have to face the problem of Jinjiang slipper enterprises still lacking strong risk resistance capabilities. Industry insiders point out that developing enterprises in groups and increasing regional linkage between production areas is a good direction.
In the view of Huang Weibing, the director of the Plastic Shoes Special Committee of the China Plastics Association, Chinese slippers do not have a significant competitive advantage in the international market. After all, countries such as Brazil and Russia have already made slippers to the extreme, and even plastic slipper luxury brands have emerged. A pair of "crystal" slippers can be sold for several thousand yuan, Most of China's slippers are still at the mid to low end level, with homogeneous competition and significant growth potential, including brands and the application of new materials
Huang Weibing pointed out that after more than 40 years of development, Neikeng slippers have gradually moved out of the family workshop production model and towards unity and standardization. From design and development, mold production, raw and auxiliary material supply to production, packaging, marketing, e-commerce, logistics and other aspects of the complete industrial chain, professional division of labor is clear, collaborative ability is outstanding, and the scale is constantly expanding. However, they also face competition with other slipper production areas in China, such as homogenization competition The same issues as price wars, mold hoarding, and confusion in the use of production systems are good directions for enterprises to develop together and increase regional linkage in production areas
Huang Weibing's viewpoint has been recognized by industry insiders such as Zhang Nianbo. Before Jinjiang, companies used to do their own things. In the past two or three years, the awareness of developing together has become stronger and stronger, and the establishment of the Jinjiang Slippers Alliance is one manifestation of this. In Zhang Nianbo's view, peers are not necessarily competitors, but rather their own mirrors. The regional linkage between production areas is a necessary path that must be taken, We will learn from each other's strengths and make up for our weaknesses, and work together to improve our technology research and development, production processes, and other aspects to fight against the international market
We have established the Jinjiang Slippers Alliance and reached strategic cooperation through the Jinjiang Slippers Alliance and different platforms to help enterprises connect more resources. We have also set up slipper pavilions specifically at the Jinjiang Shoes and Sports Expo and the Canton Fair, where many enterprises gather to participate. The number of signed orders, visitors, and transaction fees have all reached historic highs. "The reporter learned from the Jinjiang Slippers Alliance that in recent years, the Neikeng slippers industry has cooperated with universities and scientific research institutions, We have continuously made breakthroughs in technology, equipment, talent, and research and development. We have also invited Jinjiang Buying and Toushi think tanks to monitor the current situation of the slipper industry, and have established talent cultivation platforms such as the Land Port Maker Space, College Student Entrepreneurship Park, and "Crowd Maker School". We have established e-commerce talent incubation bases based on relevant universities to help slipper enterprises expand their e-commerce marketing channels. With the efforts of all slipper enthusiasts, Neikeng has also been awarded the honorary title of "Chinese Shoe Capital · slipper town".
After years of adjustment, the development model of Tuan Tuan has been recognized by many slipper enterprises. "It is evident that the industry is developing more healthily, and the vicious competition between enterprises has decreased. Through cooperation between government and enterprises, more effective resources have been connected to assist the development of the enterprise. Jinjiang Neikeng is continuously expanding the slipper industry through Tuan Tuan development, continuously improving the awareness, reputation, and loyalty of slipper products
From "unknown" to "astonishing", the scale of the industry continues to expand, and how should the development of inner pit slippers go from now on? Neikeng Town also has plans to play the leading role of the Jinjiang Slippers Alliance, implement the "Six Ones" improvement project for the slippers industry, cultivate a number of scientific research bases, leading enterprises, and brand products by creating an industrial park, a professional market, and an internet platform, accelerate the upgrading of the entire chain and process, and establish the brand of "China Slippers Famous Town".
