How Far Is China'S Local Sports Brand From International Brand?

In 2016, when the global retail industry was sluggish, China's sports market showed strong growth momentum.

The biggest sporting goods retailer in the country

The group's 2015 earnings report showed that although its core footwear business increased by only 3.2%, its agency mode was the main one.

Performance has increased by 17.2%.

Lining, who has been regarded as the benchmark national brand in China, has been profitable in 2015 fourth years after losing 3 consecutive years of losses.

The brand that came out of Fujian, the birthplace of Chinese sports brand, broke 10 billion mark in 2015, reaching 11 billion 100 million, up 24.7% from 2014.

All these data show that although the retail industry, including China, is still struggling, the sports market in China is booming.

So, how far is the local brand in the world's attention and booming sports market from the level of the international first-line brand?

Several managers who have worked in China's sports industry for more than 20 years have agreed that "they are far away." their career began in the middle of 1990s: Li Keng, general manager of the product department of an international brand, has worked in China and the United States for many years, and has been familiar with the market difference between China and the United States. He is a senior student at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, who has been in the Nike and Adidas sports marketing department for nearly 15 years. He is currently Tao Jing, director of the sports operation director of Alibaba sports company. He has been a deputy manager of the big shark basketball club of Yao Ming for 13 years as a marketing manager, and now he is assistant to the Shenhua club of greenbelt group.

In business analysis, there is an important PEST environment theory, which includes politics (Politics), economy (Economy), society (Society) and Technology (Technology).

Several industry managers believe that the difference between China and the world's sports power is the objective reason why China's local brands can not expect the first line of international brands in the PEST environment.

As we all know, athletes in China will have more brilliant achievements only when they enter the system.

This system of training the so-called "national athletes" in the whole country has been criticized for many times, but it is a policy chronic illness which is difficult to be changed in a short time.

Qian Anke, who has been in charge of commercial operations for the domestic team club for many years, said that in the US NBA and China's CBA, for example, in the US, NBA is completely market-oriented, and the government departments have no interference power. In China, though CBA is also a professional team, it may be reduced or adjusted by the basketball association because of preparing for the national team.

Correspondingly, sponsorship effects of related sports brand sponsors will also be affected.

In terms of business operation, the Chinese market also shows its huge gap.

Qian Anke said, take the US NBA as an example, they have a team leader, and a general manager who is responsible for the commercial operation of the club.

The two are independent and non-interference.

This makes the club's commercial operation not affected by too many players.

So the business operation Department not only has independent authority, but also has more diversified business operation mode.

But Chinese clubs are almost exclusively players centered, and commercial operations depend more on the performance of sports teams in the season: if the teams get good results and the sponsors are easy to find, the club's income will be good.

But there may be only one champion every season. What about the rest of the team?

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In Chinese traditional concepts, sport is just what athletes should do, and athletes are a group of "well-developed limbs and simple minds".

In the United States, from kindergarten, both parents and schools pay great attention to training their children's exercise habits and encourage them to participate in all kinds of clubs in schools.

It is these Sporting Club Hotel which run through elementary school to university, and have trained a lot of sports fans for the United States.

Many of them still exercise when they are old in Chinese traditional sense.

These sports fans not only provide a huge base for the United States to excavate world-class athletes, but also constitute a huge consumption base for sports brands.

And Tao Jing chose Alibaba as the platform operation director of high quality resources for the dream of many years.

He hopes that one day, Chinese schools will have all kinds of Sporting Club Hotel like the United States.

Chinese universities can also launch quasi professional basketball matches like American college students.

There is no doubt that if this dream can be realized, the volume of China's sports market will be astonishing -- whether it is for international brands or local brands, this is a very exciting future.

For the country, it can also excavate more Liu Xiang, Yao Ming and Li Na from this huge sports enthusiast.

The use of high technology is another aspect of domestic sports level lagging behind in Europe and America.

In the past, coaches' training of athletes depended mainly on personal experience.

Now, "it is based on data collected by various technical means, such as the monitor on the side of the court," Tao said. "Coaches in Europe and America are very good at using data.

Coaches use mobile phones and Google glasses to decompose every movement of athletes to the most detailed, thereby judging athletes' state and physical fitness.

In China, these high technologies are far from being fully utilized.

Nevertheless, several managers agree that the prospect of China's local sports brand is very optimistic.

Li Keng recalls the marathon in 2009, which he has seen in his friends circle. He recalls the marathon race he observed in 2009. "At that time, schools and governments needed special calls and organizations. The runners' clothes were also unprofessional, wearing jeans and loose cakes, and running half of them to smoke."

But today's marathon not only attaches great importance to professional training and equipment, but also takes it as a fashionable lifestyle.

This trend, which regards sports as a necessity of life, will bring more opportunities for Chinese local brands.

Today's competition is no longer the same.

Qian Anke said that when there was a football match, the individual simply went to see the ball, and the merchants scrambled for 90 minutes.

Now, "a game is like a holiday for fans and businesses."

In the evening race, there will be various kinds of business activities near the stadium early in the morning. The fans will not only participate in all kinds of sports games, but also get together with friends.

Such a mode has led to the development of the economy around the stadium.

However, the most important problem is that China's local sports brands are still on the plagiarism route.

Everyone believes that the lack of genuine spirit of originality is the biggest obstacle to China's local brands going to the world.

Li Keng said, "they must find their identity (identity)".