From "Affordable" To "Want To Buy", What Did Anta Use To Impress Consumers?

"Continuous creation of value for consumers is the meaning of all brands," from "affordable" to "want to buy", is to create value for consumers. "Always adhere to the consumer oriented, adhere to efficiency as the core, integrate group resources to create higher value for consumers". On the big screen of the first floor of Anta operation center in Xiamen, scroll the group leaders' understanding and discourse on "collaborative value year".

In the view of Li Ling, vice president of Anta group, it is the core of Anta's value retailing to let consumers find their multiple values from Anta products, from "affordable" to "want to buy".

Since the middle of 2018, the brand structure of Anta has been adjusted. In the past, only basketball category was an independent business unit. Now, comprehensive training, running and sports life have also been upgraded to independent business units.

This is a positive change, revealing the determination of Anta brand to enhance its ability to respond to market changes and grasp the needs of consumers. It is also a goal that Anta hopes to achieve through structural adjustment in the new market competition environment.

Structural adjustment, category facing consumers

Before the interview, Cai Zhi Ben, director of Anta basketball department, ran outside the office to pick up a pair of Clay Thompson's all star KT4 in 2019 to introduce this product to us.

"Consumers buy this pair of shoes, buy the star effect, buy products that meet the needs of sports, and of course get the opportunity to interact with brands, interesting and interesting." his tone is full of excitement and pride.

At present, Anta's most expensive footwear is KT4's pair of basketball shoes, priced at 899 yuan. Tsai Chi Ben disclosed that this year Anta KT's sales of basketball shoes are expected to exceed one million pairs.

In addition, Anta basketball also created a "Crazy" brand activity with IP value. In 2018, Anta ranked first in the Chinese market with the sales of 4 million pairs of basketball shoes.

These are the epitome of the success of Anta basketball department, and the successful example of "value retail" under the strategic guidance.

In order to be more close to consumers and improve efficiency, at the same time, thanks to the achievements made by Anta basketball department in the past six years, Anta has confidence in restructuring, and has launched the implementation of the division system in the whole main brand.

In the past, comprehensive training, running and sports life were mostly form of group, mainly responsible for related projects, and then handed over to shoes and kimono Merchandising Center, and completed R & D and design. After the advent of production, marketing and promotion were made by each group and brand center.

Now, most of the work outside the production can be completed within the various departments, from the front end merchandise planning, sales, brand promotion, to terminal retail, from the birth of products to the landing of the terminal, closed loop.

"Through the category system, we can integrate past horizontal concepts into a vertical domain.

For example, starting from the planning side, from the beginning of the idea to the overall landing, through the category system can make a vertical integration, integrate all relevant people together to do a project, follow up at any time, the efficiency will be much higher than before, landing will be very soon. "

Gao Zhexiang, director of Anta running category, said.

In the past, Gao Zhexiang worked in the Anta shoes Commodity Center. "I used to be part (time and energy) to run, part of it to do comprehensive training, part to do life, to cross three categories, and to switch channels at any time."

After implementing the independent department category system, he obviously felt the change. "Now we are running all kinds of people, so we will pay special attention to what the runners think and what they want."

Kai Kai, director of Anta comprehensive training division, feels the same way. "The previous department system will lead to the lack of focus and pertinence in directing strategy. All categories are too broad to focus on real consumers."

In addition to efficiency, cross sector multi link communication will inevitably damage the planning of commodity planning, reducing department and link will reduce unnecessary wastage.

The essence of the category system is to deeply understand the consumers of this category, create products that they really need and like, and convey the brand idea and brand story to the consumers to the maximum extent. This is the best explanation for value retail.

As Kai Kai said, goods will be better delivered to consumers, all consumer oriented, giving consumers more than he expected.

"At this stage, the top priority of every category of business is echelon construction, improvement of workflow, and coordination and matching of more resources to the company."

Zheng Minglian, director of Anta sports life category business department, said that the sales of sports and lifestyle categories had been greatly improved after the conclusion of the 2019Q4 ordering meeting, and sports life category was also one of the leading factors in the cooperation of big IP such as the Imperial Palace and Coca-Cola.

Strengthen product strength and enhance brand value

From the brand point of view, value retailing promotes brand strength and brand reputation through the promotion of product strength, and ultimately promotes sales; and from the perspective of consumers, value retailing means that they have been given more meaning to purchase goods not only for simple use and function, but also for getting more value by purchasing product design, ideas, stories, brands and services.

It can be said that the foundation of value retailing is the enhancement of product strength, so Anta is making all-around efforts.

Quan Kai told lazy bear sports that Anta is working with strong suppliers worldwide such as DuPont and Itou Tada to create more new materials on fabrics, so that our products can be more functional and fashionable.

In design, four categories are currently joined by foreign designers. The running Department has a senior designer from the United States and Taiwan, China, and relies on the Anta group sports science laboratory. The comprehensive training division has a design director from the United Kingdom, and a Korean designer who is responsible for different products. The director of sports life division is the designer who was born with nearly twenty years of rich experience, and also has a cooperative design studio in Korea.

In terms of basketball shoes, Anta has Robbie Fuller, a former international brand designer who designs shoes such as Rose 1, CrazyLight Boost and so on, as well as the design team in the United States and domestic designers.

Under different background talents, Cai emphasized the multiple collisions, and "after many combinations, we could collide interesting product strategies."

According to the earnings data, Anta's investment in R & D in 2018 was 5.2% of the total cost of sales, with five research and development centers in the world, including the United States, Japan, Korea, China, Hongkong and Mainland China, attracting nearly 200 design and research experts from 18 different countries and regions.

For two years, Anta's most expensive footwear products are KT series basketball shoes. From the initial KT1 to the present KT4, the price has risen from the original 499 yuan to the current 899 yuan, and even can sell higher prices. Many limited edition is being robbed, because Anta KT series products in constant iteration and upgrading, Anta team continues to start from consumers, through the development and design of products to meet the needs of consumers.

This is a proof of the improvement of retail value of products - consumers are willing to pay for better products.

Speaking of supporting several aspects of the growth of the price of the sneakers, Tsai Tsai Ben said to lazy bear sports, "first, the most direct thing is the progress of the commodities themselves.

In the past, we were confined to shoes that could only be four hundred or five hundred yuan. We were afraid that no one would buy them, but now we are not worried about that at all.

Of course, goods also contain design itself.

Second, Thompson's star rating is improving, which has added value to our brand.

Third, marketing will play more and more.

We will bring more interesting things to consumers and believe they are willing to pay the bill. "

In June 2017, Anta basketball KT "Crazy" China started formally, and traveled to more than 100 colleges and universities in 12 cities. "Crazy" micro-blog related topics read hundreds of millions of people.

The total number of live broadcast of the last event was over 30 million, triggering nationwide basketball fans' attention and popularity.

Take KT4's All-Star section as an example. The magic stickers that can be created by consumers on their own shoes, specially designed shoeboxes and Thompson's cartoon dolls, enable consumers to "bask" their own purchases on social media. This interaction is more and more valued by Anta.

"Do more products that enable consumers to show off and have a sense of topic."

Zheng Minglian's conclusion is more direct.

Gao Zhexiang, director of running department, believes that more interaction with young people, through some interesting or artistic things, to communicate and contact with consumers, let them feel the difference of Anta products.

The joint name of IP is a way Anta hopes to create topics and produce stories.

Last year, Anta and the United States launched the NASA theme product series. At that time, Anta did not start in the traditional line shop, but chose to sell 10000 pairs on the Anta group's electronic business platform.

Within two hours, the product was sold out.

In the past two months, Anta has worked with man Wei, Coca-Cola and the Imperial Palace to launch cross-border sales of products, and has received positive response from the market.

Take Anta x winter otter merchandise the Imperial Palace special edition shoes as an example, through the Imperial Palace's "overweight", more consumers understand Anta's "overbearing" shoes series, and then will be interested in other styles of overshoes or other products of Anta.

In the process of implementing the value retail strategy, the price range of Anta's products is becoming wider and wider, starting to explore its own price ceiling and providing products that are more valuable to consumers.

Last year, KT3-Rocco opened a limited sale in the United States, priced at $166, causing thousands of local consumers queuing, and the Internet was nearly $10000.

When it comes to the fact that some commodities have already competed with the international first-line brands, Tsai Chi Ben stresses that the "cost performance" does not only mean cheaper prices, but also provides more value at the same price when talking about Anta's cost performance advantages.

"The international brand also has 899 shoes, but consumers may buy a pair of shoes without any story or color matching.

The materials we use will be better, playable and value-added.

Cai Zhi Ben said, "the first thing for Anta basketball to increase its market share is to go to their market.

We want consumers not to buy their low - priced shoes and choose Anta's high-end products. "

Terminal upgrade, focusing on consumption experience and interaction

In addition to the value of products, consumption is also a part of retail value for the consumption process of stores, electricity providers and logistics.

At the end of 2018, Anta opened third smart stores nationwide in Tianjin. On the basis of the original eight generation image store, it added four "intelligent functions" such as cloud storage rack, pressure bar interactive screen, Anta excellent Mall and instrument shoes.

At the time, Li Ling, vice president of Anta group, told lazy bear Sports: "Anta's retail way is" value retailing ".

Specifically, it is matching goods and experiences in the space of understanding consumers.

Let customers buy impulse when they shop.

In 2018, Anta's eight generation image store accounted for nearly 50%, and realized the same store business growth of more than 22%. This is a direct change brought about by the upgrading of store image, and also the best feedback for consumers to experience consumption.

Just last month, Anta's first new nine generation shop opened in Chongqing. This new store that emphasizes "digitalization", "youthful" and "professionalization" represents Anta's brand new retail image.

"Consumer spending scenarios are changing. We have to keep pace with them."

Li Ling said to lazy bear sports that not only the establishment of self service cash register system, the reduction of customers' waiting time, but also the upgrading of cloud shelves, richer information, and more mobile screen system, enabling consumers to clearly understand the function of shoes and wall products.

The reporter has learned that the nine generation shop has set up exclusive experience area -- starting from the doll represented by Anta's core culture KT (Claire Thompson), combining with the original design style of FATKO, designing and producing a series of KT related derivative products.

This is not only a carrier of perfect combination of youth and sports, but also a platform for young people to interact with each other, and a place for KT fans to exchange.

On the opening day, Luo Yu, more than 20, was a fan of Clay Thompson.

"This store is very cool, and more importantly, there are KT clubs. All kinds of KT elements are equipped. I like it very much. It doesn't feel like a retail store!"

She said excitedly.

The store manager also said that a week after its opening, thousands of KT fans came to "punch cards", including consumers in Shanghai and other places.

From the organizational structure to the product to the channel terminal, we can see that in the process of emphasizing "value retail", Anta is improving its internal skills in all directions. This is also consistent with Li Ling's saying, "the pformation of sales mode should also be based on the needs of consumers. In the new era, consumers have never seen any explosive pursuit of Chinese brand remolding, consumers are happy to see our changes, and we are willing to pay for this kind of innovation."