From June 17th to 19th, the 10-day China Ceramics Network “Channel Fission, Market First” terminal research activity • Xuzhou Station is in full swing.
In just three days, as a member of the research team, Brother Chan and his colleagues non-stop interviewed ICC tiles, Ouwenlai tiles, Mango tiles, Jinyi ceramic tiles, and No. 1 marble tiles , Guanzhu Ceramics, Champion Ceramics, Nobel Ceramics, Elizabeth Ceramics, Li Home Ceramics, Xinzhongyuan Ceramics, Xinruncheng Ceramics, Marco Polo Ceramics, Juncheng Ceramics, Senni Ceramics, Matti Ceramics, Gold Medal Asia There are 18 tile brands of ceramic tiles and European and American ceramics and 1 building materials and home furnishing store of Shenghui Decoration City (Shenghui Group).
After in-depth research, Brother Chan has made three discoveries, or immature ideas are more appropriate.
NO.1The biggest threat to dealers
If you want to ask what is the biggest change in the construction and ceramics industry in the past two years, it is probably the fission of channels - the emergence of finishing channels, the rise of complete decoration channels, and the increasing importance of designer channels... With the channel fission caused by these channels, retail channels are shrinking day by day, and most retail-oriented ceramic tile brands and ceramic tile dealers are inevitably deeply affected.
Nobel Ceramics Xuzhou Branch Manager Chen Huan
Based on the data told to Brother Chan by several ceramic tile dealers interviewed, it can be concluded that the share of each channel in the Xuzhou ceramic tile market: the complete decoration and fine decoration channels account for about 50%, and the designer channel (including the whole case) Accounting for about 10%, imported ceramic tiles account for about 10%, while retail channels only account for about 30%.
Shenghui Decoration City Gelichrysanthemum
What is the specific situation of the assembly channel?
Xuzhou is roughly the same as many places across the country. Although the renovation is popular among young people who are increasingly becoming a mainstream consumer group, during the actual implementation process, it has exposed hidden problems in the one-price all-inclusive package, such as delayed construction, after-sales gimmicks, formal design and even substandard quality of building materials. There are many unsatisfactory problems, coupled with the endless phenomenon of decoration companies closing down and running away with money, it cannot really become the only choice for people to rest assured.
Elizabeth Xuzhou dealer Liu Shan
What about the hardcover channel?
Xuzhou, which was rated as a second-tier city in 2018, has already become a general trend. In June 2018, the Xuzhou Urban and Rural Development Bureau issued the "Notice on Further Strengthening the Supervision and Management of Decoration and Decoration of Public Buildings and Finished Housing", requiring that "from October 1, 2018, land newly transferred or allocated for residential projects in urban areas All new commercial housing (except villas) must be built as finished housing; by 2020, the proportion of newly built commercial housing in the city to the area of newly built housing will reach more than 50%." Of course, a finished house is not the same as a finely decorated house, but it does include finely decorated houses. In view of this situation, some of the ceramic tile dealers interviewed estimated that:Coupled with the already existing finely decorated houses on the market, the proportion of finely decorated houses in Xuzhou will be as high as 65-70% in the future.
Sun Xiaoxiao, Xuzhou dealer of Xinzhongyuan Ceramics
Therefore, many interviewees, including Ren Baohua, Xuzhou dealer of Guanzhu Ceramics & Champion Tile, believe that the biggest threat to ceramic tile dealers in the future must be the hardcover channel. Ren Baohua even said bluntly: "Although the whole decoration is also squeezing the market share of ceramic tile dealers, it will not threaten survival. But once the proportion of fully decorated rooms reaches such a high level, dealers will really have no chance of survival." ”
The best way to resolve threats is toTurn threats into opportunities. Faced with the general trend of fine decoration, ceramic tile dealers should make arrangements as soon as possible: those with certain strength should actively intervene in regional fine decoration channels to get a share of the pie; those who do not have the conditions to directly engage in fine decoration should also actively intervene in the manufacturers' fine decoration. Channels, actively transform from dealers to service providers, do not miss any possible opportunities, and strive for even meager profits. Survival is the first priority.
Zhang Jianjun, Xuzhou dealer of Li Home Ceramics
What about the dealers of ceramic tile brands that lack the strength to enter the fine decoration channel? Sorry, if you don't want to wait to die, you can only find a solution through other channels.
NO.2Retail channels still have success
In the environment of channel fission, the frustration of retail channels has become an indisputable fact. Apart from positive changes, ceramic tile dealers who are unable to enter the finishing and assembly channels have no other better way to deal with it.
How to change?
Get up wherever you fall, still start from the retail channel, and use all available forces to do omni-channel retail.
First we must see hope.
Firstly, there is still a long way to go for the growth and maturity of the channels such as assembly and engineering centralized procurement, and there may even be the possibility of repetition and reversal, such as large-scale assembly Decoration companies have gone bankrupt and withdrawn from the market due to various reasons, and finely decorated houses have been temporarily suspended due to various problems; Secondly the country's gradual and in-depth advancement of new urbanization construction and the "One Belt, One Road" strategy will bring New development opportunities and markets will come; Thirdly my country’s first batch of commercial housing was built in the 1980s. According to the housing renovation cycle of 10-15 years, a large number of old houses have now reached the point of “replacement”."Decoration" years, along with the huge demand for renovation and decoration of old houses.
Xinruncheng Ceramics Xuzhou dealer Zhang Jinling
Secondly, we must adjust our mentality.
Attitude determines everything. The impact of mentality on a person is incredible. A good mentality determines the growth of performance. Whether it's a pessimistic look with a frown on your face or a stubbornness that doesn't want to make any changes, it's a bad mentality. Since the status quo cannot be changed, and since there is still hope, why not face the challenge with a good attitude? One of the important criteria is to judge whether a dealer has a good mentality and can keep up with the correct strategic pace of the manufacturer. Many interviewees believed that dealers who do well are those who actively implement and enforce manufacturer policies.
Juncheng Ceramics Xuzhou dealer Dong Jiaohe
Finally, have the courage to act. In fact, in the face of channel fission, a considerable number of ceramic tile dealers are not really unable to see future trends and lack new ideas and methods. They just dare not try to change. However, if you don’t try, you will never succeed; if you don’t try, you will always stay in the present.
Zhao Yu, General Manager of Marco Polo Xuzhou Company
First, you must be willing to pay what you have to pay. Let’s give a vivid example first: Some people who open restaurants are reluctant to turn on the air conditioner because business is not good. They say that the worse the business is, the more they need to control costs. However, they may not have noticed that if the air conditioner is not turned on, the few customers who may come to eat will not enter the store, resulting in worse business. This is called a vicious cycle. Let’s take another example from the building ceramics industry: During the survey, Brother Chan found that Dong Jiaohe, a Xuzhou distributor of Juncheng Ceramics, and Zhang Yujun, a Xuzhou distributor of Senni Ceramics, both renovated their stores in the face of severe market conditions. They said that renovating the store will play a significant role in stabilizing performance. If the store is not renovated, the impact of adverse market conditions will be greater.
The second is to take advantage of the new retail trend and make clever use of new media and new technologies. In the past, e-commerce was the competitor that ceramic tile dealers were most worried about subverting the dealer model; now, new retail upgraded from e-commerce has become a powerful tool for them to stick to retail channels. The so-called new retail is actually very simple to say. It uses new technologies such as mobile payment, big data, and artificial intelligence as well as the power of new media such as WeChat, Kuaishou, and Douyin to optimize transaction processes and improve services while reducing manpower. quality and purchasing experience, and realize omni-channel sales.
The third is to closely integrate designer channels and fully sink channels. During the survey, Brother Chan learned that those who can maintain stable performance under severe market conditions are all ceramic tile dealers who are good at designer channels and sinking channels such as communities and plasterers.
There is a way out for brands like NO.3
This Xuzhou station survey has been carried out for the third day. During the one-to-one interviews with ceramic tile dealers in the past few days, Brother Chan discovered a phenomenon that deserves attention:
In the severe market situation in the past two years, most of the ceramic tile dealers who have not been greatly affected by the general environment or have maintained stable growth in performance despite the general environment are those who have more experience as agents. Distributors of unique ceramic tile brands, namely "small but beautiful" ceramic tile brands, also known as niche brands. For example, ICC tiles, Owen tiles, Mango tiles, Elizabeth tiles, Matti tiles, etc.
Senni Ceramics Xuzhou dealer Zhang Yujun
What needs to be pointed out here is that "small but beautiful" mainly does not emphasize "small", but focuses on "beauty", that is, distinctive - just like Jinyi ceramic tiles, although they are very large in size. Big, but Brother Chan still classified it under the name of "small but beautiful". In fact, "small but beautiful" ceramic tile brands are more likely to become bigger and stronger through high profits.
Mati Xuzhou dealer Zhou Jiefei
So why can the "small but beautiful" ceramic tile brand be "uniquely beautiful here" under the severe market situation? By interviewing many dealers of "small but beautiful" ceramic tile brands, Brother Chan summed up three reasons:
First, the products of the "small but beautiful" ceramic tile brand are rich in characteristics. Even if they cannot be called trend-setting, they can escape the product homogeneity that is common in the building ceramics industry. serious phenomenon.
Secondly, "Small but beautiful" ceramic tile brand manufacturers use effective methods such as distinctive products and brand strategies to help dealers, rather than mass brands In that case, either low-priced products are used to attract dealers to ship goods, or "administrative means" are used to suppress dealers from placing orders.
Third,What kind of manufacturers cultivate what kind of dealers, what kind of dealers create what kind of manufacturers, "small but beautiful" ceramic tile brand manufacturers actively influence each other, In most cases, we can work together to develop together.
Gold medal Asia Xuzhou dealer Song Chao
Opposite to the "small but beautiful" ceramic tile brands are those popular intermediate ceramic tile brands. Due to many unfavorable factors such as the lack of product features, they are most affected by the current environment, and their dealers in Xuzhou stopped cooperating with them. For example, XX brand, XX brand, and XX brand have already withdrawn from the local market, and XX brand, XX brand, and XX brand are in trouble in the local area.
Ouya Ceramics Xuzhou Dealer Assistant Wang Jing
In order to avoid any possible trouble, Brother Chan will not give examples here, but I hope to summarize something from them. Why are these intermediate brands, which are constrained by many unfavorable factors such as lack of product features, more likely to be trapped in the current environment?
The most important reason is that they are generally not small in size. In the past, when the market environment was good, they usually lived more prosperously. Firstly, the ship turned around due to disaster, and secondly, it would not be possible to rest on one's laurels. Willing to change.
No matter how strong yesterday’s sun was, it could not dry today’s clothes. If the manufacturer is unwilling to change, the dealer will change. The result of the change is: changing the brand.
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Although the above text is mainly for dealers, it also applies to ceramic tile brands. Because what dealers need is what ceramic tile brands strive for.
"You can know the whole thing by taking a peek at it." From the situation of Xuzhou ceramic tile market, we can infer the situation of the national ceramic tile market. I hope that the information collected by China Ceramics Network’s “Channel Fission, Market First” terminal activity Xuzhou Station and these words written by Brother Chan can bring a little inspiration to ceramic tile brands and dealers.
If it can really achieve this effect, Brother Chan, as a media person in the ceramics industry, will be very happy. It is not in vain that he was once misunderstood by a restaurant proprietress as a "gas person in the ceramics industry."
For more content, please pay attention to China Ceramics Network’s “Channel Fission, Market First” terminal research activity • Xuzhou Station Series Report!
