On June 26, 2004, Li Ning attended the opening ceremony of Beijing Li Ning brand flagship store. Photo/Visual China
"Everything is possible", Li Ning is a well-known brand slogan.
picture/Visual China
On June 26, 2004, Li Ning flagship store was grandly opened in Wangfujing, Beijing.
picture/Visual China
1990, Li Ning sportswear became the sponsor of the Chinese team at the 11th Asian Games. Photo/Visual China He Yanguang
At the beginning of reform and opening up, the "four major items" of bicycles, sewing machines, watches and radios that were born in the 1950s and 1970s greatly improved the material living standards of Chinese people. In the 1990s, with the growth of income, the consumption concept of Chinese people began to change. From pulling cloth to finding tailors to making clothes to going to hypermarkets to buying finished clothing, they began to pursue clothing beauty and branding.
The entire 1990s was the era of "passionate burning" of China's self-created fashion brands. From a long-term perspective, the birth of the sports brand Li Ning in 1990 represents the rise of the first batch of brands that emphasize personal influence after China's reform and opening up. Li Ning, before 1990, this was the name of the Chinese gymnastics prince who won 14 world championships in total and won 106 gold medals; after 1990, this was the name of a national brand that once occupied the largest share of the Chinese sports goods market.
80s is a generation that has accompanied its growth and aging, and has been a loyal fan of the boss of this domestic sports brand. To this day, Li Ning Group is a Hong Kong Stock Exchange listed company with a total market value of RMB 15.5 billion. It has experienced both the "highlight moments" of the development and prosperity of national enterprises, and also the embarrassment of positioning encountered by the transformation of independent brands. From reaching the peak to falling to the bottom, its market share has been squeezed by international brands. It may not be easy for the first domestic brand to get up again and regain its glory.
The memory of a pair of sneakers
For Qian Xiaoma, who was born in the 1990s, his memory of the first pair of "big brand" shoes he owns is still clear, although the "big brand" of that year is no longer as glorious as before.
"In 2000, I went to junior high school in the countryside, and my father bought me a pair of Li Ning's running shoes." Qian Xiaoma recalled to the reporter that the bag containing the shoes was bright red, and it was eye-catching with Li Ning's logo. "Since then, I didn't carry my schoolbag when I went to school, so I just carried that big red bag to class. I didn't mention being too confident when walking on campus."
Qian Xiaoma and Li Ning brand are the same age: in 1990, the Li Ning brand was born, and after endorsing the Asian Games , it became popular. In the mid-1990s, the "Li Ning brand" occupied the largest share of China's sports goods and sports clothing market.
This pair of shoes is not just Qian Xiaoma’s memory. For many cities born in the 1980s and 1990s, the "Li Ning card" satisfies their first "vanity" about wearing when they were young.
"In 1999, Li Ning was the first pair of brand sneakers I wore. I was the only one in the class. It was super fashionable." Fan Fan, a girl born in the 1980s, recalled. Ms. Li, born in
html, 180s, recalled that she was still a student at that time and thought Adi and Nike were too expensive, so she bought a pair of Li Ning's sneakers. "At that time, many students in our class were wearing Li Ning's sneakers to run."was not just sports shoes. In those days, who could have equipped Li Ning with a complete set from head to toe, from clothes, shoes, socks, hats, and backpacks, almost represented the most cutting-edge fashion on campus, and of course also represented economic strength. Behind the "fashion of the times" of
is the evolution and trial and error history of the first batch of domestic self-created brands after the reform and opening up, including Li Ning.
Before Qian Xiaoma's shoes were born, the "Li Ning" who had not yet formed a brand lacked independent ability and experience, let alone popularity, and rely on OEM production. The "fortune" of the
brand began at the Asian Games in 1990. In this year, Li Ning became a sponsor of the Chinese delegation at the Beijing Asian Games and has become famous since then. From 1994 to 2002, Li Ning occupied the largest share of China's sports goods market.
From domestic "trend brands" to market loss
"Let Chinese athletes stand on the world's highest podium wearing their own country's brands" is the original intention of Li Ning.
When the company was first established, Li Ning adopted OEM OEM OEM to produce Li Ning brand sports shoes, but due to lack of experience, the first batch of 001 series shoes were of unqualified quality and failed in the first battle.
However, this established the strict control of Li Ning's brand quality and laid the foundation for its good reputation in the future. From 1994 to 2002, Li Ning firmly occupied the largest share of China's sports goods market.
A decade of good luck changed in 2004.
has been surpassed by Nike for the first time in 2003, and in 2004 it was left behind by adidas .
Li Ning Company 2006-2007 market survey report on consumers shows that the actual consumer population of Li Ning brand is generally large, with more than 50% of people aged 35 to 40. For sports goods companies, young people aged 14 to 25 are more ideal consumer groups. In terms of the impression of Li Ning brand, characteristics such as "cool", "fashion", and "international sense" are slightly inferior to those of international brands. Although
's market share has been squeezed by international brands, Li Ning was listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2004, and his performance has maintained rapid growth for six consecutive years, giving him the confidence to fight against Nike and Adidas.
In 2008, the emergence of the Beijing Olympics became the best opportunity for Li Ning to fight a "turnaround". At the Olympics, the gymnastics prince Li Ning ignited the fire, and the shoes and clothing of Li Ning's company in the market also aroused fanatical pursuit.
In 2008, shortly after the founder Li Ning ran in the Bird's Nest with a torch, Li Ning's market share in domestic sports goods exceeded 50%; in 2009, Li Ning surpassed Adidas' performance in China with a total revenue of 8.387 billion yuan that year; in 2010, Li Ning recorded a total revenue of 9.478 billion yuan, although it was still inferior to Nike, but it was a well-deserved leader of domestic sports brands.
However, Li Ning, who was in high spirits at the time, may not know that a huge turning point was emerging on the road toward the Li Ning brand. This turning point made Li Ning's highlight always stay in the childhood of a group of post-80s and post-90s. On June 27, 2018, a post-90s Myra posted a beautiful photo in the gym on her circle of friends. The NIKE AIR logo behind it is very eye-catching. When Li Yushuang squeezed into the subway to work in Beijing, the shoes under her feet also showed the logo of Adidas three-bar.
During this period, on June 30, 2010, Li Ning changed the logo and slogan and launched a fierce battle for positions with Nike and Adidas in the first-tier market.
Li Ning believes that unclear product positioning and brand personality are the main reasons hindering the company's rapid growth. Changing the logo changes the "a sense of aging" of the original brand, and brand reshaping is conducive to the company's re-positioning of product positioning and brand personality. The brand slogan is set as "Make the Change", which more reflects the continuous change of the post-90s generation.
But facts show that Li Ning's move not only failed to please the expected post-90s people, but also caused the original loyal customers born in the 1960s to shake.
"I am a post-90s generation and don't agree with Li Ning's post-90s strategy." Qian Xiaoma complained, "At that time, Li Ning launched a series of CBA or NBA superstar or rookie series, which is too expensive for us. Any CBA star endorsed shoes will be at least 500 yuan, and there are also 700 and 800 yuan. What basketball shoes should students buy at this price? And if you have this money, you can buy Nike and Adidas. At that time, more and more people prefer Anta . Its streetball series and cement killer series designed to play hard are only more than 200 to 300 yuan. Li Ning's market was lost like this." Can
catch up with international brands "everything is possible"?
"The Li Ning brand was pretty good when it first released, but it has become 'low' since the big discount. More than ten years ago, someone paid me 80 Li Ning windbreakers for work reasons. At that time, the price on the trademark was 238 yuan per piece. No one wanted it if I reselled it at half price. In the end, it was transferred out at 80 yuan per piece." Li Yan, a post-60s generation, recalled.
It is understood that in 2012, Li Ning took the lead in transforming from a traditional wholesale model to a retail-oriented rapid response business model, and launched the "channel revitalization plan" that cost 1.4 billion to 1.8 billion yuan, supporting dealers to clear inventory, repurchase, and integrate sales channels.
After three painful years of destocking, Li Ning began to recover.On March 18, 2015, founder Li Ning returned and changed the slogan back to "Everything is possible" in an attempt to revive the multi-brand strategy.
According to Li Ning's official website, Li Ning currently has five main Li Ning brands including Li Ning, Li Ning YOUNG, etc., and five other brands including Hongshuangxi and Kaisheng. According to the 2017 financial report, Li Ning's main brand contributed 90% of its operating income.
In 2015, Li Ning's net profit attributable to the parent company was HK$14.309 million, turning a loss; revenue was HK$7.089 billion, an increase of 17% from 2014; in 2016 and 2017, Li Ning recorded net profits of HK$643 million and HK$515 million respectively, gaining a firm foothold in the profit point.
As the business conditions rebound, Li Ning's image in the eyes of the younger generation has also gradually increased. "After I went to college in 2013, I had a lot of contact with sneakers, so Li Ning once again returned to sight. Among them, I was particularly impressed by its Way of Way and Wade series. I saved money to buy a pair of them in a college internship. Although Nike and Adidas shoes have always been leading the trend now, Li Ning's design is not inferior. Seeing Li Ning Fashion Week, I feel that trendy shoes are getting better and better, and I don't feel like street stall goods at that time." Li Yushuang said.
"Li Ning has indeed changed. About ten years ago, my mother bought me a Li Ning dress. At that time, she thought it was ugly. She didn't wear it symbolically once and never touched it again." Niu Jingwen, a Tianjin girl born in the 1990s, said, "But recently I saw Li Ning's clothes launched at Fashion Week. She wrote Chinese Li Ning in red on the black sweatshirt. Li Ning wore black and leaped white on the feet. She felt that she was the walking national trend himself."
But it should be noted that even if she was "survived", it was still difficult for Li Ning to reproduce the glory ten years ago. In terms of financial indicators and market share, Anta is in a far leading position.
As of July 12, 2018, Li Ning's total market value was 19.459 billion yuan, while Anta's total market value was 109.812 billion yuan, and Anta's market value was 5.64 times that of Li Ning. In 2017, Anta recorded a net profit of HK$3.159 billion, 6.13 times that of Li Ning.
On March 21, 2018, Li Ning, executive chairman and acting CEO of Li Ning, said that the company's biggest focus in 2017 is to improve retail operation capabilities, including product planning, product design, supply chain-to-channel integration, and retail operation efficiency improvement, and specifications. At the same time, this is also the company's biggest challenge in the future.
[Li Ning Events]
In May 1990, Li Ning Company was established.
1990, Li Ning sportswear became the sponsor of the Chinese team at the 11th Asian Games.
1993, Li Ning's company moved to Beijing.
In 2002, Li Ning Company established a new brand positioning: Li Ning, everything is possible.
On June 28, 2004, Li Ning Co., Ltd. was successfully listed on the main board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
In 2012, the founder Li Ning left.
In 2015, founder Li Ning returned.
On July 12, 2018, Li Ning's total market value was 19.459 billion yuan.
In 1990, the Li Ning brand was born, and it became a hit after endorsing the Asian Games. In the mid-1990s, the "Li Ning brand" occupied the largest share of China's sports goods and sports clothing market.
Beijing News reporter Luo Yidan
