{"id":43666,"date":"2019-06-21T09:00:12","date_gmt":"2019-06-21T01:00:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/daxueconsulting.com\/?p=43666"},"modified":"2021-11-18T11:13:36","modified_gmt":"2021-11-18T03:13:36","slug":"co-branding-china","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/daxueconsulting.com\/co-branding-china\/","title":{"rendered":"Uniqlo x KAWS: The secret to success in Co-branding in China | Daxue Consulting"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Co-branding in China<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The most recent fashion collaboration in the Chinese market\nbetween Uniqlo<\/a> x KAWS<\/a> (UT\ncollection<\/a>) officially released in China on June 3, 2019,\nleading the same series in Japan for 4\ndays. The UT stands for Uniqlo T-shirt, this series presents the pop culture\nsuch as movies, cartoons, and art. Uniqlo\u2019s\nTmall\nflagship store<\/a> was sold out in three seconds, which is not surprising for the new launch of\ntrendy products in China. However, in all offline Uniqlo shops in China has been unprecedentedly snapped\nup<\/a> and becoming hot news.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Co-branding
[source: WeChat index \u201cKAWS\u201d] <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"co
[source: WeChat Index \u201cUniqlo\u201d]<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

According to the result of WeChat\nIndex, KAWS<\/a>‘s search index has risen\nmore than 180,000 times in the past month. Uniqlo\u2019s search index, on the other\nhand, was exaggerated to nearly 80 million. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Interestingly, the brand collaboration in China\nis different from that in Korea and Japan. According to reports, Uniqlo in\nSouth Korea still has a large amount of stock left. It is undeniable that this\nkind of brands collaboration in China brought a hurricane in the Chinese world of fashion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The emerging phenomenon of Co-branding in China: The fashion industry in China<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In recent years, firms are actively experimenting with the strategy\nof Co-branding in China<\/a>, and it seems the strategy is welcomed\nby Chinese consumers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CONTACT US NOW TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTIONS ABOUT BUSINESS IN CHINA<\/a> <\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Win-win cooperation in China: What does it mean for consumers and brands? <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Unlike in western countries, cheaper\nbrands\u2019 collaborations with big-name brands often have a stronger impact in\nChina, because China\u2019s strong fan base can help brands greatly enhance their\nbrand awareness by word of mouth. Uniqlo chose China as the first country to\nrelease this product due to its strong follow-up effect. On the other hand,\nyoung people in China generally cannot afford luxury goods, but they are still eager to follow the trend. KAWS<\/a> is famous for his unique\ngraffiti style, and KAWS in China has\nworked with lots of big-name brands. It costs more than ten thousand RMB for\none set of KAW\u2019s toy. That\u2019s the biggest reason why Uniqlo x KAWS have made such influence when consumers can\u2019t afford KAWS\u2019s product, and\nthe T-shirt with Uniqlo\nonly sold for 99RMB. As we can see, the\nsmart Uniqlo x KAWS win-win-cooperation in China has brought great results: KAWS only needs to provide his\nclassic elements without redesigning a new image, while Uniqlo as the fast fashion brand guarantees sales.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Uniqlo
[source: Uniqlo.cn]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Fashion collaboration in the Chinese market: Exploring the success of a similar branding strategy in China<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Uniqlo and KAWS launched their first collaboration in 2016 when the line sold nearly one million units a month. However, Uniqlo\u2019s co-branding series is far more than just KAWS. Its UT collection has achieved cooperation with various IP (Intellectual Property), such as Disney, <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marvel, Sesame Street andLego. IP in the current context mostly\nrefers to film, television literature, game animation, etc, which are in the\nhearts and memories of most young people in China. Uniqlo in\nChina has established a brand image of taste, fashion, and quality.\nMeanwhile, what the UT collection is pursuing is that \u2018More than just a T-shirt<\/em>.\u2019 The IP image help UT collection increase\nconsumers\u2019 sentimental value and social value.  This\nensures that its co-branded collections are always accessible among Chinese consumers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is Co-branding in China always a successful strategy?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Compared to Uniqlo, H&M<\/a>\u2019s co-branding products\nare increasingly difficult to attract consumers. H&M started its first collaboration in 2004; later, famous collaborations\n<\/a>include VERSACE, Balmain, Isabel Marant, etc. The series of\nH&M x Moschino in 2018 received a lot of\nexposure and drove consumers crazy similarly to Uniqlo x KAWS. Except H&M\u2019s cooperative\nproducts have become less\nattractive<\/a> since the collaboration with Alexander Wang in 2014.\nSales of the co-branded line have deteriorated. An increasing number of\ncustomers were getting bored and questioned the quality of the clothes. The Versace x H&M has had a large\nnumber of returns. Therefore H&M has canceled the return policy in recent joint\nseries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Influence of Co-branding in China<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Young customers are enthusiastic about brand collaboration in China<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Whenever the fashion industry in China releases the latest brand collaboration news, it becomes a talking point for young people. When thinking of co-branding, the first thing that comes to mind are \u2019snap up,\u2019 \u2018limit\u2019 and \u2018queuing.\u2019 But why are they crazy about it?   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"brand
[Source: Baidu with \u201c\u8054\u540d\u6b3e\u201d]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Based on the analysis from OFashion<\/a>, fashion\nbrands consumption growth rate in China reached more than 50% in recent\nyears. Young people\u2019s pursuit of fashion has become an attitude. Based on that,\nfashion collaborations in\nChina draw much attention. As mentioned earlier, one important reason is\nthat consumers can buy \u2018two brands\u2019 at\none price. The price directly leads to the difference in the influence of\nproducts in the Chinese market. At present, fast fashion<\/a> cooperation with luxury brand<\/a>s is one of the most\npopular forms. In addition, the cultural factor also plays an important role. Specifically, it works in cases when brands collaborate with the cartoon, films, or\neven a place. Customers would prefer brands that match their feelings and\nvalues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What do rational consumers think of Uniqlo x KAWS fashion collaborations in China?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\"co-branding
[Source: Weibo survey by \u65b0\u95fb\u6668\u62a5]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

According to a survey about attitudes towards Uniqlo x KAWS fashion\ncollaborations <\/strong>in China by Morning news, 350, 000 people believe that the act\nof snatching clothes is simply following\nthe trend and was influenced by others;\n121,000 people think that the second-hand traffickers are pushing up prices and\nthe remaining 103,000 people were wondering if the buyers really like it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Based on the results, more and more Chinese\nconsumers tend to be calm and looking more critically at co-branded items. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brands collaboration in China: What advantage can be taken?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Co-branding\nin China often happens in two different fields; seldom competing brands would choose to\ninitiate collaborations. Companies relate their co-branding strategy with brand development, and their pursuit is always to maximize economic benefits. The main\nreason for the fashion collaborations in the Chinese\nmarket is to enhance the\npopularity and influence of both brands. Both brands increase a lot of exposure through their co-branding\nprocess. This can be achieved by making full use of \u2018fans economy\u2019 in China to gather\nfans from different fields.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since the first co-branding Uniqlo experience in 2007, the frenzied\ngrowth has been rampant. Uniqlo\u2019s parent company<\/a> announced the first half\nof the performance report until February 28, 2019. According to the performance\nreport, Uniqlo’s parent company’s sales in the first half of 2019 increased by\n6.8% to 1.27 trillion yen (converted to 76.3 billion yuan). Among them, the\ngrowth rate of income and profits in the Chinese market remained at about 20%.\nIn the 11 years since Uniqlo has never\nstopped exploring win-win cooperation\nstrategy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Chinese world of fashion: Achieving success in branding in China<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Understanding the fashion\nindustry<\/a> and brand positioning in the Chinese market should be the very first step. What do Chinese\nconsumers need? What can the brand bring to the customers? How can companies\nassess consumers\u2019 needs? Try to find resonance with the target audience and\nkeep sensitive to the China\nfashion trends<\/a>. Do not simply attract\nconsumers by the design or appearance, but also consider their inner emotions.\nOnly those brands that truly understand the Chinese\nconsumers\u2019 beliefs may grasp their hearts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before starting a co-branding project, the\ncompany must conduct a comprehensive\nanalysis to ensure the quality of its product: Whether the brand is mature\nenough to scale up and enter the Chinese market. With the rise of fast\nfashion<\/a> brands, Chinese consumers are paying more attention to the\nprice\/performance ratio of products. There is a trade-off between price and\nquality that managers need to consider. Cost-effectiveness has become a key factor in their choice of fast fashion\nbrands in China. Uniqlo in\nChina is recognized as a\ncost-efficient brand in the fast fashion\nindustry. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brands collaboration in China: Choose the right partner <\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Find a suitable partner for co-branding in China could\nbe harder than finding your customers. Two\nbrands can come from entirely different\nindustries<\/a>. Of course, consider whether one brand\u2019s fans are\nwilling to pay for the other brand. What truly matters is not the domain of\nbrands, but whether the two companies share the same values and goals. For\nexample, H&M released lots of co-branded series with brands that have\nexaggerated designs such as Moschino and Versace. They all want to convey an amazing image to their customers. Similarly, the UT collection of Uniqlo try to evoke the memories of the post-90s\ngeneration. Consumers value culture and feelings, especially in China. The integration of elements should be in\nharmony and deliver a consistent concept. In addition to the sharing value, it\nshould be noted that the reputation of\nthe brands will affect each other. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The formula of powerful fashion collaborations in China<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

When will the trend of co-branding end? Indeed, co-branding\nin China always has a high level of heat these years. But at the same\ntime, consumers tend to be more rational. What companies need to consider is\nwhether value of their fashion collaborations in China is greater than the\nindividual parts combined. Negative public opinions were produced in the Uniqlo x KAWS incident, which\ncaused some fans\u2019 disatisfaction. Many\npeople think that the sparked product snatching is not an accident, but a\nwell-planned marketing campaign. Some say, it is likely to lose a number of\nfans from the generation borafter the 90s generation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Author: Rita Fan<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Make the new economic China Paradigm positive leverage for your business <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n