"Ugly fish slippers" are popular, how can the small slippers of Zhanjiang Wuchuan run on the big track? 丨Anchored in the deepening of modernization reform
2024-08-17
한어Русский языкEnglishFrançaisIndonesianSanskrit日本語DeutschPortuguêsΕλληνικάespañolItalianoSuomalainenLatina
At the Paris Olympics, the "Quan Hongchan Ugly Fish Slippers" became popular, and a pair of slippers worn by an Olympic champion sparked discussions and "following the trend" among many netizens. Coincidentally, in Quan Hongchan's hometown Zhanjiang, there is a place famous for making plastic slippers, namely Wuchuan, which is known as the "Plastic Slipper Capital of China".
In recent years, Wuchuan Plastic Slippers Company's products have been exported to more than 50 countries and regions in Africa, Central America and South America, and it continues to expand its Southeast Asian market, with an annual output value of up to 8 billion yuan, achieving good results in the foreign trade market.
What inspiration and opportunities will the "ugly fish slippers" bring to Wuchuan? Recently, a reporter from Yangcheng Evening News went to Wuchuan to explore the story behind a pair of "small slippers" running on a big track.
From crushing competitors to focusing on going overseas to "break the circle"
"As early as 2003, Wuchuan plastic slippers have been exported to South America and Africa. Now more and more people are opening factories abroad. Although the scale of exports has shrunk slightly, the overall situation is still stable," said Ou Yadi of Wuchuan Zhongtai Shoes Co., Ltd. Industry data shows that there are nearly 400 plastic shoe manufacturers in Wuchuan, accounting for about one-third of the country's plastic shoe production. The products are sold all over the country, but Wuchuan people not only anchor the domestic sandal market, but also extend their tentacles abroad.
"The people of Wuchuan are serious about making slippers." Ou Yadi introduced that ordinary people only see a pair of slippers, but from the raw materials entering the factory to the final product, there are at least five or six processes, and as many as eight or nine.
Ou Yadi is obsessed with making a pair of shoes. He said his father started making slippers in the 1970s, and the process was full of twists and turns. In the end, when he decided to start over and take on the responsibility of supporting his family, he still chose to make slippers.
During the interview, the most people lamented that the relationship between the bosses in the Wuchuan shoe factory industry chain has reached the point where they often meet for tea when they are free. "It was not like this 20 years ago. At that time, everyone simply believed that 'beating the neighbor' was winning." Ou Yadi said that gradually everyone began to compete with differentiation, develop independently, and began to keep each other warm and "go overseas" together.
"Everything you can think of related to a pair of shoes can be found in Wuchuan." This is the most common phrase used by local slipper owners. At present, the Wuchuan slipper industry chain has basically taken shape, with everything from product design to material processing to production. It is for this reason that Wuchuan's slipper industry has become competitive.
All parties "relieve pain and relieve blockage" to help industry development
In recent years, due to the impact of the international environment and the increase in shipping costs, the export of plastic slippers has also faced pain points and bottlenecks. In order to help Wuchuan's plastic slippers industry go overseas, in addition to the efforts of the enterprises themselves, the government, finance and industry associations have also gathered support to find the pain points and relieve the pain.
In order to help Wuchuan plastic shoes and other specialty products "go global" better, Haidong New District Customs under Zhanjiang Customs actively publicizes and educates, widely publicizes intellectual property protection policies through the distribution of brochures and policy seminars, and jointly holds an intellectual property policy seminar in Wuchuan City with Zhanjiang Market Supervision and Administration Bureau and Zhanjiang Intermediate People's Court to further enhance enterprises' awareness of intellectual property protection. At the same time, guide enterprises to standardize declaration, eliminate abnormal problems encountered in the export process as soon as possible, and improve export customs clearance efficiency.
"More and more departments are paying attention to Wuchuan slippers and conducting research." Ou Yadi introduced that these departments have conducted in-depth research on plastic shoe export companies to understand the development status of the companies and the difficulties encountered in the export process, and guide the companies to eliminate abnormal problems as soon as possible.
The market competition is fierce and homogeneity is serious. How can we survive with distinctive characteristics? How can we make a name for ourselves and break through the circle? To this end, Wuchuan plastic slippers companies jointly established the Footwear Industry Association, and peers began to discuss how Wuchuan plastic slippers can build their brands and bring new benefits to the companies with higher added value.
Financial support gives "a pair of shoes" confidence
Nowadays, slippers have become more of a fashion item for young people, which has also led Wuchuan shoe companies to invest more energy in research and development every year. Ou Yadi introduced that now a slipper company has as many as 20 to 30 new products every year, and invests a lot of money in mold opening and research and development every year. It also classifies different categories such as outdoor, home, and fashion to meet the different life needs of different groups of people.
"What I fear most is the slow payment of the goods. For example, a ship drifts on the sea for more than a month, and the other party still needs to inspect and accept it. Slow payment means tight working capital." Ou Yadi said that the 10 million yuan loan from the Zhanjiang Branch of the Bank of China gave him confidence at the critical moment.
What Ou Yadi praised was a credit service solution called "Shoe Industry Tongbao", which is mainly aimed at enterprises engaged in plastic shoe manufacturing and sales in Wuchuan, Zhanjiang, as well as upstream and downstream enterprises related to the plastic shoe industry, to supplement the daily operating working capital of enterprises, such as purchasing raw materials, paying wages, and normal operations. As of the end of July 2024, Zhanjiang Bank of China has provided more than 50 small and micro enterprises and individuals with operating loans in the plastic shoe industry, with a total credit of more than 200 million yuan.
In order to accurately identify the pain points and bottlenecks of Wuchuan plastic shoes in the process of "going overseas", Bank of China Zhanjiang approved the total credit amount for Wuchuan plastic shoes industry, created a number of innovative products such as "BOC Cross-border Remittance Express", and improved the digitalization and convenience of cross-border funds settlement. At the same time, in order to enhance the company's resistance to exchange rate fluctuation risks and lock in the profit space of foreign exchange collection and settlement, Wuchuan slippers companies provide forward foreign exchange settlement, RMB exchange rate options and other products and services to reduce the cost of foreign exchange funds, and use financial "living water" to accurately drip-irrigate Wuchuan plastic shoes industry, helping Wuchuan plastic shoes to "set sail".
Recently, the "All-Red Chan Ugly Fish Slippers" have become popular, which has made more Wuchuan shoe factory practitioners start to think about more possibilities, that is, how to "leverage" to let more people know about Wuchuan slippers and create a brand effect.
Text丨Reporter Dai Manman, Wang Haiyan, Intern Zhang Yuyue
