Down jackets, which can easily cost thousands or even tens of thousands of yuan, have increased in price over the winter and are now on sale at the end of the season. During the New Year’s Day and Spring Festival consumption season, the market ushered in a “small climax” in sales. In recent years, international brands of down jackets have gradually opened up the domestic market, and the market recognition of domestic brands has also continued to increase.
At the current stage, what are the new changes in the down jacket market? What kind of market confidence is hidden behind down jackets that cost thousands of yuan? Can Jiangsu enterprises continue to focus on the segmented track of branded down jackets to promote brand cultivation and industrial upgrading in the major clothing province? The reporter conducted an in-depth investigation.
Market survey: down jacket prices have been rising year after year
Recently, reporters came to Longhu Tianjie Shopping Mall in Hexi, Nanjing. Many clothing stores have launched spring clothes one after another. Wang Meng, a citizen who came to shop, lamented, “I have always wanted to buy a down jacket before New Year’s Day. The prices ranged from 1,500 yuan to 2,000 yuan at a glance. It was a bit expensive and I never bought it. Now the maximum discount is 20% off. After waiting all winter, The price has finally been reduced and I plan to buy one to wear.”
A salesperson at the JUZifemme store located on the second floor of the shopping mall said that the year before was the peak shopping period, and this wave of discounts at the end of the year was also the largest. “For example, this long down jacket with 90 white duck down and 193 grams of down filling was originally priced at 1,799 yuan, but now it’s 300 yuan discounted.”
The reporter investigated the Nanjing down jacket market three times in November, December last year and January this year. In winter, the original price of a duck down jacket ranges from 1,500 to 3,500 yuan. If the filling is goose down or has more grams of filling, the price will increase by 1/3. Take the high-end outdoor ski models promoted by Bosideng as an example. The price of 3,599 yuan a piece last year was 200 yuan more expensive than the same model in 2020. In the past, the price of “Dengfeng 1.0” was 8,800 to 9,800 yuan per piece. This winter, the price of the same series has risen to 11,900 to 14,900 yuan per piece. “The prices of some of our series of products have indeed increased this winter.” The salesperson at the Bosideng store explained, “The increase is mainly due to iterative upgrades in product design and functions, such as ‘Dengfeng 2.0’. We have fully upgraded the fabrics to resist The wind and cold resistance effect has been significantly improved, and it has also been recognized by consumers.”
The reporter learned that the sales unit price of ordinary down jackets without any brand premium has also increased. “Down jackets in physical stores are too expensive. There are many styles of clothes online and the prices are relatively cheap. If you encounter the ‘Double 12’ discount promotion, you can get it for more than 600 yuan.” Wang Qian, who lives in Jianye District, Nanjing City, said bluntly that she pays more attention to the down jackets she buys. It is hard indicators such as the type of down to fill, the amount of down filling and the fluffiness. She does not advocate buying big brands and also finds that the price of affordable down jackets is also higher than before. According to statistics from the China National Commercial Information Center, the average unit price of down jackets has increased from 432 yuan in 2015 to 656 yuan in 2020.
Reasons for price increase: increase in raw materials + product upgrade
Why are down jackets so expensive? The reporter visited a number of clothing companies and learned that down accounts for more than 30% of the cost of down jackets.
“Currently, most down jackets on the market use duck down and goose down.” Chen Jianhong, a testing engineer at Nanjing Customs Textile Industry Product Testing Center, said that white goose down is ranked according to the price of raw materials. , gray goose down, white duck down, gray duck down. Because goose down has larger down tufts, better fluffiness and better resilience than duck down, the price of goose down is higher than that of duck down. “With the same amount of down filling, the higher the down filling, the larger the volume of air layer that can be fixed for thermal insulation, and the better the warmth retention.”
Data shows that a duck down jacket must be filled with more than 130 grams of down to achieve a certain thermal insulation effect. If you live in the north, at least 180 grams is required. Outdoor activities require higher requirements for down jackets, generally between 180 grams and 450 grams. Down jacket brands have raised prices this winter, largely due to rising prices of upstream raw materials.
“The production of duck down and goose down has been reduced year after year. Coupled with the impact of the epidemic, the increase in uncertainties in the market environment, and the overall unstable raw material market, the unit price of goose down has continued to rise, and the unit price of duck down has fluctuated and increased.” An analyst from Bank of China Securities gave an example, the recent national standard The price of 90 white duck down has risen from 270,000 yuan to about 390,000 yuan per ton, an increase of 45%. The reporter checked the Down Gold Network and found that on December 21 last year, the national standard 90 white duck down was 378.67 yuan per kilogram. After calculation, the cost of a down jacket with a down content of 300 grams alone reached 113.6 yuan.
“The increase in raw materials is part of the reason for the price increase, and factors such as labor costs have jointly pushed up the price of down jackets.” Yang Yang is engaged in the clothing e-commerce industry in Nanjing, talking about the store The main product in winter is down women’s clothing. He said that in summary, the cost of an “Internet celebrity model” priced at 599 yuan is more than 25% higher than last year.
“Consumers can accept a little price increase, but if it goes up too much, consumers will immediately turn around and leave.” Yang Yang said frankly that in order to retain customers, more manufacturers are currently choosing to improve product competitiveness from a design perspective, and then “Price increase” at the right time.
Sales impact: affected by both the epidemic and the temperature
Against the background that the prices of down jackets of all grades are generally rising, what about the market sales of down jackets this winter?
The reporter learned from the investigation that this winter, the temperature in the Yangtze River Delta region, including Jiangsu, has not been low. It was not until late December last year that the temperature suddenly dropped and the temperature really dropped.To sum up, this area has been a “big consumer” of clothing in previous years, which has affected the sales of down jackets to a certain extent. Wang Yaya is the owner of a clothing store in Nanjing Zhihui Port. Her store specializes in mid-to-high-end clothing. “We ‘distribute goods’ in November every year. Last year, I prepared 500,000 yuan of goods (down jackets), but I didn’t sell a few pieces.” “She told reporters with a wry smile that everyone in the clothing industry knows that the most difficult items to sell this winter are down jackets and snow boots.
“At the end of the year and the beginning of the year, the order volume of down jackets gradually decreases.” A staff member of the Changshu Textile and Garment Association said that the wholesale market was affected by the epidemic and the number of merchants decreased. If the national temperature drops further, the sales of down jackets in the market will be bullish, and buyers will Make replenishment orders online, via WeChat, etc.
Industry expectations: Use innovation to heat the domestic market
The ten years that the domestic down jacket market has gone through are also the ten years in which independent clothing brands have continued to accumulate strength. Since 2010, fast fashion brands such as Uniqlo and Adidas have focused on down jacket products. In particular, international high-end down jacket brands such as French luxury brand Moncler have entered the Chinese market, further intensifying competition in the domestic market. In this process, problems such as the aging of the local down jacket brand image, backward products, and increased inventory have gradually emerged. Domestic down jacket brands and the entire industry are in urgent need of quality improvement and upgrading.
Qichacha data shows that Jiangsu has 10,900 down product companies, ranking first in the country. The clothing industry, including down jackets, is accelerating towards a new stage of industrial upgrading and development. How should down jacket companies in the province grasp the situation? This new opportunity?
“The trend of professionalization and fashion of down jackets is obvious, and the siphon effect of head brands is even more obvious.” According to Gao Xiaodong, executive director and vice president of Bosideng Group, the domestic down jacket industry is gradually getting rid of the low-end price competition stage, and consumers are increasingly interested in The appeal of down jackets is no longer simply about keeping warm, but also pays more attention to comprehensive attributes such as design, quality, and technological content, which have also become the focus of corporate development.
Bosideng, which focuses on the down jacket segment, has achieved double-digit growth in revenue and net profit for several consecutive years. During last year’s “Double 11”, all-channel sales of Bosideng Group’s brand down jackets reached 2.78 billion yuan, and GMV (gross merchandise transactions) increased by 53% year-on-year. From the perspective of online and offline channels, the main price of Bosideng’s down jacket products is around 1,800 yuan, and the brand’s sales revenue in the mid-to-high price range has steadily increased. Driven by the strong brand of down jackets, the mid-to-high-end market has great potential to be tapped.
At present, major down jacket manufacturers in Jiangsu are increasing investment in research and development and design. For example, Bosideng’s “Dengfeng 2.0” integrates Beidou satellite navigation and positioning technology and 5G communication technology. Heilan House’s best-selling “Aurora” series of goose down jackets are made of graphene lining, which not only retains heat but also has antibacterial functions. Although the price has increased, it has also gained greater market recognition.
As the apparel market becomes more diversified and industry competition becomes more intense, the development of enterprises also requires cultivating a better industrial ecology.
“Apparel companies should pay more attention to product research and development, brand building and ecological chain creation.” Ma Jianjun, executive deputy general manager of brand operations of Yalu Group, said that Yalu, which started in Taicang, is now a well-known “down jacket expert” in the country. The company has It has a product R&D team of more than 150 people, more than 600 collaborative factories, and more than 5,000 stores. It cooperates with Jiangnan University, Donghua University and other universities on projects. It was just awarded the “Jiangsu Quality” in December last year and became the “national standard” in the down jacket industry. framer.
The aggregation of leading companies such as Bosideng and Yalu is driving the entire brand apparel industry chain to rise. Wang Wenqing, deputy director of the Consumer Goods Industry Division of the Provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology, said that our province has established a special class for the brand clothing industry chain linked by deputy provincial leaders to strengthen and supplement the chain in a targeted manner. On the down jacket segmentation track, in the future it will help more Jiangsu enterprises in brand building, intelligent manufacturing, and new material development , creative design and other aspects, and use the innovation and upgrading of Jiangsu brands to heat the domestic market.
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