Paint tools (manual) is a niche category in the entire building materials and even in the field of paints or tools, and it is not very concerned. We sometimes even become a marginal category, or many companies have no way to start when they participate in the exhibition, and they can participate in the hardware and tool exhibition, the coating exhibition, the building materials exhibition, and even the daily necessities exhibition.

There are very few third-party organizations that do some data analysis and discussion; then we can only rely on our own efforts and analyze ourselves. The article is also written because the supply and demand of this industry have changed a lot from the end of last year to the first quarter of this year, so I will use this status as an entry point to make some analysis and summary.

The recent business situation of our industry: Since the third and fourth quarters of last year, some peers have reported the phenomenon of declining orders. After the Spring Festival this year, this situation has become more common. Before writing this article, we took samples anonymously. The form surveyed data from 25 domestic companies.

These companies are mainly manufacturers and traders of brushes, rollers, putty knives, telescopic poles, etc. There are domestic head companies and small manufacturers. When we compare the data in the first quarter of 2022 and the first quarter of 2021, we found that 96% of companies experienced a decline in orders, most of which fell between 10-30%, and 92% of companies experienced a decline in shipments, most of the company's decline ratio is also between 10%-30%.

A rough statistical result is that, on average, more than 90% of the companies' orders and shipments have declined, and the average decline is about 20%. Of course, this number is not representative, and there are thousands of brushing tool companies in China. But this data has fully explained the current business decline.

Our Marketing Department Produced Research Charts:

The information from RollingDog

Combining the above data and our understanding of the paint tools industry, we mainly analyze the reasons from the following perspectives:

1. The outbreak of the global epidemic in 2020 has led to an outbreak of demand for home products, and paint tools have also achieved unprecedented demand growth, especially in the second half of 2020. This round of demand dividends has ended in the second half of 2021, so it brings the current retaliatory demand decline.

Because of the increase in demand at that time, some foreign customers (importers) made blind purchases and accumulated a certain amount of inventory, which required a consumption cycle. At present, some products are still being consumed - G.SB's marketing department recently conducted a survey of foreign stores and found that most of the shelves are well stocked, and even some of the products are still in batches in 2021, which means that the paint tools that have not been sold out in 2021 are still on the shelves.

2. The paint tools manufacturers in Europe and the United States have basically resumed production after the suspension of production and production in the past two years, and some orders have returned to local manufacturers in Europe and the United States. This has greatly reduced customers' reliance on Chinese companies.

3. The increase in sea freight rates from last year to the present is still affecting the decision-making of customers. Although European and American local manufacturers have high manufacturing costs, they are not affected by tariffs and the current high shipping costs, so customers are more inclined to local manufacturers in decision-making. Even if the paint tools manufacturers in Europe and the United States cannot solve the products, customers do not have to place orders in China, and even some products are directly cut off or shelved.

4. Since the beginning of 2020, the epidemic has lasted for more than two years, and most paint tools suppliers have achieved good growth due to the dividends in the early stage of the epidemic. However, this part of the increase comes from old customers. At present, because of the inability to go abroad to participate in exhibitions, customers cannot come to inspect, which greatly increases the difficulty of customer development.

Without new customers and new businesses, many companies lack stamina for business growth. After all, without face-to-face contact, the development of new customers and new businesses will still be greatly affected. In recent years, due to the epidemic, many online exhibitions and virtual exhibitions have been launched, but with little success.

5. Of course, from the perspective of local areas, there will also be the Russian-Ukrainian war, the epidemic, bilateral relations, Sino-US tariffs, etc. These are not universal, and due to our limited capacity, we will not analyze them much.

The above is the operation status and analysis of domestic companies. So, what is the status of the foreign market? Are there any rules and directions? Recently, the marketing and sales teams of G.SB have worked together to conduct market research on the most representative countries and regions. Due to limited conditions, we can only find local Chinese and old customers through online video. communicate.

It took more than two months before and after, and some harvests have been achieved. Now I will share some of the content with you. Our main research countries are the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Australia, etc. The main research objects are well-known local building materials retailers, paint tools brands and our overseas distributors.

Secondly, we will share some well-known and relatively representative retailers below. All photos were taken within the past month:

From the perspective of different countries and different stores, there are differences and commonalities. After this month's research, we got some summaries as follows.

1: Judging from the products currently sold in the store

a. There are not many innovative products, especially those with bright spots, indicating that the epidemic has affected the innovation progress of the industry in the past two years, and everyone is relatively conservative;

b. From the perspective of product materials, the European market is more and more environmentally friendly, using degradable materials or recycled plastics; European regulations are becoming more and more strict, and some big retailers have begun to lead this trend, such as the ADEO- launch of use brushing tools made from recyclable waste plastic. The North American market is relatively less demanding in this regard, and currently there are few products with environmental protection concepts or degradable materials;

c. In terms of packaging, European line products pursue simple and environmentally friendly packaging, and avoid using too many paper cards, cartons, or packaging materials that are not environmentally friendly; while American line products still pay more attention to packaging and display, and stores in the United States Generally speaking, it is more beautiful than the European ones, and has a sense of wholeness and series.

This is also due to the fact that American stores are more willing to work hard on packaging and display, but at the cost of consuming too much paper. That is to say, it consumes too many forests. The United States does not seem to see any special emphasis on forest protection. It may also be rich in resources, unlike Europe where there are institutions like FSC.

2: In terms of product design, some giants have begun to pursue simple and practical design styles

In the past few decades, the popular two-color handles or three-color handles are not many. More single-color handles and simple lines, such as emerald Feng's GOOD HOME series, this series has also won the European 2021 IF DESIGN AWARD, this kind of Japanese-style design style, this style is very common in stores such as IKEA and Muji.

However, paint tools are a bold attempt to adopt the style of daily necessities. We analyze the advantages and disadvantages. It lacks the power of tools, is more feminine, and is more daily-use. As for the effect, it depends on the sales. We have no right to judge by personal preference.

3: Most of the stores have relatively little traffic

Of course, there are reasons for the time of our research and the low and peak seasons of demand. However, in general, compared with two or three years ago, it will be less, which also confirms our previous analysis that the demand dividend under the epidemic has ended. The result is a weakening of retaliatory demand.

Moreover, there is also the rapid development of e-commerce in the past 3-5 years. Now large physical retailers have noticed this problem and are now actively deploying e-commerce. For example, HOME DEPOT and WAL-MART in the United States are also developing rapidly in the field of e-commerce.

Here we want to explain, it does not mean that the flow of people in the store is suddenly reduced, and the performance of the physical store will definitely be poor, but it is not: for example, the annual reports of HOME DEPOT and SHERWIN-WILLIAMS for the past year show that profits and performance are both innovative a new high.

This also shows that under the epidemic, the vitality of large European and American brands is stronger, and their operating capabilities are also very strong. This is also the reason why people can become giants. Most of the leading companies in the paint tools industry are companies that perform very well at low times. Therefore, there are still many aspects for Chinese companies to learn from large European and American paint tools brands.

Finally, combined with the above analysis, let's talk about our outlook for this industry.

1. The epidemic is not over yet. Instead of waiting endlessly, it is better to act now. How to do it? Everyone has their own brilliant tricks, and we will not play around with each other. But the only thing you can't do is sit still. You can simply combine the above points to share:

a. Although it is difficult, it is necessary to appropriately reduce expenses, but appropriate investment is still required, such as in product development, combined with the above market conditions, such as developing products with environmental protection concepts for European lines, such as designing some products that conform to future aesthetic trends.

b. In sales, if you cannot communicate with customers face-to-face, then actively use the Internet and social media. Of course, there are also companies that find ways to cross-border e-commerce or domestic sales when traditional export sales are difficult. The key is to consider the positioning, have determination and courage, and since you decide to do or transform, you can't give up if it doesn't work.

c. Gradually improve the quality and grade of products. This is going faster in other industries. The paint tool industry has received less attention, and few people have invested heavily in product improvement. But in the long run, low-end vicious Competition is becoming less and less suitable for Chinese manufacturing, and national policies will also support high-end and high-quality manufacturing. Although the road is long, it still needs to be prepared gradually.

The operating decline in the first quarter of 2022 has sounded the alarm, and if no changes are made to find a way out, there will be more serious blows later. In addition, the development of high-quality and durable tools is actually an environmentally friendly route. Imagine, which is more environmentally friendly and low-carbon, a garbage product that can be thrown away once and a product that will not break in three to five years?

2. Paint tools is a very niche industry, but it also has a global annual volume of 10 billion US dollars, of which 5 billion US dollars are manual painting tools. There is still potential. Since we do it, can we do it again? Deeper? Learn from the leading companies in the industry in Europe and America, such as PURDY, WOOSTER, ANZA, and learn their professionalism and persistence.

Compared with the leading companies in Europe and America, most of our Chinese counterparts still regard their business as just business or trading. It is good to be able to support the family and eat a meal, but because of this positioning, it is determined that we will not go far.

Even if you make money in the short term, you will eventually be defeated by your strength. You can ask yourself a question, how much of the growth we have achieved in the past two years is due to the dividends of the epidemic? How much is due to your own abilities and efforts?

Many of our Chinese companies like to compete for the first place and like to develop rapidly, especially in terms of business volume. Some companies have achieved it after years of hard work, but after reaching it, they quickly fell. Why? Because there is no goal, take the number one as the goal, and use up all the vitality in order to be the number one, so there is no stamina, and it is destined to not last long.

However, if you take sustainable and healthy development as the goal, take the continuous improvement of product quality and better service users as the goal, and keep working hard, just trying to do better and grasp the rhythm, instead, it will get better and better. Your own brand and reputation may be passed down.

However, the word inheritance is easy to say, but it takes several generations of efforts to achieve it. There are many companies in China that were very good and outstanding in the development period, but they did not develop further. One of the main reasons is that there is no inheritance, and there is no inheritance. Because everyone is too concerned about short-term performance and profit goals, and does not invest in things that can be inherited, such as culture, brand, etc.

3. The truly aspiring peers should think more about how we can become a respected company and how can we love our products more? Many colleagues look down on their factories and their products. We have been to many factories and saw that the boss's office is tall, tea sets are very expensive, and guests are served with tobacco, alcohol and fruit.

However, the sample room is placed in an inconspicuous corner, the samples are covered with dust, and the working environment of employees and workers is also very poor. If you don’t respect your own products and your employees, how can customers respect you? I believe that in the future, we will have a group of companies that will make products that we can all adore, and we will all look at our works like a handicraft.

Or we have to have "love" for the product, we hope to pursue some truth that will not change at any time and place, not just make money, this includes our love, the love for the product, the love for the customer, Love for employees, friends who have watched the movie (Interstellar), may understand a truth, technology looks powerful, but it is also very fragile, but the power of love is great.

Our Chinese companies do not lack good management, and our hard work is far beyond that of European and American companies, but we lack some love for products, customers, employees, society and the country. These loves cannot be weakened because the industry is small and the product threshold is low.

Some companies, let alone love, think about how to exploit employees, how to take advantage of the country, how to cut corners to deceive customers, and how to dig business from peers through vicious competition. - As the saying goes, you always have to pay back.

4. Regarding the current predicament, we cannot be pessimistic, nor blindly optimistic or blindly invested. We must not only see the complexity and uncertainty of the epidemic, but also look for opportunities in the crisis, the complexity and destructiveness of the two world wars. It is far greater than the epidemic, but most of the best leading companies in various industries, including our industry, have experienced two wars.

Time, energy and ability are limited, and there are deficiencies or mistakes. Please correct me. Finally, we wish our industry will get better and better, and every company can move towards a healthy and sustainable development path.

This era is full of variables and challenges for any Chinese private enterprise. These variables and challenges come not only from new and old competitors in the industry, but also from consumers' urgent demand for consumption upgrades, and from the rapid changes in technology. These factors are superimposed to accelerate the rapid integration of Chinese private enterprises and the survival of the fittest.

In this era of uncertainty where only change is the only constant, the market does not give companies too many opportunities for trial and error and room to breathe. Every person who enters the game is considering a core issue. How to grasp the future? Furthermore, while pursuing economic value, how to achieve self-reliance and sustainable development in a globalized competitive landscape?

As an "alternative" G.SB in China's paint tools industry, it has not only created its own brand - K Brand, but has always been known for its "focus", but also is a pioneer in managing modern enterprises with Chinese excellent culture. Considered as a unique sample made in China.

The real economy has been hit hard in 2020, but G.SB has grown against the trend. From 2021 to the first half of 2022, the momentum of growth is good. Obviously, the revenue data is only the final result. What is the secret that keeps G.SB at the forefront of the industry? If you don't work hard to climb to the top of the industry and don't concentrate on building your own core competitiveness, the company will surely die out in the cruel competition, which is a cruel reality.

The most direct way to judge an enterprise is to look at the achievements of the enterprise in material creation and spiritual shaping. As we often talk about, a great company must have a great dream or idea behind it. For example, Apple's "simplicity is the ultimate sophistication"; Google's "integrating global information so that everyone can access and benefit from it"; Huawei's "enriching people's communication and life"...etc.

Throughout the history of G.SB's entrepreneurship and development in the past 20 years, it is actually a history of the co-construction and development of spiritual civilization and material civilization. The dual-track drive and alternate control of spiritual civilization and material civilization construction in different periods jointly supported G.SB.

A truly visionary company understands what should be constant and what should be bold. Business operators must consciously follow the balance between continuity of operation and change. This precious capacity for continuity and change goes hand in hand with the ability to build a vision.

Over the years, G.SB has continued to upgrade its corporate culture system. It has been iterating continuously since it introduced the corporate culture of excellent foreign companies in 210. In 2015, G.SB's corporate vision was upgraded from "becoming a respected world-class company" to "becoming a great company". This upgrade stems from our in-depth thinking on "what is a great enterprise".

2021 is the first year of the "14th Five-Year Plan" and the second centenary goal formulated by the Chinese government. Under the strategy of strengthening the country through science and technology, innovative technology has become a hot topic in the new era.

In the face of a new wave of technology, in the Chinese paint tools field where oligopolistic competition has not yet formed, G.SB must not only accurately grasp the trend direction of technological reconstruction, reposition its value in the industry chain, but also focus on basic research. As the source of technological innovation, the fission effect generated by technological innovation can rejuvenate the original mature products, and even create new incremental market space.

The "Innovative Technology Concept" is a classic achievement that guides G.SB's continuous practice in the innovative technology of paint tools. It not only shows us the huge commercial value of the matching of innovative technology and market demand, but also reveals the successful innovation. In addition to mastering the core technical advantages, human nature is the eternal theme of scientific and technological development.

Enterprises must always pursue sustainable operation and sustainable development. The key is how G.SB can do it? First of all, we must do well the first three aspects: customers can feel at ease, employees can grow, and the society can be upright. Only by doing well in these three aspects, coupled with the basic skills of solid operation and management, can we achieve sustainable operation and sustainable development. a result.

What is a solid basic operation and management skills, mainly divided into four categories: one is strategic management, the second is operational management, the third is humanistic management, and the fourth is Risk-Management. That is based on this kind of thinking that in 2015, G.SB's corporate vision was upgraded from "becoming a respected world-class company" to "becoming a great company".

From this perspective, greatness does not have to be "great" on the basis of "greatness". A small business can also become great, regardless of its size and number of employees. No matter how small an enterprise is, customers can feel at ease, employees can grow, society can be upright, and operations can be sustainable.