Market Entry Preparation
As you look to enter the market I am here to give guidance on strategy and partners.
Thousands of foreign brands enter China each year but only a small proportion are successful. Why is that?
Many factors but preparation is key, and the reality is many brands just don’t have the knowledge within their teams, so they rely on commercial partners.
Commercial partners have various vested interests and their advice is often colored by what they can support you with.
I am truly independent; I work to find the best option for my brands. I am your GM for China with a huge depth of knowledge across different brands and partners.
My tried and tested process for market entry is:
1. Doing the groundwork
We do a full brand audit on all key Chinese channels for your brand.
We give you an insights report to see how your brand is currently perceived and sold in the China market.
Deep dive into your category with a review of overall trajectory and competitor strategy.
You will have a comprehensive understanding of your category, competitors and where your brand sits within this.
2. Planning the resources
To get all stakeholders on board we will build a solid business case by creating robust profit and loss scenario for your brand in China.
We fill in all the blanks for brands on the cost of doing business in China – taxes, importation, shipping, registration, platform fees and marketing investment.
As well as looking at sales forecasts with solid benchmarking.
You will have a business case to get board level buy in on your China entry.
3. Making the strategy
China needs a bespoke Market Entry Strategy.
We will clearly define your core target audience in China.
We will work through your global messaging and set a suitable hierarchy of messaging for China.
We will also provide you with competitor benchmarking to allow us to select our China SKU assortment and set a robust pricing strategy.
We will support you to define the right commercial structure for your brand.
And find, connect and support negotiations with partners – TPs, distributors, investors.
Strategize on Offline and online – registration and distribution
You will have a 360 market entry strategy with the right partners to fit your brands ambitions and needs.
4. Keeping things on track
We will help you to manage your Chinese partners during and post launch.
We will create a strategy for driving awareness with overseas Chinese outside China to kick off momentum.
We create a master document for all stakeholders to ensure brand messages are consistent and on point.
We provide a full monitoring service across messaging, pricing, ecommerce and social media accounts.
You will have a trusted GM and support team who truly understand your brand and the market.
By working with us for your China market entry you will get the support of having your own team on the ground without the administration and cost:
- Bi-Weekly calls to discuss all strategy
- On-going support in meetings and behind the scenes with agencies and partners
- Regular monitoring and competitor reports
- We work on a retainer basis for as long as you need the support. Most brands do this until they are ready to build their own team on the ground in China
As a beauty brand navigating the complexities of entering the China market, we can’t imagine how we would have navigated this process without Allie’s guidance. Allie has truly been our one-stop-shop for all things beauty and cross-border e-commerce in China. Her unparalleled market expertise, strong network of partners, and professionalism have made her an invaluable extension of our team and an absolute pleasure to work with.
Allie’s knowledge on the market knows no bounds, as it’s obvious she stays on top of market entry in every topic from logistics and warehousing, market research, product strategy, to possible distribution strategies and pros/cons of all.
We would jump at the chance to work with Allie in the future and highly recommend Clean Beauty Asia for any beauty brands exploring their China market entry strategy.
