In the memory of Chen Zhuo, a native of Chenghai, Shantou, Guangdong, the “toy capital” Chenghai had two crisis moments in the past.

First, the financial crisis in 2008, and second, the “quality crisis” in 2012. The sudden new outbreak of pneumonia in 2020 has made Chenghai’s toy manufacturers once again face a severe test.

Yi Chuang Space, a toy company operated by Chen Zhuoyue, is medium-sized in Chenghai, with sales of about 50 million yuan in 2019, of which 40% are exported, about 20 million Yuan, the products are mainly sold to Europe, America, Middle East and Southeast Asia markets.

After the outbreak of the New Coronary Pneumonia epidemic, the sales volume of Chen Excellence ’s products in the domestic offline market was seriously affected, and the overall domestic sales in February and March declined compared with last year. Even more difficult is that as overseas epidemics enter a peak period, the road to export of products is also cut off.

Goods worth 5 million yuan prepared in advance due to the Chinese New Year holiday have kept the company ’s inventory level at a high level. In March and April, more and more overseas The customer consulted to cancel the order. Since most of them were old customers, Chen Zhuoyue did not charge a penalty or only received compensation fees for some customized color boxes.

“International logistics is basically shut down, most foreign customers have canceled their purchase plans, especially in the European and American markets. This has resulted in a backlog of 5 million yuan in export stocks and cash The flow has a great impact. “Chen Zhuoyue told the surging news reporter.

The pressure is transmitted to the upstream cooperative toy manufacturer, Chen Zhuoyue said that the most difficult factories are now in a state of production stagnation, do a day and a day, do not do the morning shift night shift.

Zhejiang enterprises have the same troubles. The watch company “Zhou Lianfa” is a typical foreign trade enterprise. Before the epidemic, its annual revenue could reach 10 million yuan. 90% of its sales came from export. When the global epidemic broke out, export orders fell sharply. In a short time, the company 99% of foreign trade orders have been lost, and stocks worth up to 8 million RMB have been accumulated in the warehouse.

“The impact is too great, all orders from overseas customers are stopped halfway, and all of them become inventory squeezed in the warehouse. And we used to do cross-border e-commerce. The unconditional return of the original price of the product within three years is a very big blow. The multiple blows have basically broken our capital chain, and the survival of the company and employees has become a problem. “The person in charge of” Lianfa Zhou “of the watch companyZhou Haibo recently told Peng Mei journalists.

From Ningbo, Phillips, an outdoor sports brand with an annual revenue of 30 million, mainly exports outdoor equipment such as trekking poles and lamps to the Middle East. Its foreign trade business accounts for a total of Revenue was 60%. After the outbreak, sales fell off a cliff, and 5 million yuan of goods were accumulated in the warehouse.

Liu Jun, the person in charge of Phillips, said that after the order is reduced, the employee ’s salary will be reduced accordingly. “There must be various negative emotions in the workers, which cannot be avoided. Of. “


Decrease and cancellation of foreign trade orders in many places

The above-mentioned enterprises ’experience is not an example, public information shows that it includes Zhejiang, Shandong, Shanghai and other regions , Have clearly put forward foreign trade pressure.

In Zhejiang, Chen Guangsheng, deputy secretary-general of the Zhejiang Provincial Government, said at a news conference that stabilizing foreign trade is the current difficulty of economic work and an important foundation for the restoration of economic order .

Chen Guangsheng disclosed that due to the rapid spread of the global epidemic, over 70% of foreign trade enterprises in Zhejiang Province have suffered delays in orders, reductions and even cancellations, which have also caused serious impact on the upstream and downstream of the industrial chain.

In Shandong, Shi Yong, deputy director of Qingdao Customs and a member of the Party Committee, said at the news conference on April 21 that when the epidemic affected Shandong ’s foreign trade in the first quarter, Under the impact of the epidemic, the export of agricultural products, labor-intensive products and other industrial products in Shandong Province was under pressure. At present, events such as sudden delays and cancellations of foreign trade orders and the rise of technical barriers have occurred frequently. The inventory level of foreign trade companies has increased, the overall cost has increased, and various losses in raw materials have increased.

Shi Yong said that the provincial survey results of the Foreign Trade Export Leading Index completed at the end of March showed that the proportion of companies with new orders decreased by nearly 70%, expressing no opinion on the future foreign trade situation The proportion of optimistic companies exceeds 70%. Both set the highest proportion since the survey was officially launched in 2014. With the shrinkage of external demand and the pressure of high stocks, Shandong’s import of large amounts of resource industrial raw materials has also been greatly affected. Shandong’s foreign trade imports and exports may be subject to the second impact of the global epidemic and more serious challenges, and there are still large uncertainties in the short term.

In Shanghai, on April 23, Director of the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce Hua Yuan said at a press conference that the current spread of new coronary pneumonia in the world, foreign trade enterprisesPro-order cancellation or extension.

In order to stabilize foreign trade, measures and suggestions have been introduced successively in many places, and turning to domestic demand has become a common choice. In Zhejiang, Chen Guangsheng, deputy secretary-general of the Zhejiang Provincial Government, put forward, “Our province accelerates the implementation of the strategy of expanding domestic demand, and effectively places the stable foreign trade in a prominent position to stabilize the enterprise’s risk prevention, and strives to stabilize the basic economic market. The production capacity is shifted to the domestic market to minimize the negative impact of the epidemic on the economic operation order. “Chen Guangsheng said.

Shanghai hopes to use the power of e-commerce platform. Hua Yuan, director of the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, said: “In response to the current situation, some foreign trade enterprises with independent brands or domestic trademarks have tried to adjust the ratio of internal and external sales of the enterprise and expand sales channels in the domestic market. To help foreign trade enterprises relieve relief, the Municipal Commission of Commerce While promoting the implementation of a series of measures to stabilize foreign trade, actively help foreign trade companies expand domestic sales channels through e-commerce platforms. “

Ministry of Commerce spokesman Gao Feng on April 16 At its regular press conference, it was also proposed that the Ministry of Commerce will help foreign trade enterprises expand the domestic market while taking measures to stabilize foreign trade. One is to reduce the domestic sales cost of enterprises. The second is to increase domestic sales support. The third is to make good use of the production and marketing docking platform. The fourth is to expand online cooperation channels.


What challenges do companies face when they turn to the domestic market?

But the challenge for export-oriented companies to turn to domestic sales is also not small. Gao Feng, a spokesman for the Ministry of Commerce, said that according to the survey, due to the different domestic and foreign trade market environment, foreign trade companies face some specific difficulties in expanding the domestic market.

includes: It is difficult to expand sales channels . Foreign trade exports are mainly order sales, and some enterprises lack domestic sales channels after turning to domestic sales. The rules of entry, sales and settlement are unfamiliar and it is difficult to win domestic orders. It is difficult to shift the production line , domestic and foreign standards are inconsistent, and foreign trade products transferred to domestic sales need to be adjusted and transformed according to domestic standards, otherwise they cannot be sold in China. The design, technology, and style of some foreign trade products belong to foreign customers, and domestic sales require the authorization of intellectual property rights. Difficult to build a brand After foreign trade export enterprises switch to domestic sales, their own brand market is not well-known, and it is difficult to enter domestic high-quality retail channels.

Several businesses interviewed by Peng Mei journalists also said that domestic sales and foreign salesThere is a clear difference in sales preferences. Lin Jiang, a professor in the Department of Economics of Lingnan College of Sun Yat-sen University, told reporters at www.thepaper.cn that consumers in the export market and the domestic market are not the same group. Their consumption habits, perceptions of product brands, and consumption power It’s not the same, it’s difficult to simply convert products for export to domestic sales.

“Taking toys as an example, doing domestic sales requires planning your own products based on our domestic festivals, climate, and activities on e-commerce platforms.” Chen Zhuoyue said, “For example In the summer, the hot toys are bubble toys, bathing water toys, beach toys and outdoor toys. In summer and winter vacation, the most popular are building block toys, electric toys at the end of the year, and gift box toys. “

The pricing strategy also needs to be changed. According to Liu Jun, the person in charge of Phillips, the unit price of its exported products is higher than that of the domestic market. The price of the trekking pole products of some products can be hundreds of yuan. “The price cannot be achieved in China, which is the price for us The conflict on the market is (causes) that it is not easy to sell. “

If you turn to meet the needs of the domestic market, product changes also mean that the production line needs to be adjusted. Liu Jun tried to change the product. In the past, Filaz ’s products were mainly outdoor sports equipment. Now with the demand of “home home”, it has turned to the production of indoor fitness facilities. “This year from February, indoor fitness is like yoga (products ) The demand is relatively large. “Liu Jun said,” After all, if there is money flow, you can make some money if you can make some money, otherwise these months will be relatively difficult. “

< / div> In terms of product standards, products that have turned to the domestic market also need to meet relevant domestic requirements and standards, which puts more pressure on companies that used to only make foreign trade products. Chen Zhuoyue mentioned the 3C certification (China Compulsory Product Certification) required in China. Because companies want to turn squeezed export products to the domestic market for a time, the demand for 3C certification has surged. As a result, there are more people queuing for certificates, and the speed of applying for certificates is relatively slow. “Chen Zhuoyue said.

Professor Lin Jiang of the Department of Economics, Lingnan College, Sun Yat-sen University also gave an example, the voltage of desktop computers exported to the US market is 110 volts, while the standard voltage in China is 220 Even if this single standard change is not difficult, the change of multiple technical standards may affect the design of the production line, which is more difficult for some companies that are not originally flexible production lines.

In addition, there are differences in sales and payment methods between domestic and foreign sales. Lin Jiang said that the export of foreign trade enterprises is often because of the orderIf you go to production after the order, as long as the product quality passes and the delivery time is timely, it is unlikely to be unacceptable, but the domestic market often needs to start production before receiving an order, and then sell the product to consumers. People are not necessarily willing to bear the risk that the products they produce are not necessarily sold.


The e-commerce platform is aimed at export-oriented enterprises, and businesses are urgently recruiting operational talents

Peng Mei reporters noticed that in the past month, there have been many home appliances The merchant platform released support measures for foreign trade merchants, and introduced merchants to settle in through cooperation with industrial belts. These e-commerce platforms can help companies find domestic consumer audiences to a certain extent, and provide information such as consumption habits in reverse to guide production strategy adjustment.

JD.com, a social e-commerce platform under JD.com, recently launched the “Support Policy for Export-to-Domestic Businesses”, saying it will provide financial security, settlement services, flow support, etc. Provide assistance to foreign trade enterprises to carry out export to domestic sales. Chen Hai, the “toy capital” rooted by Chen Zhuoyue, is the first stop of the Jingxi Industrial Belt Factory Direct Quality Project. Jingxi hopes to introduce about 10,000 merchants in Chenghai in 2020 to gain growth on the platform.

Pinduoduo reached a cooperation with the manufacturing and foreign trade city of Ningbo in March. Both parties said that they will implement a series of innovations around the intelligent production, digital marketing and talent cultivation of Ningbo enterprises. Measures, and focus on helping a group of export-oriented enterprises to transform the domestic market, more than 15,000 Ningbo enterprises will participate in this activity.

Alibaba 1688 announced the launch of the digitalized “Foreign Trade Zone” in April, and launched a new round of support for foreign trade companies to expand the domestic market. It is planned to help 500,000 foreign trade companies achieve 2000 in the year 100 million domestic trade online wholesale transactions.

Judging from the measures of each platform, it mainly provides help for external merchants to settle in. For example, Jingxi organized the “Cloud Merchants”, 0 yuan check-in and 0.6% discount, and according to platform data, help merchants to carry out C2M (reverse customization) to meet domestic demand, as well as marketing and brand building support, such as industrial belts and factory live broadcasts.

Professor Lin Jiang of the Department of Economics, Lingnan College, Sun Yat-sen University commented that the most important aspect of the e-commerce platform is to be able to take the initiative to make profit during the special period of the epidemic and make full use of the e-commerce platform The flexibility is changeable, and the operating cost has a relatively controllable advantage to help foreign trade enterprises.It is the operation of the e-commerce platform that combines advanced technology tools such as big data, information technology, cloud computing and the Internet’s unprecedented functions, so that foreign trade enterprises no matter whether they continue to do foreign trade, foreign trade to domestic trade, or finally through internal Trade promotion of foreign trade has played a role that offline transactions and physical stores cannot.

“ The most important thing that can help foreign trade enterprises is to substantially reduce the listing fees for products transferred from foreign trade enterprises to domestic sales on e-commerce platforms, and A variety of e-commerce forms help foreign trade companies to diversify the domestic market. “Lin Jiang said that for merchants, using the power of domestic e-commerce platforms, sales methods can also be diversified, whether it is live webcast or Goods, all of which have a key role in helping foreign products to be sold domestically.

Chen Zhuoyue, head of Yichuang Space, may be relatively lucky. Before the epidemic, half of the company ’s revenue had already come from the domestic market, and already had domestic electricity. Business platform operation experience. Chen Zhuoyue introduced that during the epidemic, the company hoped to break the deadlock in domestic e-commerce channels, and also opened several new stores, actively participated in the activities of e-commerce platforms, and sold the squeezed inventory pressure through promotional activities. Increased recruitment of domestic e-commerce talents.

Chen Zhuo proposed to other companies facing foreign trade pressure that if they have contacted cross-border e-commerce companies before, they should transfer to domestic e-commerce platforms as soon as possible. “Many of the operating modes of cross-border and domestic e-commerce platforms are the same, and it is necessary to speed up the study of the rules of domestic e-commerce platforms; enterprises that have not been exposed to cross-border e-commerce should look for domestic e-commerce and offline as soon as possible Channels, use their own product advantages and domestic enterprises to achieve cooperation. “Chen Zhuoyue said.

Some companies have tasted the sweetness of domestic e-commerce platforms. Outdoor sports equipment brand Phillips puts its export inventory on the e-commerce platform, returns funds through price reduction, and at the same time adjusts the product structure, adding indoor fitness products that meet the needs of consumers in the current domestic market, such as yoga products, etc. It is getting better.

Liu Jun, the person in charge of Phillips, said, “On the domestic e-commerce platform, the current sales situation can bring about 70% to 80% of the funds back.” In the indoor selection, the relatively easy-to-ship categories are produced based on low and medium customer orders. ”

Zhou Lianfa Watches launched new products such as smart bracelets under the platform ’s recommendation in March under the platform ’s recommendation. The order volume in March increased significantly compared with February .

Interestingly, with the increasing emphasis on domestic e-commerce channels, the above-mentioned companies are also facing the problem of recruitment of “e-commerce operator talents”. According to Chen Zhuoyue, in order to recruit professional e-commerce operators, the company ’s salary has been 10% to 30% higher than last year. “The original exporters have also turned to domestic sales. Business operators. “

For the future, Liu Jun still has a worried attitude about the degree of recovery of domestic demand. In his view, under the epidemic, people will tend to save Money instead of squandering. “There are still very few people going out, especially when going out to play, climbing, camping, and dining together. The production capacity is only about 60% and the maximum is 70%.” Liu Jun said, “This is also the case abroad, the epidemic It will definitely pass, but it will not return to the previous level of consumption after the epidemic has passed.

Chen Zhuoyue is relatively optimistic. He told the surging news reporter that the hope now is still After the epidemic is over, as soon as possible to consolidate the original domestic sales, the export channels will be opened as soon as possible.

Chen Zhuo mentioned that in the past, overseas customers would come directly to Chenghai The company’s sample room selects goods, and this way seems to be more difficult to achieve due to the epidemic situation this year. However, after the Canton Fair is determined to be held online, Chen Zhuoyue will continue to participate this year. State, it is estimated that the fastest order breakout point is August, so perseverance is a victory! “