The famous city of hardware is "the capital of Chinese cookware"

In the sample room of Mingxin Kitchenware, more than 1200 exhibits, including aluminum pans, juicers, and wine makers, are on display, covering both large and small cookware products.

Recently, a good news came from the China National Hardware Association: After the previous assessment and acceptance, the association decided to grant Yongkang the title “Capital of China's Kitchenware”. This is also the "China Hardware Capital", "China Gate Capital", "China Cup City", "China's Electric Tools Capital", "China Leisure Sports Car Capital", "China's household cleaning supplies capital" Yongkang obtained another piece of "Zhong Guo Zi" regional brand.

The Herald reporter learned that at the opening ceremony of the 19th China Hardware Expo to be held on September 26th, the "Chinese bedding capital" will be officially set up in the famous hardware city. Why is Yongkang? What is the growth path for the cooking industry here? In a highly competitive market, how does it achieve "the ears of the development industry"? Around these issues, the reporter went to visit specifically.

"The pot's production threshold is actually very high, a small pot, the product quality is first."

The "pot" of two companies

What is cooking utensils? Baidu search definition of it is: cooking utensils, utensils. In Yongkang, there are almost altogether thousands of types of bedding products, including kitchen appliances, pressure cookers, selenium iron pans, healthy iron pans, smokeless pans, and all kinds of wok pans, and so on. There are more than 300 manufacturers.

Among so many enterprises, Mingxin and Nanlong are two truly "leaders."

Mingxin kitchenware, which started as a foreign trade, started cooking in 1999. Today, the annual production value has reached 350 million yuan.

Chief Operating Officer Zhang Hao told reporters that in recent years, the company has experienced several key development periods. In 1999, the company cooperated with a British company with its own brand “KITCHENSTAR” and became the first batch of domestic design and export companies for cooking utensils. In 2004, Mingxin exceeded the single-product export sales record of 10 million yuan in one year.

“At the end of 2012, we established the 'Indos Group' in Hong Kong, specializing in the research and development of patented products for air-cushion pots and Ayurvedic Soups, and developed our own brand 'Master Master'.” Zhang Hao said, “The so-called air-cushion pot is a special process. The surface of the pot body is formed with countless small pores that are invisible to the naked eye. When the pot body is heated, the air contained in the small air holes expands, and a thin layer of air cushion is formed between the food and the pot. Lift up to achieve a non-stick effect."

This patented air cushion pot is also one of Mingxin's flagship products. When selling, in order to meet the needs of different levels of consumers, the price of air-cushion pot is also divided into a variety of 198 yuan, 498 yuan and so on.

The reporter noticed that in the sample room of Mingxin Kitchenware, more than 1200 exhibits including aluminum pans, juicers, and wine makers were displayed, covering large and small cookware products. Zhang Hao said that although it was initially positioned as a trading company, Ming New has now extended to R&D, production, and sales. In addition to its own R&D staff, it also collaborates with Italian, French, Dutch, and other professional design agencies to develop new products. product.

“The proportion of our products for export is about 80%, which is mainly sold to Europe, the Middle East, South America and other places. The domestic sales market is concentrated in the Northeast, Shandong, Shanghai, Jiangsu and other places.” Zhang Wei told reporters that in addition to offline, they also The flagship store opened on Tmall can be described as truly domestic and foreign, online and offline walking on multiple legs.

Like Mingxin, in the cooking industry, Nanlong Group, which is famous for its cups, is also a half-way monk. However, this does not prevent it from becoming a leader in the industry in just a few years.

In 2005, Nanlong officially entered the cooking equipment industry. In the following year, its output value exceeded one billion yuan. The speed of expansion has made the industry look admirably.

“The pot's production threshold is actually very high. The pot quality is the number one. Therefore, at the beginning, our goal is to identify ourselves with the two famous brand pots – Supor and Aishida, and strive to expand our own. Market.” Chairman of the board said in peak.

In recent years, in the face of a severe economic situation, Nanlong is also working hard to improve the design and development of food and kitchen products, the application of new technologies and new processes, and the transformation of production lines.

According to Gao Feng, they produced an iron enamel pressure cooker, which took four years to complete the research and development. The advantage lies in brilliant colors, easy cleaning, and the tin plate plating technology applied in the pot edge is in the industry's leading level. Therefore, although the price is nearly 10,000 yuan. Yuan, but orders have been kept continuously since the products were put on the market.

"This year, we have invested more than 20 million yuan in our cookware division. We have upgraded the equipment and replaced it with automation. The die-casting process that originally required 14 people has now been reduced to just 4 people, while the production capacity has increased by 40%. ."He said.

"The variety has increased from the original dozens of species to thousands of species, greatly satisfying the needs of consumers at different levels."

Branchlet seedlings to giant trees

Mingxin and Nanlong have grown from little-known small factories into fairly powerful bedding companies. Their growth experience is a microcosm of the development of Yongkang's bedding industry.

During the interview, Yang Kezhong, director of the Yongkang Bureau of Quality and Technical Supervision, told reporters that as an important part of the Yongkang hardware industry, after many years of development, the cookware industry has now become a pillar industry of the Yongkang economy.

There is such a set of data to support this: In 2013, there were more than 300 manufacturers of finished cooking utensils and more than 600 supporting companies, of which more than 100 were above-scale enterprises and 3 were enterprises with an annual output value of over 500 million yuan. The industry employs more than 70,000 people, and the total annual output is about 250 million. The total output value is about 10 billion yuan.

Like other hardware products industries, for many years, the Yongkang cooker industry has also experienced a process ranging from small to large scale and from single to rich varieties.

Yang Kezhong revealed that before the 1980s, Yongkang cookware companies mainly produced cookware such as pots and pans to meet the basic family needs. The materials were mainly made of pure aluminum and iron, and their product styles and materials were relatively simple. Then, with the improvement of people’s living standards, the demand for cooking equipment has become more and more extensive. Local cooking companies have also seized the opportunity to continuously increase their investment in science and technology, accelerate the development of new products, and have various types of advanced pressure cookers with different materials and are not sticky. Pots, electric hot pots and other cooking utensils are listed.

"The variety increased from the original dozens of species to thousands of species, mainly including kitchen appliance pressure cookers, selenium iron pans, healthy iron pans, smokeless pans, all kinds of wok, etc. These products greatly satisfy the needs of different levels of consumers. Yang Kezhong said that Yongkang bedding enterprises have continuously improved product performance based on years of R&D and innovation, and achieved a transformation from a single cooker product to diversification, modernization, and novelty, so that the Yongkang bedding industry quickly occupied the commanding heights of the market, and also provided itself with A vast space for survival and development.

The reporter learned that in recent years, Yongkang bedding industry has been constantly highlighting the status of “all urban centers,” and the external radiation function and industrial agglomeration effect have continued to increase. It has gradually developed into a Chinese bedding industry trade, distribution and distribution center, and it has formed a variety of bedding manufacturers and buyers from all over the country. Prosperous situation for the attention of domestic and foreign counterparts.

At present, Yongkang cookware production accounts for about one-third of the country's total, and exports account for about one-fourth of the country's total. While broadening the domestic sales market, it is also committed to foreign trade exports. The products have covered Europe, America, Japan, the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and Russia. More than 170 countries and regions.

“From hard-working companies to third-rate companies selling products, to second-rate companies selling technology, to first-class companies selling standards”

Key industry voice

Today, if you want to explore the secrets of Yongkang cooker industry growth, there are two keywords I am afraid can not be ignored, that is, brands and standards.

Yang Kezhong told the reporter that in recent years, Yongkang bedding industry has been actively researching and developing new types of materials to improve product quality, and at the same time strengthen high-tech research, and developed a number of new products for production and sales. According to incomplete statistics, Yongkang bedding company now has more than 700 authorized patents in the industry, more than 100 domestic and international advanced bedding production lines, 4 national high-tech enterprises, national inspection-free products, “Zhejiang famous brand” and “Zhejiang famous brand”. There are more than 20 provincial-level honors such as "Zhejiang well-known trademarks".

What's more, in Yongkang, there has been a good brand atmosphere among the cooking companies.

“A lot of companies are actively designing the unique selling points of their products in the process of implementing their brand strategy and organizing scientific and technological personnel to develop products that have their own characteristics and culture in terms of performance, craftsmanship, and appearance.” Yang Kezhong stated that brand strategy is the company’s long-term development. It lays a solid foundation and also provides ample space for the company to earn profits.

In addition to the brand, Yongkang bedding industry also has the right to speak in the industry by participating in the formulation of standards.

“In the face of increasingly fierce competition in the bedding industry, we have refined the 'three orientations' approach of 'directive declarations, designated training, and fixed enterprise services' to encourage and support enterprises, especially industry leaders, to actively participate in the formulation of national standards and industry standards. The goal is to allow them to have their own quality speaking rights. Yang Kezhong told reporters.

Against this background, the enthusiasm of companies to grab the right to speak has also continued to rise.

Take the South Dragon as an example. Previously, it was not only elected as a vice chairman unit by the “China National Hardware Association” and “China Daily Sundries Industry Association”, but also approved by the National Standards Committee to become a member of the “National Standardization Technical Committee for Metal Catering and Cooking Appliances” and participated in We have drafted more than 10 national standards such as "Standards for the Control of Quality and Safety of Tableware", "Stainless Steel Vacuum Cup", "Saw and Aluminum Nonstick Cookware" and "Household Steel Cookware".

In the interview, the reporter was informed that up till now, Yongkang has two member companies of the National Hardware Product Standardization Technical Committee and has participated in the formulation of more than 10 national standards for cooking utensils.

“The sense of standardization of enterprises is gradually increasing. In the process of standard system revision, it gradually changed from passive execution in the past to active participation. For this reason, many enterprise standards and industry internal control standards of Yongkang have risen to national standards.” Yang Kezhong introduced that In the past, companies in the hard-to-finish market went to third-rate companies selling products, to second-rate companies selling technology, and now to the top-ranking companies selling standards. The Yongkang bedding industry has taken a historic step.

Now, after the "China's cookware capital," Yongkang prepares to do, it also includes how to brighten up the piece of gold.

Considering that quality and product innovation are the lifeline for the development of the bedding industry, Yang Kezhong revealed that next, they should guide enterprises to increase their investment in scientific research and accelerate the pace of product innovation, especially from low-end products to high-tech and high-value-added products. The production methods must also be integrated into the intensive, automated, professional, and production collaborative network development.

On the other hand, with the increasing market demand for bedding quality and brand, striving for more brand-name products is also a top priority.

“We must gradually switch from the OEM and neutral packaging export methods to exporting our own brand-name products.” He told reporters that in the three-year plan for the development of the bedding industry, Yongkang set the goal of: The cooking equipment industry achieved a total output value of about 13 billion yuan, and the annual output was about 350 million. The city's bedding companies had an annual output value of more than 500 million yuan and more than 5 enterprises and more than 150 enterprises above designated size.