1、Market Study in Synthetics-based Sports Shoes To: Mr. Philip Watson Director Sales and Marketing Department From: Ernest Hong Sales Representative Krypton Plastics Date: Dec.12, 2005 ( or : 12 Dec. 2005)Contents Contents 頁碼Abstract 頁碼 Terms of Reference 頁碼I. Findings 頁碼 1. Methodology 頁碼 2. The spor

2、ts shoe market 頁碼 3. Sports shoes in synthetic materials 頁碼4. Trends in the use of synthetic materials 頁碼5. Potential of APC material in the sports shoe market 頁碼6. Competition between APC products 頁碼 II. Conclusion 頁碼 III. Recommendations 頁碼Appendix: List of customers visited 頁碼 1. Lung Hang Sports

3、 Co. Ltd.2. Stella Sports Manufacturing Co. Ltd.3. Wah Sing Plastic Fty4. Chan Wai Ming Mfg. Ltd.5. Milano Sport-wear Ltd.6. Fiarrino Ltd.7. Richmond Development Co. Ltd.8. Outstanding Shoes Ltd.AbstractThis report investigates the potential of APC materials in the production and sale of sports shoe

4、s in the Hong Kong SAR. The report shows that currently the majority of sports shoes manufactured in Hong Kong are made of PVC, However. We illustratethat APC has a number of advantages over PVC in terms of quality, durability and appearance. Although price is higher, in the period of economic stagn

5、ation which has hit Hong Kong, it may be advantageous to manufacturers to consider reducing production and switching to APC.Terms of ReferenceThe purpose of this report is to investigate the nature of the market for sports shoes manufactured in a range of natural and synthetic materials.It is also o

6、ur aim to stimulate plastic raw material sales in the sports shoe market, and to seek potential customers within the sports shoe market who might be interested in using Krypton's newly developed APC raw material in the manufacture of their products.I Findings1. MethodologyBefore this market stud

7、y could be undertaken, information about manufacturers of sports shoes had to be collected. We derived a list of manufacturers by referring to the Yellow Pages and the list produced by the Hong Kong Council for the Development of Trade (HKCDT).These two sources, however, did not distinguish between

8、manufacturers using leather and those using synthetic materials. This was achieved with a number of telephone calls to manufacturers.These calls were then followed up with personal interviews. A total of fifteen manufacturers were visited between January and March of this year. In order to meet our

9、objectives precisely, we focused our visits mostly on manufacturers of sports shoes using predominantly synthetic materials. Other manufacturers were followed up with telephone calls.2. The Sports Shoe MarketSports Shoes are a major export item in Hong Kong, reaping a good reward for Hong Kong s tra

10、ders and manufacturers, and, in turn, spurring the prosperity of Hong Kong.The market size for sports shoes comprises some 165 manufacturers and traders. Basically, there are three categories of sports shoe in the market. These are real leather, artificial leather and plastic. The largest share of p

11、roduction in 1999 was held by sports shoes manufactured from plastic (50% of production). This was followed by artificial leather (40% of production) and real leather (10%). However, these production statistics are very changeable because the market is extremely sensitive to fashion trends. For the

12、past few years, though, the market has been dominated by synthetic materials, mainly because they enable sports shoes to follow fashion trends, they are able to be printed on, and they can be made colourful, bright and fluorescent (see Table 1)1999Total no. of pairs of sports shoes produces in HK 15

13、.6 millionMaterial% Market ShareReal leather 10Artificial Leather:PVCPA 23 17Plastic: PVC PA APC3. Sports Shoes in Synthetic MaterialsIn the sports shoe market, PVC, PA and APC are the major plastic raw materials. The majority of sports shoes are made of PVC, which is cheaper, easier to screen print

14、 and easier to colour. All these factors create an attractively finished product with a competitive low price.APC and PA are classified as higher quality materials used in high quality products with a high price. In comparison with APC, PA is a higher quality but more expensive material.For the time

15、 being, the sports shoe market is demanding colourful, bright and fluorescent patterns. Only PVC can satisfy these requirements with low production costs (see Table 2). Consequently, most manufacturers are continuing to use PVC as the major material for sports shoes, in Order to survive in the sever

16、ely c0mpetitive sports shoe market.MaterialPriceEase of Prod'nDurabilityColour RangeCost of Pigment PVCloweasylow good low APCMedium averageaverage average highPAhighaveragehigh average high Table 24. Trends in the Use of Synthetic MaterialsSports shoes are no longer considered simply shoes whic

17、h are used for playing sports in. Sports shoes are now, and will probably continue to be, a major item of fashion wear.Consumers seem to be prepared to pay an ever-increasing price for high fashion sports shoes, and increasingly, sports shoes are entering the medium end product segment of the market

18、.As people appear to be willing to pay more for products, higher quality APC and PA plastic raw material will probably have a growing potential in the sports shoe market.5. Potential of APC Material in the Sports Shoe MarketAPC is more durable than PVC. In other words, there are less aging problems

19、associated with APC. Secondly, the quality of finish of APC products is higher than that of PVC products. As sports shoes become more fashionable, this consideration will become more important.Lastly, APC is better looking, and stays looking better for longer. It should be remarked here that if ther

20、e were no price difference, many manufacturers would be willing to try APC material in producing sports shoes because they realise that if they market a better quality product, they can avoid the severe competition at me tow end of the market, which yields lower profit margins.6. Competition between

21、 APC productsThere are few APC materials supplied in Hong Kong. Krypton, Hammond Industries, and Nichimachi are the major suppliers in Hong Kong. In the market, Nichimachi's IC51 from Japan is the major competitor with Krypton's KR6600 (see Table 3).Krypton KR6600Nichimachi IC51OriginUSAJapa

22、nUnit Price(HK$)6.38/1b5.78/1bProduct QualitySofterHarderScreen printing problems?YesYesSupplyGoodPoor Table 3However, as mentioned before, the majority of the synthetic material used for sports shoe production is PVC. Therefore, the degree of competition among APC materials in the sports shoe marke

23、t is still low, as APC is at an early stage of its market life-cycle.II. ConclusionsIt is concluded that the majority of sports shoes are made of PVC. The highest quality material is PA, followed by APC and PVC. APC material is still at a very early stage of its product life-cycle.The future of APC

24、as a material suitable for sports shoes is very dependent on trends in the sports/fashion market. At present, there are several reasons why APC is not very popular in this market.(i) We are passing through a slack period in Hong Kong's economy. Loss of a number of overseas orders has discouraged new developments in high quality products.(ii) Prices, due to the dumping of plastic raw materials, have maintained the use of PVC in the market.In the coming year, it is forecast that the Hong Kong economy will pass through a period of stagnation. In the long run, this would b