In China, the province that has the main production of flowers remains Yunan. A few years ago, while going to visit this city, you could only find some villages with small activities. However, since the measure of the international chamber of commerce, sellers of flowers learned numerous techniques in order to be valuable in the flower industry for competition. The rising economy of the country also feeds the development of the flower industry. If you have a look at Yunan province, in 2013, approximately 800 000 farmers grew flowers to 70 000 hectares. The market provides a lot of jobs. Regarding production, Asia represents a huge for the producers.
The structure of the flowers’ industry
The increasing production of flowers can be explained by the wish to improve the urban landscape. Therefore, the quality of life is also influenced in a positive way. The progress in this industry finds an explanation with the rise of the living standard.
While selling flowers it’s important to understand the wish of the consumers and also the preferences of consumers depending on the city. For example, in Guangzhou, they enjoy grass, seeds weather than in Shanghai they like ornamental seedlings. It’s also important to know that for example, white flowers are symbols of death so they are not very common.
Even if there is a great domestic consumption, China’s market flower is driven by the exports. Indeed, China is an international producer. In only a few years, we can notice, a rise in exports of 90 million USD. The intensity of the production is facilitated by the low-cost workforce but also the availability of the land.
The success of the production is due to the collaboration of the international chamber of commerce in Yunnan. They implemented a strategy for the exportation of flowers and teach the efficient method to farmers. The investment of 26 million USD in order to build an auction market and a logistics center. This investment definitely helped the market to progress significantly. We can distinguish 3 sectors: people that control business from the production to the distribution, the auctioneers and finally the financial backers.
As we mentioned it earlier the Chinese market offers a lot of potential for imported flowers. China really welcomes Kenyan flowers. Actually, the demand for Kenyan flowers grows very fast. Indeed, Chinese consumers really enjoy a different kind of flowers from the local market. Kenya is able to offer different types of flowers that match with the expectations of Chinese consumers regarding colors, shapes, and size. One of the big advantages of Kenya is the possibility to offer a wide range of flowers.
Flowers in the Chinese culture
Flowers have a different meaning in the Chinese culture. Natural nectar symbolizes growth, achievement and fortunate beginnings in life. In Fengshui, flowers mean fortune and success. Indeed, flowers in a good health show good Chi energy. When one wants to offer flowers to someone in China, you need to respect codes. There are a lot of varieties and colors that have different meanings. Actually, giving a bouquet as a present is a recent phenomenon in China. In reality, until a few years ago, cut flowers were linked with funerals. Even though nowadays, it is generally accepted to send a bouquet of flowers as a gift, it still better to offer potted plant. Here are some elements that you should know. White flowers and yellow chrysanthemums are used in the context of death which means funerals. Moreover, a potted plant symbolized an unachieved cure to a sick person. Thors and thistles are a synonym of pain and difficulty. Since poplar flowers can be broken and represent an unfaithful woman.
How could you market your flowers?
Choose the way through which you want to sell them
If physical shops seem to be very logical for the sale of flowers, don’t forget that in China e-commerce platforms are very important.
Indeed, Tao Bao, Tmall and JD.com are an unavoidable giant. Chinese people spend a lot of time of these apps to buy everything. It allows them to save time and to compare items of different retailers. Doing business with these players is not easy regarding administrative viewpoint. We have many contacts and we are used to doing it. Therefore, we can provide you a good support.
Advertise and promote your brand on social media
Social media and especially We chat and Weibo are an essential tool for your business. First of all, you can have a shop on Wechat or you can also create an official account. But what is the most interesting aspect regarding this industry, is the possibility to advertise your brand thanks to ads you can add on mini-programs for example. Chinese consumers buy a lot of things according to recommendations of the others especially because they want quality and variety. Most of the time people rely on the opinion of their friends, family, and other consumers.
Carve out a strong branding for your company
No matter what is your business, meaning that you can sell your own art pieces or maybe you can also choose to be a platform, you need to build a solid reputation through your website and social media. Especially in luxury when the competition is very fierce because of the leading position of big international players if you want to know you have to design a visible identity.
You need to be trendy as much as possible. In order to achieve this goal, it is very important to have a wide knowledge of the Chinese market. We have the skills to help you to create a good website with qualitative content. The reputation you will have also depends on a good SEO on Baidu. Indeed, Google is forbidden in China and Baidu has its own way to function.
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