Leading outdoor and leisure company to increase investment in China

The recent strong sales of outdoor and leisure apparel has promoted VF Corporation, the world's leading apparel, footwear, and accessories company, to increase its investment in China, according to its senior executives.

To penetrate deeper into the Chinese market, the corporation announced the expansion of their facilities with nearly 30 million yuan ($4.1 million) in its current distribution center in Kunshan last month.

"The investment will be mainly used for the renovation of our existing warehouse," said Wu Fang, vice-president of supply chain operations in the APAC market of VF Corporation.

During the Double 11 online shopping festival from Oct 31 to Nov 11, the flagship store of The North Face on the e-commerce platform Tmall, together with its branches, was the best seller in the outdoor category of international products.

"We have seen the growing trend of product volume in the Chinese market in the coming years, especially at several major shopping nodes every year, such as the 618 shopping festival, Double 11, Christmas, and Spring Festival. So we need to increase the storage capacity of our facility while supporting our frontline employees to improve their operational process," Wu pointed out.

The corporation views the lifestyle change of Chinese consumers as a big growing incentive.

"With the increasing awareness of health, more people are joining in outdoor sports and leisure activities, which is a great opportunity for our category to grow," said Ma Wen, president, of APAC of VF Corporation.

Ma said that after the COVID-19 epidemic, Chinese consumers are evolving to get unique brand experiences in physical stores apart from their purchasing habits online.

"Store upgrades are not simply about increasing the quantity, but rather about differentiation. Some are more targeted at young consumers, while others may be more catered to various community groups," Ma said.

"We will further enhance our brand strength and product innovation, to better fulfill the growing needs of our Chinese consumers," she added.

Ma listed Merino wool sports brand Icebreaker and running shoe brand Altra as the company's next potential growing points.

"The brand concept of Icebreaker is to coexist with nature, so we dedicate ourselves to making high-quality outdoor apparel using Merino wool and natural fibers, minimizing the uses of chemical fibers and plastics as much as possible, and we are also very optimistic about the development of this emerging category," Ma said. "We also believe that the equipment market for running shoes will continue to grow rapidly, with a large portion of the driving force coming from the demand for high-quality professional products."