Getting to Know Back-to-School & Office Supplies October 18, 2007
Posted by author in : Stationery , trackbackttnet.net - [2006/01/24]
What Trendies Say
Modern offices tend to be more colorful. We see a lot of orange and blue, red and spring green on synthetic products such as desks, punches and files. Writing utensils with gold ink are brilliant, enabling a deluxe sense. As seen in this years’ Paperworld show, less golden but vivid in colors like dark blue and orange are writing instruments. High-quality pens in colorful designs are more heart-stealing than those with metallic and black designs, especially for young generation users. They prefer to a whole array of colored writing instruments, even with very bold decorations and patterns such as Asian themes. Highlighters become a must-have writing instrument. Markers are added with licensed comic figures from the classics like Disney or Looney Tunes to Spiderman and, the very latest, The Incredibles to attract eyes of young consumers. The advent of computers and related technologies has yet to make writing instruments obsolete. Instead, the writing instrument industry embraces the evolution of technology by incorporating it into new products and using it to broaden business aspects and customers services.
Trendy paper product designs follow checks and stripes and floral patterns in different variants. The checks are common in red, pink, olivey, fresh green, orange and yellow colors while these compositions are also being used as stripes or as backgrounds for floral motifs. Mediterranean motifs, on serviettes, wrapping paper or accessories and cards are also popular. Greeting cards and calendars in themes and motifs of nature and people are ever loved. Diaries, notebooks and organizers turn to upmarket orientation as lavish hard-cover items and high-class paper are dominant. Photographic paper is sold well thanks to the prevailing digital cameras, not only for professional photographers but also for home users, consistent with up-and-coming homing trend. The tools used for conference presentation are no more classic display board but LED overhead projectors. These products are getting slimmer and more compact for easier to use and carry everywhere.
What Market Insiders Say
US Back-to-School Market Snapshot
Despite of wider applications of computers, pens, pencils and markers still last to be staples of American life and indispensable for every day use. According to The Writing Instrument Manufacturers Association (WIMA), the sales of writing instruments soared to US$4.8 billion in 2004, an increase over the US$4.6 billion in 2003. Among them, pens account for 47% of the industry to US$2.5 billion while pencils representing 46% to US$0.84 billion and markers and highlighters combined for 7% of the industry or US$.39 billion in manufacturer sales. The Back-to-School season, typically from mid-July to mid-September, represents a US$6.997 billion market for school supplies during period. U.S. households spent US$123.37 in average on back-to-school items. Every August, millions of American families with school-age children prepare to shop for back-to-school supplies such as writing instruments, folders, notebooks, binders, backpacks and organizers. Today’s kids 6-17 are playing a more active role in consuming than ever before, influencing a wide variety of goods and services. These kids acquire brand knowledge as early as age two and their product savvy grows through their grade school years.
CHINA Stationery Market Snapshot
In terms of production and exports, China is the No.1 maker of pen and pencil and No.3 ranking for ballpoint pens and mechanical pencils in the world. The overall stationery output reaches US$3 billion and continues to enjoy double-digit growth every year since 2000, widely exported to Europe, North America and Southeast Asia.
China’s cheaper land and labors make itself the optimized sourcing for stationery, attracting myriads of overseas investment to set up manufacturing bases there, especially from Taiwan. Taiwanese factories have been investing in China to restart their second life. Meanwhile the growing OEM joint venture cooperation there will accelerate technological transfer from the world to China, upgrade innovation progress and promote the integrating of resources of China industries. Nowadays, there are more than 3,000 stationery manufacturers in China, mostly on OEM and/or ODM basis. Many of these are located in Yangtze River Delta area and Pear River area, the two of the country’s manufacturing hubs.
Business activities are busy here in China with the reform and opening to the outside world. Joint-venture enterprises are the big buyers for upmarket stationery. Thanks to the tendency of growing one child family, parents are willing to buy their children fancy stationery. In this case, foreign brands have been echo-friendly among consumers due to their quality-sensing look, multi-functionality, brand-new designs and environmentally-friendly approach.
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