The Path of Self-transformation for Shaoxing Printing and Dyeing Enterprises under the Epidemic

Shaoxing, as the international textile capital, accounts for over 30% of the global textile printing and dyeing manufacturing capacity; Printing and dyeing, as an advantageous traditional industry in Shaoxing, has made positive contributions to the economic and social development of Shaoxing over the years. In recent years, with the joint efforts of the whole city and entrepreneurs, and in accordance with the goal of "green high-end, world leading" positioning, printing and dyeing enterprises have made significant breakthroughs in equipment technology, quality and efficiency, per mu output, and agglomeration improvement. Green breakthrough and agglomeration improvement are becoming a new starting point and new journey for the high-quality development of printing and dyeing enterprises.

The COVID-19 has caused great impact and test to printing and dyeing enterprises, especially export-oriented enterprises. From January to April, the number of employees in the printing and dyeing industry in the city decreased by 5.1%, sales decreased by 12%, and export delivery value decreased by 25%. The unprecedented severe tests and difficulties have forced the vast number of printing and dyeing enterprises to seek a path of self transformation, committed to seeking "great improvement" in the "big breakthrough", and accelerating the comprehensive competitiveness of the industry and enterprises.

Printing and dyeing enterprises are typical labor-intensive enterprises, with a high proportion of migrant workers. During the resumption of work and production in February, non local employees faced greater pressure to return to the factory for epidemic prevention and control, which not only tested the cohesion of non local employees but also the comprehensive management ability of the enterprise's epidemic prevention and control command. Baofang Printing and Dyeing resumed work on February 19th (the first printing and dyeing enterprise in Keqiao District), with full staff on February 25th and full production on February 29th. The company achieved a "high score" of 240 million yuan in sales from January to March (a year-on-year increase of 8%) and exported 20 million US dollars, thanks to the love of employees from other places for the factory, the courage of party members and cadres, the support of the board of directors and trade unions, and the solidarity and support of all employees.

In the corporate culture of Baofang Printing and Dyeing, employees are the primary productive force and the most valuable asset of the enterprise. We attach great importance to the "livelihood project" of employees, focusing on creating garden style workshops, park style factories, and community style homes to improve the production and living environment of employees; Organize all employees to participate in various forms of team building activities, enrich their leisure and family life, and improve their satisfaction and happiness; Since the outbreak of the epidemic, performance evaluation has added cost bonuses and optimized quality bonuses, which are much higher than the salary levels of the same period in the same industry; To reserve positions and provide basic salary for Hubei employees to ensure their basic livelihood, we solemnly promise not to give up on any employee, so that employees can truly feel the warmth of home and affection. Under the epidemic, enterprises not only did not experience employee turnover, but also strengthened their cohesion and collaboration. In May, enterprise orders rebounded, production resumed, and production capacity increased by 50% month on month, becoming a leader among peers.

Baofang Printing and Dyeing adheres to the concept of "employees are the primary productive force", effectively ensuring production, guaranteeing quality, defending the market, and achieving sales growth against the trend.

2、 Product is the first competitive advantage, innovative development, quality improvement and efficiency enhancement

Although the printing and dyeing industry in Shaoxing is developed with numerous enterprises, there are relatively few influential leading companies. The industry leader, Ningbo Shenzhou International, accounts for 60% of the entire printing and dyeing industry in Shaoxing (with sales of over 20 billion yuan and tax revenue of 2 billion yuan). Due to overcapacity and widespread low price competition, the fundamental issue lies in the lack of brand innovation and high value-added products.

As a single champion enterprise in the Shaoxing printing and dyeing industry, Baofang Printing and Dyeing exported wax printing products worth 110 million US dollars, with outstanding market share, penetration rate, and economic benefits. As a national high-tech enterprise, Baofang adheres to innovative development and invests 3-5% of its annual sales revenue in research and development expenses. It is committed to product technological transformation and research and development, independent brand building, and has a leading number of invention patents, utility model patents, and industrial new products with independent intellectual property rights in the industry. In the past three years, nearly 30% of annual revenue growth has been achieved due to the willingness to invest (more than 100 million yuan in fixed assets investment such as equipment to transform the production line), the courage to step out of the comfort zone (to give up the original advantages of product research and development to replace new products), and the research and development of products with fresher color, better feel, better breathability, and higher cost performance ratio, which have sold well in more than 30 countries and regions in Africa, becoming the single champion of this category of products. The company's "BAOFANG" as a "China Famous Trademark" and "STAR OF AFRICA" as a "Zhejiang Export Brand" have become well-known brands popular in Africa.

During the epidemic, although there was a brief pause in production, Baofang regarded it as an excellent "window period" for product quality improvement, energy conservation and efficiency enhancement. In March, the company established four innovation teams to put high-tech research and development into practice: the equipment team's renovation of water washing equipment and labeling automation project was successfully approved in the district's scientific and technological research project, and achieved a good foundation for large-scale production (with energy-saving and efficiency increasing achievements of more than 50%); The laboratory team optimized the supply chain based on market prices and actual effects, and made good domestic substitutions for dyes (such as 354 blue, hgl orange, etc.) originally imported from India; The printing team has conducted daily reports and breakthroughs on quality, guiding pairing assistance between superior and inferior machines, and overall A rating has increased by 2-3%; The dyeing team has upgraded and transformed the MES system based on the original ERP, implementing energy consumption statistics, energy conservation and efficiency improvement to each machine.

Amid the current epidemic situation, Baofang Printing and Dyeing adheres to the concept of "product is the first competitive advantage", respects the market, cherishes customers, focuses on products, improves quality and efficiency, thereby effectively enhancing the core competitiveness of high-quality and sustainable development.

3、 The market is the first vitality, continuously cultivating and effectively exploring

Shaoxing printing and dyeing enterprises mainly rely on processing orders from the Chinese textile city market, with over 90% being processing enterprises and less than 10% being independent distribution enterprises. In recent years, there has been a situation of "high orders cannot be achieved, low orders cannot be satisfied" in the industry, which is specifically reflected in the OeKe-Tex100 ecological textile standard being upgraded every year, making it increasingly difficult to enter high-end markets such as Europe and America; The trend of low-end market orders shifting to Southeast Asian countries is intensifying, and the competition for low-priced products is becoming more severe. In 2020, due to the impact of the epidemic, the textile industry in the city was sluggish, and the situation of foreign trade exports was severe. The European and American markets are the first to bear the brunt, with a decline in terminal consumer demand and an increasing awareness of manufacturing return. However, countries and regions without local production capacity (such as the Middle East and Africa) have almost no impact on some products due to the epidemic, and demand for orders continues to flow. In the face of the normalization of epidemic prevention and control, printing and dyeing enterprises need to adapt to the situation, step out of their comfort zone, reduce their dependence on the textile industry, actively explore emerging markets, expand the market sales of existing products, and develop new products (such as epidemic prevention related products) according to new market demands. They need to work together in both domestic and foreign markets, focusing on both domestic and foreign trade. Printing and dyeing enterprises with differentiated competitive advantages need to be cautious and optimistic in times of peace, prepare for intensified competition from new market entrants, optimize costs, improve product quality, and ensure competitive advantages.

Baofang Printing and Dyeing is different from the business model of processing materials for most printing and dyeing enterprises in Shaoxing. For many years, it has adhered to independent distribution, with a distribution and export ratio of over 80%. It is the first printing and dyeing enterprise in Keqiao District to sell over 1 billion yuan and the only printing and dyeing enterprise to win the Shaoxing High Quality Development Award. Baofang's strategic positioning has always been "green high-end, world leading" as the goal, responding to the national "the Belt and Road" strategic layout; Over the past 20 years, we have been deeply involved in the African market, accumulating years of customer experience and market expertise, which has enabled our company to have a precise market grasp of popular trends and product development, forming a unique competitive barrier; The advantages of the enterprise offset the impact of the epidemic, actively seeking new markets and customers, and winning orders for 20 million meters of mask fabric exported to Japan and South Korea, becoming a new growth point for the enterprise; At the same time, enterprises actively learn new models such as live streaming (online Canton Fair), do a good job in corporate promotion, customer maintenance, and market development, and expand the brand influence of enterprises and products.

The market always favors companies with advantages and preparations. Baofang Printing and Dyeing adheres to the concept of "employees are the primary productive force", "products are the primary competitiveness", and "the market is the primary vitality", turning danger into opportunity, expanding paths, innovating development, and effectively winning new markets and achieving new development.