China Business Daily (Reporter Wang Yifei) The 2024 Asia (Summer) Sporting Goods and Fashion Exhibition is in full swing at the Shanghai New International Expo Center. In the exhibition hall of outdoor shoes and clothing, many domestic and foreign brands gathered to unveil and reveal new products, and extreme outdoor scenes such as peak and extreme cold were wonderfully simulated in the showcase, focusing the audience's attention on the trendy outdoor item of jacket.
In recent years, in the high-end outdoor clothing market with jackets as the main product, the market share of overseas brands has been high. At the exhibition site, Camel announced the launch of a new brand Himalaya, officially entering the professional outdoor field. In the high-end outdoor clothing track, brands are competing for each other, what kind of layout and development will Himalaya have?
Camel creates a new brand of professional outdoor
On June 28, the reporter saw at the 2024 Asia (Summer) Sports Goods and Fashion Exhibition that the newly launched brand Himalayan booth of Camel was eye-catching. The booth demonstrated the relevant performance and parameters of the new jacket through novel scientific and technological experiments such as waterproof and windproof testing machines and warm space-time experience stations.
Affected by tectonic plate movements, the Himalayas continue to renew new heights on top of the world, making them a challenge for outdoor climbers. It is understood that the new brand Himalaya launched by Camel this time is based on the meaning of "pilgrimage place for outdoor climbers", which is not only a fit for the theme of the exhibition "Peak Climbing", but also Camel's expectation of "becoming the peak, but not more than the peak" of the Himalayan brand.
Himalayan professional jacket tested in a simulated scenario. (Photo courtesy of the company)
Camel official told the China Business Daily reporter that the Himalayan brand will be committed to the development of a variety of high-tech outdoor equipment suitable for outdoor extreme conditions, and the future product line will cover hiking, camping, mountaineering, cross-country running, high-altitude climbing, skiing and other multi-dimensional scenarios. In terms of product design, the brand is also guided by "professional performance, scientific and technological innovation, and sustainability", and develops and iterates professional outdoor equipment with excellent performance according to the different needs of outdoor athletes and enthusiasts.
"Camel is positioned as a professional outdoor brand, and Camel Group also has several sub-brands such as panda and penguin. Panda is to meet the needs of fashionable and young customers, Ximalaya is mainly aimed at the needs of professional 'hardcore' outdoor players, and Penguin is an outdoor brand that is more inclined to ski scenes. Liu Heng, director of product design of Himalaya, told a reporter from China Business Daily that Camel has laid out a multi-brand strategic matrix under it.
Liu Heng further said: "It can be said that Himalaya has not only inherited the genes of camels in the field of outdoor equipment, but also made innovations and breakthroughs on this basis. The 'two-way empowerment' of Himalaya and Camel not only accelerates product iteration, but also improves user experience. ”
Applicable to "ultra-high" altitude to show "hard-core product power"
At the exhibition site, the camel demonstrated the waterproof and windproof performance of the jacket through the rain and wind test in the confined space, and at the same time borrowed the special effect of the "abyss mirror" to show the audience the new series of jackets.
Himalaya H3500, Himalaya H5500, Himalaya H7000 and Himalaya H8848 are suitable for different altitudes, and are the four series of jackets that the brand will focus on this time.
In front of the "Abyss Mirror", exhibitors are stopping to watch. (China Business Daily reporter Wang Yifei/photo)
It is reported that the Weifeng MICROTOP-TEX fabric used in this Himalayan series is developed and designed by Camel and the Jiangnan Branch of the China Textile Research Institute, and is also the designated cooperative fabric brand of the China Science Exploration Association, which has been certified by 32 testing institutions around the world.
The waterproof index of this series of products reaches 30,000MMH2O, the moisture permeability index reaches 11,550+G/M2x24H, and the water pressure index ≥ 28,000, which has both breathability and warmth functions, and can withstand more than 400,000 friction tests at most, with high strength tear resistance. The inner layer is made of self-heating circulating insulation materials to help climbers stay warm in extreme cold conditions.
Camel said that Weifeng MICROTOP-TEX fabric broke the monopoly of European and American brands on high-end fabrics for jackets in one fell swoop.
"From the perspective of product technology research and development, Ximalaya has invested in high parameters and high performance, and wants to create a 'high benchmark' for outdoor clothing. In the future, in the Himalayan product line, Camel will continue to invest more resources in research and development. Liu Heng told a reporter from China Business Daily that at present, the self-developed Weifeng MICROTOP-TEX fabric is better than the GORE-TEX fabric on the market in terms of performance.
There are still opportunities in the competition for outdoor clothing
At present, in the outdoor clothing track, the competition between various "forces" is fierce, with Anta and Li Ning laying out high-end outdoor lines with ARC'TERYX and Haglofs, and mature European outdoor brands such as MAMMUT and KLATTERMUSEN have also increased their domestic market. How do camels break through and occupy a place?
Liu Heng said that in the past two years, the outdoor market has shown a "explosive growth" trend, and foreign high-end outdoor brands have entered the game.
In front of the Himalaya booth, exhibitors are browsing the brand introduction. (China Business Daily reporter Wang Yifei/photo)
According to reports, the price range of Himalaya series products is between 700 yuan and 4,000 yuan. Liu Heng said that there are still opportunities for camels in the outdoor clothing market, such as in outdoor down jackets, the unit price of products in the high-end market is about 15,000 yuan, and camels have their own R&D, production and sales teams, so they have the advantage of a higher quality-price ratio.
In addition to products, Camel also focuses on brand building. It is reported that it has joined hands with professional athletes and outdoor players to promote the Himalayan brand to expand brand awareness and establish a professional outdoor brand image. Camel hopes to take this exhibition as an opportunity to help the brand match with multi-level outdoor sports needs.
In the future, what kind of competition will the new Himalayan brand launch in the high-end outdoor market? It's still worth looking forward to.