The 2024 China International Gold Conference, co-hosted by the China Gold Association and the World Gold Council, is about to kick off, as the largest and highest standard international conference in China's gold industry and the only international conference involving the entire gold industry chain in the world.
As one of the key promoters of the conference, Wang Lixin, CEO of the World Gold Council China, pointed out the background and far-reaching significance of the conference in an exclusive interview with China Gold News. He emphasized: "Against the backdrop of the current turbulent global gold market, opportunities and challenges, we chose this time to host the conference precisely to gather industry wisdom and stimulate innovative thinking. Through this platform, we hope to guide industry colleagues to discuss how to achieve sustainable development in a complex and volatile market environment, and jointly create a better future for the gold industry." In the interview, Wang Lixin also conducted a detailed and in-depth analysis of the current hot issues in the gold market, changes in consumer behavior and other topics, and inspired the future development of the industry with his unique insights and rich industry experience.
Facing the Challenge: Recognizing Change and Strategizing
Wang Lixin
CEO of the World Gold Council in China
Wang Lixin said that on the one hand, the gold price is experiencing an unprecedented continuous climb, and its duration is rare in the industry, which requires us to be psychologically deeply aware that we are standing in a new market pattern.
On the other hand, after more than 20 years of vigorous development, the jewelry industry has entered a relatively mature and stable stage. The explosive growth of the past 20 years may be a thing of the past, and we must embrace the status quo and deeply understand and respect the current development laws and ecology of the industry. In addition, consumers are also changing, their consumption mentality and preferences are quietly changing, although gold jewelry is still favored by the public, but the motivation and difficulty to attract them to buy are not the same as in the past.
In response to these challenges, Wang Lixin pointed out that although there is no established formula to follow, there are several principles that our industry should unswervingly uphold:
1) Adhere to the core category of gold jewelry. Practice has proved that in a complex and volatile market environment, gold jewelry, with its unique value attributes, has shown a more solid market foundation and anti-risk ability compared with other more vulnerable jewelry categories.
2) Keen insight into the changes in the market environment, the courage to abandon the past single and simple development model, and unswervingly take the road of branding. Brand is not only the guarantee of quality, but also the bridge of emotional connection between enterprises and consumers, and the key to meet market challenges and achieve long-term development.
3) Uphold the spirit of seeking truth from facts, flexibly adjust strategies and tailor-made solutions at the tactical execution level according to the actual situation and market environment of their respective enterprises. There is no one-size-fits-all model in the business world, and only by adapting measures to local conditions and time conditions can we remain invincible in the fierce market competition.
Ancient gold jewelry
Embrace change: dig into the core to promote consumption
Wang Lixin profoundly pointed out that the core task of gold jewelry brands is to continuously improve the added value of gold jewelry, and attract and retain consumers with unique charm by integrating the essence of traditional culture and introducing innovative elements such as popular IP. In the face of the ever-changing market environment, brands need to actively embrace change and explore new promotional strategies, channel layouts and product sourcing models to ensure that they remain dynamic and competitive in the fierce market competition. Specifically, enterprises should flexibly adjust their business strategies according to market dynamics, and Wang Lixin gave several suggestions: such as optimizing product portfolios and accurately positioning the needs of different consumer groups; Innovate customer acquisition and sales channels to broaden market coverage; deepen product segmentation to meet diversified consumer needs; Strengthen the layout of e-commerce, and use digital means to enhance brand influence and market penetration.
In recent years, the World Gold Council has focused on promoting two innovative gold jewellery categories: ancient gold and hard gold. With its unique craftsmanship and cultural connotation, Gufa gold has injected new vitality and profit growth points into the industry; In the context of high gold prices, it is easier to stimulate consumers' willingness to buy repeatedly, and its profit margin is higher than that of traditional pure gold jewelry, which will help promote the transformation of the industry from simple material sales to the overall value of jewelry.
The World Gold Council promotes hard gold
In addition, Wang Lixin also emphasized that the gold and jewelry industry should actively respond to the global trend of energy conservation and emission reduction, establish goals and beliefs for green and sustainable development, help enhance corporate image, and show the public the importance and achievements of the industry in the field of ESG. In terms of marketing strategies, the industry can try new ways to publicize, especially for the younger generation of consumers, by telling the close connection between gold jewelry and green life, to attract more attention and love from young people, so as to further broaden the market boundaries.
Facing the future: sustainable and responsible
"The core of the World Gold Council's work has always been to deepen the sustainable development of the jewellery industry, especially in close collaboration with the retail brands of benchmark listed companies, to promote gold jewellery, and to dig deeper and tell the story behind the gold jewellery, which is our unwavering insistence. At the same time, we keep up with market dynamics, continue to introduce and promote new categories, tap market potential, broaden the profit growth point of the industry, and introduce some new concepts, such as "responsible gold", to guide young consumer groups to pay more attention to green environmental protection, and enhance the industry's sense of social responsibility and sustainable development. Looking ahead to the future of the World Gold Council, Wang Lixin said.
At the same time, he stressed that in the face of the future, industry colleagues should maintain an optimistic attitude. Looking back on the development process of the past 20 years, we have experienced many market changes, but the industry has always shown strong resilience and vitality. At present, some industry colleagues are exploring the feasibility and implementation path of the "going out" strategy, expanding the production capacity and advantages of the domestic gold and jewelry industry to international markets, such as Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Central Asia and other regions, providing unique added value for these markets. For the vast majority of industry players, the most important thing is to have a clear understanding of the current situation, in-depth study of the internal laws of industry development, actively learn from the successful experience of other industries, and decisively implement strategic adjustments to cope with market changes.
Hard gold jewelry
"Looking forward to the future, as a classic category preferred by consumers, the charm and value of gold jewelry will still be unshakable. We are full of confidence in this and look forward to gathering the wisdom of all parties, exchanging innovative ideas and ideas, and jointly exploring new paths for the development of the industry through the platform of this gold conference. Wang Lixin said.