Mr. Klaus Dittrich, Chairman & CEO of Messe München GmbH, said: “If ISPO Shanghai last year was a boost for the industry, then this year it is a vaccine against the epidemic, and we can see a new surge of visitors and heated discussion. They fully demonstrated the industry’s steady recovery and the vitality of emerging potential.”
As an upgrading cooperation between ISPO and Tmall Sports Outdoors, the ISPO Choice presented 50 selected finalists from 48 brands. They are representative of the current trend in the sports industry, and provide useful information for the consumers.
In this regard, Ms. Candace Hua, Chief Financial Officer of Messe Muenchen Shanghai Co., Ltd. said: “Based on ISPO’s professionalism and Tmall’s influence, ISPO Choice will present high-quality; influential sports products and concepts to sports enthusiasts around the world." Meanwhile, M. Sheng Ying, Head of Tmall Sports Outdoor also said: "This time, the two parties collaborated starting from the TMALL × ISPO Choice selection scheme, aiming at establishing a commodity evaluation system with a multi-dimensional perspective including quality, trends, consumer reputation, etc., to bring about more high-quality, professional, and innovative sports outdoor equipment from all over the world to the consumers so that they could find their favorite goods more easily. At the same time, this would also create more dimensions of the sports goods segments and provide new opportunities to more brands who are innovative businesses."
KOLs (Key Opinion Leader) and KOCs (Key Opinion Consumer) are something indispensable in today’s marketing operations. Following the first try in 2020, ISPO Shanghai 2021 has seen explosive growth in the terms of KOL and KOC participation. More than 300 KOLs and KOCs are found active in the halls, bringing exposure to 9.9 million fans.
What is more important is the market influence and purchasing power represented by these people. Different from the usual "see what’s going on", the KOLs and KOCs present this year have more clear targets. Senior Action sports and Outdoor sports KOL Zhang Jing said: "Actually, I considered myself an old friend of ISPO. But it feels a bit different to be a visitor and to be invited as a KOL. What surprised me the most this year was the change in the camping area. In the past, I might have focused on action sports. ISPO brings an inspiration that slow life can also be interesting.."
The much-applauded "China Campground Development Summit" jointly created by ISPO and Xband Cultural Tourism Group, together a camping life exhibition area that’s ten times bigger than the previous year, has confirmed the explosive growth of the Chinese camping market. The "camping lifestyle" area included camping clothing in addition to basic camping equipment, as well as other aesthetic elements including home furnishings and retro trends. In the evening, the ISPO Sunset Boulevard Party gathered many fashionistas and sports enthusiasts, offering more personal experience of the "camping style".
In the running and health & fitness section, in addition to the new products, the off-site test area and the running activity "Ride the tide and wind" jointly organized with Intersport also attracted many runners. We care about sports, but more about the people. ISPO not only offers sports experiences, but also concerns about the rehabilitation of athletes. A special treatment area was designed to provide professional solutions the sports enthusiasts. The "Plogging Running" introduced the "sustainable" sports concept to the sports community.
The return of the rock-climbing area and the water testing area has greatly improved the participation of sports enthusiasts. The "rock climbing zeal" triggered by its entry into the Olympics was found at ISPO Shanghai. Practitioners and enthusiasts gathered on the "wall" to test new products and exchange ideas. China’s first indoor paddling race and the youth kayak ball competition staged in the 300-square-meter pool-"ISPO Water Fan" reflected how inclusive and interesting water sports is, and offered new ideas to other related industries.
The industry is undergoing rapid changes and upgrades. "Stay in the forefront and seize the opportunities" is a common goal. ISPO Shanghai, as a business exchange platform that has been deeply involved in the industry for many years, offered macro analysis of the industry development and targeted discussion on hot issues through more than 80 exchange and forum activities covering retail, innovation, R&D, rehabilitation, camping and other fields. The activities helped industry practitioners pinpoint their advantages and disadvantages while understanding the industry trend.
In addition to conceptual discussions, ISPO Award and ISPO Textrends once again showcased award-winning products that represent forward-looking technologies, fashionable and high-performance new products, and their market potential.
The next ISPO Shanghai will open at the Shanghai New International Expo Center in July 2022, while ISPO Beijing 2021 will be held at the National Convention Center (Beijing) on December 28-30, 2021.
Ms. Cheng Xu, Public Relations Manager, Shenzhen EcoFlow Innovation Technology Co., Ltd.
ISPO is a great platform for meeting old and new friends on a regular basis in Shanghai and Beijing. KOLs are the pioneers and leaders in this industry. They can play an important role by experiencing the products personally, as more visitors will follow them.
Mr. Feng Jiajun, Head of Marketing department, Zhejiang MobiGarden Outdoor Products Co., Ltd.
We are transforming from a product and sales company to a service provider. I think the target application scenario set by ISPO this year is very accurate, and the visitor flow also meets our high expectations for ISPO. The camping lifestyle exhibition area gives everyone inspiration.
Ms. Daria Krasnoperova, Nordisk
We are very optimistic to enter the Chinese market in the phase that the camping industry has accelerated so much in China. We did receive a lot of KOLs’/KOCs’ attention at our booth. A lot of people are taking pictures and already posting on the social medias like Weibo, RED, etc, talking about our products and spreading the words to their followers through their channels. In China, especially, having close contacts with KOLs/KOCs is a very important part of marketing communication and branding for any brand. We are very grateful for ISPO’s efforts.
Mr. He Detao, Business Manager, Tiantai Weizhen Outdoor Products Co., Ltd.
It is obvious that the visitor flow at ISPO Shanghai this year has increased a lot, far exceeding our expectations! The visitors are very enthusiastic, and many KOLs came to our booth to experience and promote our products, which was of great help to our brand and product concept promotion. I hope that ISPO will get better and better, and the visitor flow will continue to increase, so it will bring more benefits to the exhibitors.
Mr. Huang Junyun, Sales Director, Guangdong DX2 Technology Co., Ltd.
The visitor flow is great! There are a lot of outdoor sports enthusiasts and distributors at the show. I hope ISPO will grow better and better!
Mr. Ji Jianming, President, Zhejiang Naturehike Sporting Goods Co., Ltd.
This year, ISPO Shanghai has a more diversified visitor profile than in previous years. In the past, the majority is made up of outdoor professionals. This year there are many visitors from other fields.
Mr. Jin Hai, Deputy General Manager, Operation Center, Suzhou Indel Garment Co., Ltd.
The exhibition is very, very successful! Hall N1 is very crowded, and Hall N2 is also full of people. People are literally rubbing shoulders at every booth. From 2016 to now, I think ISPO Shanghai has grown a lot. This year ISPO has also established cooperation with Tmall, and invited KOLs to try the exhibits. I hope such a combination of online and offline exhibition will continue in the future.
Ms. Jin Lan, General Manager, Haers (Shenzhen) Intelligent Digital Drinking Water Appliance Co., Ltd.
The cooperation between ISPO and Tmall will have a very positive impact on the exhibiting brands. In addition, the visitors who came to us accepted our product concept very quickly. So it is clear that the visitors match our target customer group very well.
Mr. Li Yun, General Manager, Rushi Guanshan Sports Culture Development (Nanjing) Co., Ltd.
We feel that the cooperation between ISPO and Tmall is particularly good. Both ISPO and Tmall have invested a lot of resources. We are honored that one of our products has also been shortlisted for ISPO Choice, and we have seen our products on the homepage of Tmall. I believe that this will definitely bring us a lot of customer visit, so we think that such cross-border cooperation is very good, it is particularly helpful to us, and we hope that we can do more in the future.
Mr. Liu Chang, Chief Executive Officer, Tianjin Rock & Roland International Trade Co., Ltd.
ISPO has many years of experience operating in China and abroad. Judging from the overall visitor quality, people are relatively optimistic about the future. We can also see many young visitors. In addition, as a brand, we also hope that the cooperation between ISPO and Tmall will bring us more strategic resources.
Ms. Liu Fang, Executive Director/General Manager, Fidlock Industrial (Shenzhen) Co., Ltd.
As a frequent visitor of ISPO Munich, my experience of ISPO Shanghai is equally good. We set up a Chinese subsidiary last year, so this year we are participating in ISPO in China for the first time. I feel that the visitors and the organizer are both very professional and active. We have also established contact with many professional buyers and target customers. ISPO is really a very good platform, and our cooperation with ISPO has been very pleasant.
@Mars_Zhang Jing, Outdoor Sports Insider/KOL
I considered myself an old friend of ISPO. But it feels a bit different to be a visitor and to be invited as a KOL. What surprised me the most this year was the change in the camping area. In the past, I might have focused on action sports. ISPO brings an inspiration that slow life can also be interesting.
Mr. Qi Xia, General Manager, Beijing Travel Mouse Outdoor Products Co., Ltd.
The collaboration between ISPO and Tmall is very good. For brands, being able to be supported by Tmall through ISPO is an effective way to promote sales. I hope to see more such cooperation, and I also hope the presence of trendy people and KOLs will bring more exposure to our brand.
Mr. Sun, General Manager, ABC Camping
The KOL invitation is a great move made by ISPO! As the Chinese outdoor lifestyle industry grows, and for us who are devoted to this field, ISPO has provided a good stage, a place of resource sharing for everyone. I hope ISPO will get better and better!
Mr. Wang Jianbo, Marketing Director, Huafeng Chemical Co., Ltd.
This is our first participation in ISPO. The exhibition is very professional. In addition to being highly professional, the visitors are also very concerned about the sustainability of sports. Thus we are quite optimistic about the future market development. Thank you, ISPO, for the platform it provides.
Mr. Wang Yuanming, General Manager, Intersport China (Visitor)
The atmosphere in the venue is very good. I found a lot of sports fan friends, and many visitors came to our booth to test our running shoes. In addition, I felt pleasantly surprised and excited that so many children are actively participating in the Floorball game.
Mr. Xu Huijun, General Manager, Maxsun Metal (Dalian) Co., Ltd.
We have been a loyal participator of ISPO. We have found that the number of visitors is increasing every year, and more and more people are interested in our products. Many of the visitors have followed our official social media accounts.
Mr. Yang Liu, Marketing Director (Xiaomi), Xi'an Fengyu Information Technology Co., Ltd.
We are a loyal exhibitor of ISPO, and we have participated almost every year. The opening fashion show at the main stage on the first day was very good, and the atmosphere was totally ignited by it. The visitor flow is very large, and I feel ISPO Shanghai is getting better and better.
Mr. Ye Xiao, Head of Black Deer Brand, Hangzhou Heilu Outdoor Products Co., Ltd.
ISPO has always been our most trusted partner. We know ISPO has been seeking innovation and change. Its cooperation with Tmall and the involvement of KOLs have a positive impact on all exhibitors. With the KOLs present, we as a brand need only to concentrate on the products, the subsequent work is already in shape.
Mr. Zhang Xiaoyu, Head of Fire-Maple Brand, Hangzhou Fire-Maple Outdoor Products Co., Ltd.
First of all, I would like to express my gratitude to ISPO. We have been cooperating with ISPO for more than ten years. We know ISPO has been working hard to promote the industry. Through various methods and activities, the exhibition has tried its best to attract visitor traffic for us, and to help us open up new markets. ISPO is constantly involving new elements and new faces.
Mr. Zhao Kai, General Manager, Shenzhen Himalaya Trading Co., Ltd.
This year ISPO Shanghai has a very large number of visitors. The visitors’ enthusiasm for camping is very high, and many dealers have come. The combination of online and offline shows, including the KOL activities, are very helpful, and I believe they are the future trend.
Mr. Zhong Chengzhan, President, Guangzhou Kailas Sporting Goods Co., Ltd.
The atmosphere in the halls was very good, and ISPO again did a great job. There are many visitors from different fields, and their vision and opinions have also inspired us in product R&D, in addition to business opportunities. The organizer has invited a lot of KOLs to the exhibition, which is a very important opportunity for brand exposure. The KOLs are very active in promoting new products of the exhibiting brands. We are very happy about such an atmosphere.
