Miniso is bringing cuteness to you!
Chinese low-cost retailer Miniso is planning to open 600 stores abroad this year, powered by data analytics and excellent shopping experiences.
“Chuhai” or going overseas has been a buzzword among Chinese companies for more than 20 years, but this year it has suddenly become more urgent for retailers like the low-cost lifestyle brand Miniso. Founded just 10 years ago, the company has more than 6,500 stores around the world, with the greatest concentration in Asia, including 4,000 of them in China. The majority of the stores are franchises, and many more are planned.
The plan, according to the CFO of the company, is to open 600 stores abroad and 400 in China. After decades of rapid growth, China’s economy is still struggling to recover from the pandemic, and consumption has slowed. To find growth, Chinese companies look outside China.
To enhance the in-store shopping experience the Miniso flagship store in London set up different zones that are dedicated to activities beyond shopping. Gen Z consumers can have fun and spread the joy on social media through photos and videos taken in the store.
On a recent trip to London, I visited the new Miniso flagship store on Oxford Street, which is one of the most expensive locations in Europe. This fits very well with the goal of building a global lifestyle super brand. The slogan of Miniso is “Life is for fun!”, and this can be a welcome message, along with the low prices of Miniso’s products, in a time of inflation and war.
Many of the products are produced under license from brands such as Marvel, Hello Kitty and Disney, and the stores are very popular among kids and young people. Until now, there have been no geopolitical concerns about buying perfumes and figurines designed and made in China. Instead, the biggest threat to Miniso’s business model could be the extensive use of plastic in its products. There is a plan to reduce the use of plastic, but consumers don’t seem to care when they buy cute products.
Are you craving cuteness? Look no further! These words are from the official account of Chinese retailer Miniso on Instagram.
Miniso’s blind boxes with collective figurines and plush toys are sometimes going viral on Tik Tok, driving a lot of sales in physical stores. Only around 10 percent of sales happen online.
The question is how can a Chinese retailer survive and grow in the era of e-commerce while traditional retailers are having a hard time?
First, the company is not a traditional retailer, but embraces New Retail, which means utilizing data to optimize everything from product design to supply chain and sales, while at the same time offering excellent shopping experience. The new stores are bigger, brighter and more interactive. For example, a new flagship store in Chengdu features a Fragrance Museum, dedicated to Miniso’s fragrances and perfumes.
data + AI
Miniso also takes advantage of new technologies, including AI cameras in its stores to create heat maps, and analyze the most popular items and optimize cross selling opportunities. But more importantly, consumers always find something new and exciting in the stores.
Thanks to a strong supply chain in China and a huge team of designers, Miniso launches approximately 100 new SKUs every week that are carefully selected from a library of more than 10,000 product ideas. This is to ensure that the products can keep up with the new trends.
LocaliZation is crucial
Around 70-80 percent of the products sold in Miniso stores around the world are the same, and 20-30 percent are taylored for local market trends and needs. For example European consumers didn’t appreciate towels with Asian aesthetic. Instead, they prefer large bath towels in plain colors and tend to buy in bulk, so the product strategy was adjusted accordingly.
The company also believes that the best service is no service, meaning that staff will not disturb customers who can easily find their way around the store and find what they want to buy.