In 2015, the Chinese e-commerce market for home building materials is expected to reach 205 billion yuan, with online shopping growing by an impressive 249% and accounting for 17.5% of the total. Industry experts believe that home-related e-commerce is set to become the next big opportunity after fashion and consumer electronics.
The O2O (online-to-offline) model has been gaining momentum in the home improvement sector over the past two years. At a forum titled “2015 Home Improvement O2O Future Development Road†held in December 2014, industry insiders noted that just two years earlier, the term "O2O" was not widely recognized and was often seen as a niche concept. Now, however, failing to mention O2O would make one seem out of touch.
The home improvement and building materials industries are closely tied to real estate development. Between 2012 and 2014, the sales area of commercial housing nationwide surged, reaching a peak with a growth of over 45%. Despite this, the home improvement sector still faces challenges, including market disorder and outdated distribution channels. Traditional hypermarkets are struggling with inefficiency, prompting a need for transformation.
In 2012, sales from large-scale building materials and home furnishing stores reached 1.25 trillion yuan, but this dropped by 2.46% year-on-year. In 2013, sales remained flat. With the rise of online platforms, the O2O model has become a necessary path for traditional home businesses.
Tang Ren, chief expert at the China Home Improvement E-commerce Research Institute, explained: “O2O is about using the internet to transform traditional distribution channels, integrating online and offline operations to improve efficiency.â€
According to data from the Speedway Research Institute, Japan currently leads in home online shopping, with 20.5% of purchases made online, while China stands at just 3.4%. This gap highlights that the domestic home e-commerce sector is still in its early stages. However, the home O2O model continues to grow rapidly.
In 2013, online sales in the home furnishings sector were only 70 billion yuan, making up 3.9% of the offline market. By 2015, it's projected to reach 205 billion yuan—tripling the 2013 figure. Analyst Zhang Wei from Guotai Junan believes that the online sales of the home industry will see continuous and rapid growth in the coming years.
Several companies have started experimenting with O2O models. In March 2014, Yihua Wood partnered with Melody Co., Ltd. to launch a new O2O platform. The company initially had only 13 directly operated stores, but these were limited in number and coverage. By collaborating with Melody, Yihua aimed to leverage the platform’s customer traffic and expand its presence through shared experiences.
In November 2014, Seagull Sanitary Ware introduced Qijia.com as a strategic investor to implement an O2O model. According to its 2013 annual report, the company’s overseas revenue accounted for 84% of total sales. As the US and EU markets recover, Seagull aims to use the O2O platform to better serve international customers and strengthen relationships.
Bamboo Stick,Bamboo Stick Cotton Buds,Bamboo Cotton Swab Stick,Color Bamboo Cotton Stick
COTTONWHISPER (TAIZHOU) DAILY PRODUCTS CO.,LTD , https://www.cottonwhipershop.com