The origin of Watsons?

English name: watsons

Founded in 1989

Number of employees: 98,000 (2007)

Advertising slogan: Your Personal Store

Official website: target=_blank>

Introduction

Watson Group - the world's third largest health and beauty products retail group, with operations in Asia and Europe More than 3,300 retail stores. People who have been there truly enjoy its comfortable shopping experience, and those who have never been are also familiar with its reputation as a “personal care expert.” Since the first store was opened in Beijing in April 1989, it has grown to more than 40 stores. In 2002, the global sales of Watsons personal care stores exceeded RMB 61 billion, with sales in China alone exceeding RMB 500 million. Why has Watsons grown so rapidly in the fiercely competitive domestic retail industry in just fifteen years and attracted such high attention and recognition?

Brand legend - showing century-old style

About 1828, an Englishman named A. Swaston opened a Western pharmacy in Guangzhou and named it Guangdong Pharmacy. In 1841, the pharmacy moved to Hong Kong and translated the company name into "A.S Watsons & Company" in Cantonese dialect. This is the origin of Watsons. This company, which started as a pharmacy, still retains this characteristic. After becoming a wholly-owned subsidiary of Li Ka-shing's Hutchison Whampoa Co., Ltd. in 1981, relying on Hutchison's strong economic strength and flexible business philosophy, Watsons operates With a wide range of brand coverage, it has rapidly risen in Asia and has become a household name retail brand.

Watson’s Personal Care Store is the first flagship retail brand established by the Group. With its accurate market positioning, its identity as a "personal care expert" is deeply rooted in the hearts of the people, so that when people mention Watsons, they think of "personal care expert", and its brand influence is evident from this.

Business strategy - highlighting professional identity

(1) Accurate market positioning

As we all know, the domestic retail industry is now in turmoil, with many heroes vying for the top position, and local For brands to develop, foreign brands also need to come in and get a share of the pie. Effective procurement, low-cost logistics and strong terminals are the three magic weapons for success in the retail industry. Faced with fierce competition, Watsons bypassed the trap of price wars. Based on years of observation and analysis of markets in Asian countries, and a century of marketing experience, it was discovered that in recent years, the Asian economy has grown rapidly, and people have increasingly higher requirements for quality of life. Traditional sales only stay at the stage of making consumers buy, focusing only on the goods. Under the conditions of an increasingly mature commodity economy, consumers not only purchase goods, but also want to enjoy the fun of shopping and pursue the intangible value of goods, such as brands, services, etc., and finally reach the highest level of consumption, that is, through identification with corporate culture. Loyalty to the brand.

Undoubtedly, Watsons is pursuing the latter. Its personal care store takes "Exploration" as its theme and puts forward the three concepts of "health, good, and fun" to help people who love life and pay attention to quality shape their inner and outer beauty. . In China, Watsons is the first store operating under the concept of "personal care". Its unique and accurate market positioning is refreshing. The target customers of the store are women between the ages of 18 and 35. They value individuality and have strong spending power, but are short of time and do not like to go shopping in large supermarkets. What they pursue is a comfortable shopping environment. "This is very consistent with our positioning." said Watson Group Director and China General Manager Tan Lixian.

(2) Product Strategy

The products sold by Watsons Personal Care Store are all-inclusive, coming from more than 20 countries, including cosmetics, medicines, personal care products, fashion accessories, candies, There are 25,000 kinds of cards and gifts, which are mainly divided into two parts: first, Watsons’ own brands, including cosmetics and personal care products; second, care products from other brands, including P&G, and Maybelline. , Avon also has counters in the store. Of course, the products are not only provided for women, but also a variety of foreign-origin foods that are enough for male diners to enjoy.

The biggest feature of Watsons products is that they convey three major business concepts everywhere.

Medicines and health care products retain the characteristics since the store was founded, advocating "health"; beauty and hair care products account for the largest proportion and have the largest variety, expressing the concept of "beauty"; and unique fun dolls and candies are Conveys an optimistic attitude towards life. In order to match these three concepts, the company's shelves, checkout counters and shopping bags will have some cute symbols, such as "hearts", "lips" and "smiley faces", giving people a warm, pleasant and interesting feeling.

(3) Price strategy

Watson’s enhances its brand value through differentiation and personalization, and its pricing is generally relatively high. Ni Wenling, general manager of public relations of Watsons Group, explained that it is "hope to make the price consistent with market demand" rather than "competitive price". Even so, according to a survey of more than 600 female customers at a personal care store, more than 85% believe that the richness and exquisiteness of Watsons products are the primary factors that attract them to shop here. It can be seen that in the increasingly homogeneous retail industry, price is no longer the primary factor in attracting customers. "You can buy things here that you can't buy in other shopping places." said a Watsons customer.

(4) Marketing strategy

1. Professional guidance Watsons now has a strong team of health consultants, including 80 full-time pharmacists and 150 "health consultants" Ambassador of Vitality”. They have received professional training and provide customers with free consultation and advice on maintaining a healthy life.

2. Specialized services. Each Watsons personal care store is clearly divided into different sales areas. The goods are classified into categories and neatly arranged to facilitate customers' selection; information express "Skin Care Easy" and other information are displayed in the store. Various personal care information manuals and various skin care consultations are provided free of charge; the "Healthy Confidant" information display rack at the drug counter provides various health nutrition distribution and disease prevention and treatment methods; actively promotes computerization plans and adopts advanced retail management systems. Improved ordering and shipping efficiency. From all this, we can see that Watsons is not only concerned about the sales of goods, but also pays attention to considerate and meticulous care for customers, fully demonstrating its "personal care" characteristic services.

3. Social marketing Enterprises are social enterprises, "take from the people and use them for the people", Watsons understands this very well. In 2002, Watsons Personal Care Store and the Hong Kong Cancer Foundation launched the "Pink Revolution" to convey information on breast cancer prevention to the public and raise funds for breast cancer research. At the end of 2003, it successfully supported the China Children and Teenagers' Foundation in implementing the "Spring Bud Plan". Through the charity shopping campaign, donations reached 235,800 yuan, enabling 500 out-of-school girls to return to school. These activities fully reflected Watson's sense of social responsibility and achieved great social response. The store's turnover increased by 80% that year, and more importantly, it established a good social image for the company.

Some thoughts on the domestic retail industry from Watsons

Watson’s successful experience is worthy of learning and reference from the domestic retail industry. The author believes that we should establish the following concepts:

(1) Competition in the retail industry is no longer just price competition.

Nowadays, many domestic supermarkets and shopping malls are beginning to promote more and more products under the banner of "affordable" and "low price". It is true that low prices are a factor that attracts customers, but hidden behind price cuts and promotions are easily lost customers, damaged brands, and a vicious cycle of price competition, which are detrimental to the long-term development of enterprises. From Watsons, we see that the retail industry also needs brands and calls for brands. Only when it accurately determines its positioning and service targets in the market and works hard on product quality, category, service level and other aspects can it be an enterprise. long-term development plan.

(2) The development of specialization and individualization is the general trend.

The homogenization phenomenon in the retail industry has prompted foresighted merchants to pay more attention to the importance of market segments. Watsons proposed the concept of "personal care expert" for the first time in China, which can be said to be "killing two birds with one stone". It has not only established its leading position as an expert, but also catered to the personalized needs of target customers. The greater innovation is to advocate a new shopping concept and life attitude, helping people make positive improvements in health and beauty and enjoy life happily. . In contrast, most domestic retail companies lack clear and accurate business ideas, have homogeneous products, vague target customer positioning, and single promotional methods. Various factors have restricted the rapid development of companies.

(3) Operators in the retail industry should have a high degree of market sensitivity and foresight of consumer trends.

Watson’s initially conducted research on consumption in Asia, accurately predicted the changes in consumer psychology and purchasing behavior, found a new entry point of "personal care", and achieved success. Operators in the domestic retail industry should strengthen their ability to observe and control the overall situation, and make accurate guidance on the future development trends of the enterprise from a higher level.

"By 2007, Watsons will become the world's number one in personal care stores." Schreiber, CEO of Watsons Personal Care Stores, is ambitious. It is said that in the next three years, Watsons will open 1,000 domestic personal care stores and invest nearly 100 million yuan. The Wolf is Coming, which is both an opportunity and a challenge for domestic retail companies. Are you ready?

Introduction to Watsons

Watsons was established in Guangdong Province in South China more than a hundred years ago. In the early years, Watsons was called Watsons Pharmacy and was famous for providing medicine to the poor.

In 1841, Hong Kong became a British colony, and Watsons Pharmacy moved southward. Since then, it has grown simultaneously with Hong Kong. After moving southward, Watsons quickly diversified and began to produce water and medicines and expand retail sales. business.

In the 1970s, the relationship between Hutchison Whampoa and Watsons became increasingly close. Finally, in 1981, Hutchison Whampoa completed the acquisition of Watsons' business.

The Watsons Group is a branch of the Hutchison Whampoa Group. It owns Watsons stores, PARKnSHOP supermarkets, Fortress Electrical Appliances, ice cream, distilled water, beverages and other manufacturing and satellite information services. It has a long history and is famous for its A group renowned for quality. Watsons Group has always attached great importance to quality and is committed to providing high-quality stores and shopping facilities as well as a wide range of products to various parts of Asia to meet the ever-changing needs of consumers, thus changing the face of retail and supplies manufacturing in Hong Kong and Asia.