Qinglu writes a legend for the global generation industry
The territory spans China, Vietnam, and Indonesia, and the two leading sports shoes rely on it
Qinglu Footwear was founded in 1959 by the founder, Su Qinglu. It first purchased plastic leather from Nanya Plastics and started making shoes. Within a few years, the number of employees has expanded from 10 to hundreds. By the 1970s, the scale was already a factory that could undertake OEM orders for international brands. After 2010, the scale has spread across China, Vietnam, and Indonesia. It has more than 80,000 employees worldwide and an annual production capacity of more than 80 million pairs of sports shoes. It is even an indispensable foundry for brands such as NIKE and Adidas.

"Brand is king" has always been an ecological feature in almost all manufacturing supply chains, from computers and mobile phones to traditional industries. In the sports shoe industry, as long as you ask for information about brands such as NIKE and Adidas, all foundries are silent and obedient. I am afraid that if a brand accidentally offends a brand, it will be miserably drawn. .

But this law was broken by Qinglu! At the end of 2019, the global sports shoe industry whispered, "Taiwan’s Qinglu, dare to say no to Adidas!"

"Yes, Qinglu decided to end the long-standing cooperative relationship with Adidas Group in September 2019." Su Jiangxiong, the eldest son of Su Qinglu, who has never been interviewed by the media, and the current chairman of Qinglu Footwear, does not speak. Already, as soon as he spoke, he confirmed to "Today" this event that shocked the industry.

The second generation Su Jiangxiong said no to the brand
First published in the media, confirmed "cutting Adidas"
"The profit between NIKE, Adidas and the foundry is very fixed. NIKE gives 8% of the profit to the foundry, while Adidas only has about 5 to 6%." A super-large foundry shoe factory has more than 40 years of experience In one word, the consultant of the company explained the long-standing "secret that cannot be said" between the brand and the sneaker foundry.

"Don't underestimate the 2 to 3% gap, because whether it is really making money or not is often in this 2 to 3%." The senior consultant explained that the brand has a very precise grasp of the profit margin of the foundry, whether it is 8% Or 5% is calculated after "twisting the towel to dryness".

In 2016, Adidas was replaced by a new CEO, and Kasper Rørsted, the CEO of the Henkel Group, a major German chemical company, stepped into the sports footwear industry. This general, who has airborne the sports shoe industry from the chemical adhesive industry, has tightened the profitability of the foundry, and even Qinglu can't bear it.

"If you continue like this, you will only be bullied and make no money." Su Jiangxiong recalled that he started negotiations with Adidas in 2017, analyzed his profit structure, and tried to adjust the production model. He talked about it for 2 years. , There is no consensus. In the end, there is only one way to "break up".

"The foundry is valuable, and we must demand reasonable profits!" Two years after making this major decision, Su Jiangxiong has been able to say this calmly. He knows that this is definitely not a risk-free decision. There may even be a strong recoil, and he must make all preparations.

Rely on "technology" to enter the supply chain
It is necessary to prove the value of the foundry and bravely reject the "doing nothing" order
The best preparation is technology.

In fact, after NIKE gradually moved its production base out of China and moved to Vietnam, in 2016, Qinglu took the lead and set up a research and development center in Vietnam with NIKE. A few years later, Fengtai also followed up in Vietnam. Today, Qinglu has more than 2,000 employees in the R&D center of this green building. The scale and technology are not below Fengtai. Qinglu's position in the NIKE supply chain has become more and more stable. The role of competition moves forward.

After decades of tumbling shopping malls, Su Jiangxiong certainly knows that only technological leadership is the best guarantee. With a wave of his hand, he cut off the decades-old cooperative relationship with Adidas, which was tantamount to saying goodbye to the Adidas Group's annual orders of more than 30 billion yuan, which accounted for more than half of Qinglu's revenue at the time.

Fortunately, NIKE orders continue to flow in and continue to grow. Although Qinglu's revenue has not returned to the high point in the past, it has reasonable profits and the surplus has been comparable to before.

Today, Qinglu has nearly 100,000 employees worldwide, with an annual output of nearly 100 million pairs of shoes, and more than 90% of them are based on NIKE orders, gaining a firm position as a major OEM manufacturer.

Qing Lu shouted NO for the world's generation industry! Fired the first shot. Two years after the firing of Qinglu Shoes, it proved not only to live well, but also to live better. The story of Ching Lu will surely inspire all Taiwanese OEMs.