Cenovis, Sanofi's Healthcare vitamin brand recently announced that in 2020 its Vitamin B, C, and E products were the biggest hits in China.
According to Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com, in Q1 2020 Cenovis saw a 10x increase in its Vitamin C Sugarless product.
There are no questions that immunity-boosting Vitamin C product sales went through the roof during COVID-19 (refer to my Blackmores Blog article) however this announcement from JD.com demonstrates a pivot from historical purchasing patterns and demonstrates a clear demand for 'better for you' vitamin products.
JD mentioned that Chinese consumers were purchasing Vitamin C products to provide additional functional benefits outside of immunity support including skin-whitening. Purchase intent is different in each country (often in each state and territory) and must be considered by brands when devising their sales and marketing strategies.
There are two points worth highlighting for brands who have an existing brand and selling in international markets, or businesses considering getting in on the action:
Reductions in sugar, salt and oil are trending globally, but particularly in China. It is becoming increasingly important to focus on these characteristics when developing products for international markets. A growing middle class, access to information and government intervention are driving the demand for 'better for you' products.
In Australia, the concept of skin-whitening is foreign and has likely never been discussed. In China (and Korea), for a number of reasons (perhaps another blog topic), skin-whitening is big business and provides an underlying purchase intent for a number of vitamin and dietary supplement products including Vitamin C, Collagen and Polyphenols.
The lessons: (1) know your target audience (2) understand why your customers are purchasing a product. This will (3) enable your business to target your customers with relevant marketing materials that will (4) address their concerns and demands that will (5) drive sales for your business and drive a big customer lifetime value.
All opinions are of the author, Daniel Kitay. Daniel has previously worked as the Head of Sales & Marketing for China's #1 Vitamin and Supplement (VMS) brand BY-HEALTH with a market capitalisation of $6.5b. Daniel is a lawyer and runs DMK Consulting, offering support to food and VMS companies who are looking to grow their business in domestic and export markets.
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