South Korean media: Still underestimate Chinese products? "The failure of the mainland" is now "strength"!

On May 22, South Korean media The Herald Economy published an article stating that South Korean TVs and home appliances, which once led the global market, are now in an "embarrassing" situation. Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics are retreating one after another under the offensive of "Made in China", and they have not gained any obvious advantages in terms of price competitiveness or performance.

Chinese-made TVs and home appliances, leading with technical advantages over cost-performance ratio, are threatening South Korean companies. This is a reality that South Korea can no longer ignore; it is not the "failure" of the mainland, but "strength".

According to statistics from market research firm Omdia, calculated by shipments, China's share of the global TV market exceeded South Korea for the first time in 2024. The combined market share of three Chinese TV brands, TCL, Hisense, and Xiaomi, reached 31.3%, surpassing Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics' 28.4%.

Japanese company Panasonic is exiting its TV business, which has lasted for more than 70 years. This is because after being squeezed out of the international market by South Korean enterprises, they also handed over their domestic market position to Chinese enterprises.

On the other hand, Chinese enterprises are recently entering the global market with high性价比 ultra-large TVs and are now infiltrating the South Korean household market, seizing the TV share of South Korean enterprises.

TCL, the world's second-largest TV manufacturer, is actively entering the South Korean market. In 2023, TCL's South Korean subsidiary was established, officially entering the South Korean market. TCL is expanding its sales channels from online to offline sales outlets such as Lotte Hi-Mart and Costco.

The key to the性价比 of Chinese TVs lies in "hardware". With Samsung Display and LG Display recently exiting the large LCD business, Chinese enterprises control most of the LCD panel supply chain. Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics are inevitably at a disadvantage in LCD supply negotiations compared to Chinese enterprises. As TV sizes increase, TCL and Hisense have an advantage in finished product production costs.

Shim Sang-sib, head of TV product planning at LG Electronics, said, "As Chinese enterprises take the lead in the panel field, their hardware technology capabilities have become quite mature."

In the robotic vacuum cleaner sector, Chinese products are recognized as high-performance and high-priced products. For example, products from Chinese company Roborock are called the "Hermès of robotic vacuums".

By the second half of 2024, Roborock's market share in South Korea's robotic vacuum cleaner market is about 40%. It increased by more than 10 percentage points compared to 2023. Sales in South Korea in 2024 will also grow by more than 9%. The market believes that Chinese enterprises occupy more than half, while Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics occupy the remaining shares.

Chinese robotic vacuums dominate the South Korean market with their "all-in-one" functions for vacuuming and mopping. On the other hand, Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics only launched all-in-one products last fall.

Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics admit they are latecomers in the robotic vacuum cleaner market. Samsung Electronics stated, "We missed the timing and became latecomers, but we will continue to introduce new product lines starting with new products."

CEO Cho Ju-wan of LG Electronics also said, "Although we were late, we brought specifications that are equal to or higher than those of our Chinese counterparts," and added, "Our pride does not allow us to lag behind our competitors."

Original Source: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1832786633966794/

Disclaimer: This article represents the views of the author alone.