At each session of the Canton Fair, “China’s No. 1 Fair”, attendees from home and abroad would gather in crowds. Wonderful stories happen from time to time: some companies get to know buyers from all over the world, thus opening up huge overseas markets and achieving rapid development; some have their technology, design, quality, etc. greatly improved through international exchanges, thereby establishing their brand reputation in the international market.
Lovol Heavy Industry Co., Ltd. is a typical example in this regard. At the 126th Canton Fair, Duan Yongbing, Manager of the South American Region of the company, told the reporter that since attending the Canton Fair in 2002, the company, which was founded in 1998 and mainly engaged in manufacturing of large-scale industrial equipment such as agricultural equipment and engineering machinery, has grown from a small one that exported only a few hundred pieces of equipment every year to the world’s well-known mechanical equipment manufacturing enterprise who exports products to more than 160 countries and regions, boasts the largest share of tractors export in China, and ranks ninth in exports of construction machineryin China. Now the company’s business covers four major sectors: agricultural equipment, construction machinery, vehicles, and “finance plus internet”.
When the reporter and Duan Yongbing talked about the relationship between Lovol and the Canton Fair, Sun Deming, Deputy General Manager of the company and General Manager of Lovol Heavy Industry International Trading Co., Ltd., interposed: “Our company is so closely related to the Canton Fair. It is fair to say that 50% of our sales is achieved through this platform. The Canton Fair is really important for our company!” His sincere feelings are beyond words.
Get on the Fast Track for Development via the Canton Fair
Sun Deming and Duan Yongbing said that, like many companies, Lovol had little exports in the early days of establishment due to the lack of professional personnel and experience in expanding overseas markets. In the process of opening up the market, it heard stories such as “a booth of the Canton Fair can save a company” and “a company no longer worries about order after participating in the Canton Fair”, so they tries and attended the Canton Fair in 2002. Surprisingly, the first time they came here, their self-designed streamlined equipment stood out and attracted many foreign buyers. Since then, Lovol has sounded the bugle of brand internationalization. From 2002 to 2008, Lovol gained customers from Algeria, Argentina, Australia, Chile, South Africa, Thailand, Malaysia, etc. through the Canton Fair. Its exports jumped from less than 400 pieces to over 16,000 pieces, and it received more than 10 government delegations from developing countries.
“After going global through the Canton Fair, we fully realized that product quality is the life of a company, so we pay more attention to quality.”Duan Yongbing told the reporter, “At the autumn session of the Canton Fair in 2008, we launched a 50 horsepower flat floor 12 plus 12 gear model. Its streamlined body, flat floor car pedal and steering wheel-style shuttle gear have attracted wide attention and love from foreign customers. An Argentine buyer liked it very much, but was worried about quality. Therefore, he purchased a 50HP tractor from five Chinese manufacturers and tested them in Argentina. After half a year of field operations, he thought our product is of the highest cost performance and ordered 300 tractors at a time!”
It is learned that in the process of internationalization, Lovol also developed a model of “global R&D, manufacturing and distribution”, and established R&D centers, manufacturing bases and marketing service networks in many countries. Adhering to the service concept of “wholeheartedly for you”, it generates comprehensive, interactive and one-stop service experience for customers to expand new added value for customers.
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In the international market, it is extremely important to formulate market strategies, develop products and allocate resources based on actual market segmentation and the characteristics of each market,” Duan told the reporter. This is also a piece of valuable experience gained by the company at the Canton Fair.
According to Duan, in the autumn session of the Canton Fair in 2007, Lovol launched the TD series 82HP tractor. An old Malaysian customer purchased a sample machine, tested it, and proposed suggestions to improve its brake system. As palm gardens in Malaysia are muddy, a very reliable brake system is required when pulling trailers with tractors to prevent trailers from hitting tractors due to too much impacting force. After obtaining such a feedback, Lovol developed a classic mechanical brake system after repeated testing and verification. Although the system uses old-fashioned technology, it is highly reliable and convenient for maintenance. The Malaysian customer was very happy and praised the company for its service.
Different markets have different needs. To meet the demands of the European market that requires high quality, high technology and high service, Lovol acquired Italian company “Arbos” engaged in advanced agricultural equipment and high-end tractor brand “Goldoni”, and integrated local high-end R&D personnel into product development based on local conditions. Since 2011, Lovol has introduced high-quality spare parts, including Luk clutch, Grammer seat, Carraro front axle and NSK bearing. The 50HP tractor launched at the Canton Fair 2017 (spring) was equipped with Grammer seat and NSK bearing. Seeing that Lovol’s products are recognized by internationally renowned parts suppliers, Mexican customers strengthened their belief for cooperation and eventually became its partner.
“We grow with the help of the Canton Fair, and will certainly repay global customers with high-quality products and services. We will make the gilded signboard of Canton Fair more shining,” said Sun Deming.
