The ＂new network red＂ in the shopping cart is the joy and worry of the road of e-commerce
There are 35,000 Tmall Taobao shops, 14 years of turnover of over 100 million intangible industrial belts, 140 million intangible inheritors with an annual income of over one million … With the rise of the national tide, intangible heritages catch up with the fast lane of the Internet, attracting more Z-generation inheritors and consumers, and creating explosions and online celebrity products. This year’s Double Eleven, non-legacy related products have become the "new network red" in young people’s shopping carts, and e-commerce platforms such as Tmall and Taobao have also launched various activities related to non-legacy in combination with the national tide.
In 2021, the tenth anniversary of the promulgation of the Intangible Cultural Heritage Law, the state issued opinions on further strengthening the protection of intangible heritage, pointing out that it is necessary to promote intangible heritage and rejuvenate the times. Experts believe that the "non-legacy+e-commerce" model has directly narrowed the distance between non-legacy products and consumers, brought greater economic value space, and is also the most effective way to promote the inheritance of non-legacy protection.
The first wave of double eleven sales doubled year-on-year, which became a new national tide.
According to Tmall data, in the first wave of the Double Eleven sales, the sales of Rong Baozhai, Shanlian Lake Pen, Li Tinggui and other non-legacy shops doubled year-on-year, and the number and amount of consumers after 00 increased by more than 100% year-on-year. Among them, Rong Baozhai, which has two national-level intangible skills, sold more than the whole day of last year in the first hour of the Double Eleven. In addition, Dunhuang folk music, a time-honored brand, sold more than 3,000 guzheng, with a turnover exceeding 10 million; The ghost seal jointly signed by Xiling Printing House and Tomb Raider Notes, and the cross-border cooperation seal cutting set with Three-body are quite popular among young people.
In recent years, with the popularity of the national tide among young people, the intangible cultural heritage, which inherits the core of China’s traditional culture, has also become popular on e-commerce platforms. Non-genetic inheritors and Chinese time-honored brands have opened stores and even sold goods live on platforms such as Taobao, Tmall and Tik Tok. According to the 2021 Report on the Development of Intangible E-commerce released by the Public Opinion Laboratory of China Academy of Social Sciences, Taobao Tmall has more than 35,000 intangible shops, with 3.8 million live broadcasts of intangible goods, and the consumption scale of intangible goods has reached billions. It can be said that the live broadcast heat and non-legacy heat in recent years are almost synchronous. According to the intangible cultural heritage data report released by Tik Tok, the intangible cultural heritage content in Tik Tok has experienced explosive growth in the past year. By June 2021, the number of videos related to national intangible cultural heritage projects had exceeded 140 million, with a coverage rate of 97.94%.
Liu Zhiming, chief expert of Public Opinion Laboratory of China Academy of Social Sciences, said that intangible goods are becoming a trend, and intangible consumption has entered the stage from unpopular to popular, from niche consumption to mass consumption. He pointed out that on the one hand, thanks to the active promotion of the government, on the other hand, the national hot flashes have created a good environment, and the Internet platform has directly brought fire. "Through the e-commerce platform, non-genetic inheritors and merchants can directly link with consumers of 900 million orders, creating explosions and online celebrity products, and niche, fragmented and scattered intangible goods can reach consumers widely and accurately."
Take the express train of e-commerce, and the annual income of non-genetic inheritors is one million.
Recently, Wang Xiaolu has been a little busy. She and 12 craftsmen from the Intangible Cultural Heritage Studio have been working overtime to prepare silver silk goods for the Double Eleven. Wang Xiaolu is a "non-legacy second generation" born after 1985, and her mother is the designated representative inheritor of Chengdu Yinhuasi, a national non-legacy project. She began to try e-commerce in 2015. "But I don’t know how to get customers and drain, which is more difficult than running a physical store." Until last year, the physical store was affected by the epidemic, and she decided to start a second business online. Under the introduction of the shop assistant, she joined the platform of Taobao craftsmen. "I participated in many activities, and with the popularity, the sales of my works began to increase." At present, the number of "craftsmen" in the studio has also increased to 12, and the youngest master is a post-95 generation.
Five or six years ago, the e-commerce platform began to pay attention to non-legacy and non-legacy craftsmen. It is understood that Taobao began to prepare for the "Taobao craftsman" business at the end of 2015. In order to solve the problem of poor management of craftsmen, online shopping festivals, offline exhibitions, markets, etc. were launched to help businesses improve their online operation capabilities and enhance their exposure in the consumer market. According to Jin Que, the head of Tmall’s national tide, many non-legacy shops were excavated by hundreds of "rural revitalization commissioners" who wandered around the country.
Qiao Xue, the inheritor of Qiao’s handmade leather art, returned to Yinchuan from Beijing a few years ago to start a business. The company was on the verge of bankruptcy because of sales problems. She joined Tik Tok to launch the "non-legacy partner" program. In less than a year, she introduced the culture and production process of handmade leather art by shooting Tik Tok, which attracted the attention of more than 560,000 fans. "Last year, more than 200 live broadcasts were made, and the accumulated sales were nearly 3 million yuan. At most, the number of people online at the same time exceeded 10,000." It is understood that since 2019, Tik Tok has continuously launched the "non-legacy partner" program and the "see craftsmanship" program to support non-legacy craftsmen by strengthening traffic support, improving liquidity, creating an open platform for non-legacy and developing urban cooperation. The person in charge of e-commerce in Tik Tok told the Beijing News that since the launch of the plan, 10 inheritors have earned more than one million yuan a year.
Today, Qiao Xue has 700,000 fans, and she has to broadcast live for at least 4 hours every day. At other times, she has to make editions, make bags and carve. "During the Double Eleven period, the atmosphere in the live broadcast room was very active, and we prepared new models and special activities."
Innovation is the most important thing for the "non-legacy second generation" to do live broadcast and open online stores collectively.
With the rise of the national tide, the post-80s and post-90s have become the main consumers of intangible goods on e-commerce platforms, but the average age of national non-genetic inheritors in China is 63 years old. The industry believes that the age gap, aesthetic and demand differences between producers and consumers are one of the difficulties encountered by intangible products in the e-commerce platform and even in the modern business environment, and it is also one of the biggest obstacles in the process of activating and protecting intangible products.
More and more "non-legacy second generation" have seen the future opportunities of non-legacy technology through the e-commerce platform. "The industrialization of non-legacy needs to be further injected with the motivation of rejuvenation, including the rejuvenation of non-legacy store operators and craftsmen." Liu Zhiming believes that "compared with the previous generation, they know more about the market and consumer needs, know how to design and product innovation, and are familiar with marketing methods such as live broadcast, and can inject modern design and market elements into intangible improvement and innovation."
For example, Meng Xiangjun, born in 1990s, is the manager and designer of the Taobao shop "VINE Weinei", and his mother Yin Huiju is the representative inheritor of Yangdu’s straw weaving skills. Three years ago, he returned to yinan county, Shandong Province, and took a group of grandmothers who could not forget straw weaving to create an original straw bag brand. "At present, a lot of energy will be put into product design and originality." Meng Xiangjun said that he also plans to launch a home series next year. In August this year, Wang Xiaolu made a hot search on the winning map of Malone in the Tokyo Olympic Games with silver flowers. She believes that although the silver flower silk is a tribute of the ancient court, in order to let more young people get in touch with it, some cheap ornaments are specially designed, combined with hot spots in life, such as giant pandas, Sanxingdui masks and terracotta warriors and horses.
Introducing new designs, innovating on the basis of inheriting traditions and combining them with new business models are the most important things to be left behind and rejuvenated, and they are also the "new national tide" sought after by young people. It is understood that during the "Double Eleven" period, Tmall National Fashion invited 10 avant-garde artists and trend designers to redesign 10 kinds of non-legacy techniques to make them look like young people’s favorite. For example, the porcelain was made into a trendy hand-made, and Fengxiang New Year pictures launched a joint name across Ma Yinglong. The person in charge of e-commerce in Tik Tok said that this year, a number of activities combining intangible heritage with national tide were also done, and theme live broadcast rooms were also built for non-genetic inheritors and Xtep and Huaxizi domestic brands. "The printed T-shirts for shadow play were sold in 10 days. More than 10,000 pieces." Chris Tung, CMO of Alibaba Group, pointed out that young people like intangible cultural heritage, not only because of its long history and exquisite skills, but also because it is in tune with their new needs. "The protection and activation of intangible cultural heritage requires more new forces to participate."
"Marking" inheritors’ shops to prevent the proliferation of intangible goods.
When the legacy "thrives" with the fertile soil of e-commerce, it seems that there are also signs of flooding. A consumer complained that she searched for "non-legacy" on the e-commerce platform, and countless related shops or videos appeared. "Everyone says that they are non-genetic inheritors, and everyone says that their products are non-legacy and there is no way to identify them."
However, the non-legacy merchants also encountered operational bottlenecks after initially obtaining traffic support and increasing sales. In an interview with the Beijing News reporter, many non-genetic inheritors or the second generation said that they are not professional in operation, publicity and video shooting, and as "craftsmen", they are more willing to put their time and energy into design and production. The distress of a non-legacy shop owner is that the competitiveness of handmade products is too weak in the e-commerce environment. "Other businesses copy our styles and produce them in batches mechanically, which is fast and cheap, and consumers can’t see the difference."
Jinque told the Beijing News reporter that the intangible market has developed rapidly in recent years, and the e-commerce platform is also accelerating the standardized management of the intangible market. She said that in the future, the platform will sort out and identify non-legacy shops more carefully and strictly, and realize standardized management. "For example, marking non-genetic inheritors’ shops is just like identifying Chinese time-honored brands." In her view, in addition to providing support for non-legacy businesses such as drainage and resource inclination, e-commerce platforms can also take advantage of supply chain resources to help non-legacy processes create IP and create daily life use scenarios for some uncommon non-legacy businesses. "For example, cooperate with head brands, or formulate original protection plans for non-legacy craftsmen to enhance their brand value and competitiveness."
Wei Xiang, a professor and researcher at China Academy of Social Sciences, believes that individual non-legacy businesses can rely on the power of the platform to walk online and offline. "The e-commerce platform is not only a sales platform, but also a good experience and display platform." He pointed out that "the future e-commerce platform can combine high technology, such as the popular meta-cosmic technology, to increase the experience of intangible goods." In addition, Wei Xiang suggested that the government should intervene in e-commerce as soon as possible in the process of marketization of intangible cultural heritage, including providing authorization, endorsement and promotion, which will help prevent the infringement and proliferation of intangible cultural heritage products.
Double eleven non-legacy goods
Miao batik jumping off the local wind
Miao batik is a folk handicraft handed down from generation to generation, and was awarded the first batch of national intangible heritage in 2006. On Taobao platform, there are many shops that have been engaged in manual batik business for more than ten years. Apart from traditional batik hanging cloths and handkerchiefs, there are also batik dolls, T-shirts, sweaters and canvas bags. Batik, under the new situation of integrating contemporary design and aesthetics, has jumped out of the simple traditional customs and become a new trend in the fashion circle.
Old Beijing male prostitute welcomes the Winter Olympics.
As a unique feature of Beijing, today’s male prostitute keeps up with the trend. In Tmall, in addition to traditional clay figurines, male prostitute was also designed as illustrations, puzzles, refrigerator magnets and so on. In order to welcome the Beijing Winter Olympics, male prostitute’s modeling is also combined with ice and snow sports. In addition, hand-painted male prostitute, male prostitute, male prostitute and other "new schools" male prostitute are also loved by many consumers.
Luzhou oil-paper umbrella won millions of praises.
The production of water-dividing oil-paper umbrella in Luzhou, Sichuan Province began in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties. It is a national intangible heritage and is known as "the living fossil of folk umbrella art in China".
In the movie Embroidered Spring Knife, the role played by Yang Mi is very out of the loop. It is said that the prototype is from the hand of Yu Wanlun, the seventh generation inheritor of Fenshui Oil Paper Umbrella in Luzhou, Sichuan. At present, Yu Wanlun has 1.06 million fans on the vibrato platform, and the number of praises has reached 11.552 million.
Shadow play turns into tide play.
Shadow play figures are usually handed down from generation to generation by folk artists, and the production process is extremely complicated. On Tmall, many merchants have launched shadow play suits that allow children to do DIY, which is very interesting. Tik Tok Wenchuang also cooperated with the non-legacy project "Jingxi Shadow Play". The designer fully integrated the shadow play skills with the trend play, and launched the gift box of "standing on the edge is more attractive to the skin". Users can watch the vivid 3D shadow play by scanning the pattern with their mobile phones.
Tmall Taobao Double Eleven Shopping Cart "New Network Red"
Time-honored Four Treasures of the Study, Folk Musical Instruments, Cross-border Intangible Heritage, Museum Cultural Creation
Top Ten Most Popular Intangible Commodities in Tik Tok
Air-dried beef, blue and white porcelain, silverware, bamboo flute, oiled paper umbrella, leather carving bag, bamboo basket, Tianzhu chopsticks, Wang Xingji fan, nuclear carving.
■ Industry Outlook
14 non-legacy industries have an annual turnover of over 100 million.
In the process of industrialization of non-legacy technology, the cluster model is undoubtedly more successful than individual shops that go it alone. The report shows that in the past year, on the Taobao Tmall platform, the annual turnover of 14 intangible industrial belts exceeded 100 million, including Dehua Porcelain, Jingdezhen Ceramics, Suzhou Nuclear Carving, Longquan Sword, Quyang Stone Carving, Lankao Folk Music and other industrial belts. It is understood that these industrial belts not only produce intangible products themselves, but also produce related derivatives, thus driving the development of surrounding industries. For example, Dehua Porcelain is the largest non-legacy industrial belt at present, accounting for 80% of the national tea set sales market, with 3 Taobao towns and 13 Taobao villages. Liu Zhiming said that promoting intangible cultural heritage consumption and promoting high-quality industrial development are the most effective ways to promote intangible cultural heritage protection and inheritance. "Industrialization protection will lead intangible heritage to the market to participate in competition, thus stimulating its vitality and expanding its living space with the help of the market, and e-commerce platform can just become an important booster for intangible heritage industrialization."
At present, two kinds of intangible cultural heritage are relatively easy to form industrial belts. One kind is closely related to people’s livelihood, which is widely used in the daily life of thousands of households and can attract many craftsmen and enterprises to participate, such as ceramics, so it can form a great output value; The other type, although not widely used, has high value, such as stone carving and nuclear carving, which can also become a larger industrial belt through integration. In addition, some experts believe that some intangible elements can also be combined with fashion or daily consumer goods, such as Huaxi × Miao Impression Series, which is the combination of Miao Xiu and beauty cosmetics. Although it belongs to the beauty cosmetics industry, it has also played a positive role in promoting the inheritance and dissemination of intangible elements.
The survey shows that at present, China’s intangible resources are mostly concentrated in rural areas in the central and western regions, but most of them can form intangible industrial belts in the eastern developed regions. Jinque said that the industrialization of intangible cultural heritage is related to the basic plate of regional economy, and the industrialization degree of the southeast coastal area is higher than that of the western region, and the formation of industrial clusters of intangible cultural heritage just needs a good industrialization foundation, especially manufacturing and handicrafts. Liu Zhiming believes that it is difficult to spontaneously form an industrial belt in the existing intangible products, and it is necessary for the government, enterprises, society and e-commerce platforms to work together, do a good job in top-level design, and integrate into a new industrial belt through joint efforts.
■ Expert opinion
Beware of excessive dependence and turn it into a cultural fast food.
● Professor and researcher of Wei Xiang China Academy of Social Sciences.
Selling and disseminating intangible culture and intangible products through e-commerce can increase the influence and commercial realization value of intangible culture through economies of scale in sales channels. However, it is necessary to be wary that over-reliance on e-commerce for intangible products will also have disadvantages, such as reducing experience and cultural connotation, and even bringing cultural fast food.
In the process of commercialization, traditional cultural and artistic products usually encounter the balance between cultural connotation and profit. If we want to pursue cultural connotation, we need to take a niche market, but at the same time, we must gain commercial benefits, and we must increase the added value, including brand and connotation value. Only in the next stage will we consider injecting fashion and financial elements, which is also the trajectory of the development of traditional luxury goods in Europe. At present, the commercialization of intangible cultural heritage in China is still in the first stage. If we want to take "connotative" goods, we should pay attention to the division of labor economy, not the economies of scale, that is, whether we can open the niche market, rather than focusing on opening the scale market of ordinary consumers, as many intangible cultural heritage second generations do now. This will lead to the sales and connotation of intangible products, which will become two different ways, and it is likely that it will not work in the future.
This requires young non-legacy e-commerce managers or the second generation to patiently communicate with non-legacy inheritors and old craftsmen and deeply understand the traditional cultural connotation of non-legacy crafts. Whether in e-commerce or physical stores, we should do a good job in the connotation research and development of intangible products, and transform century-old crafts and cultural traditions into new models, instead of rudely throwing away traditions and blindly catering to the tastes of young people or secular people. At this stage, we can’t expect non-legacy technology or non-legacy products to make money in a short period of time. We must preserve the value before we can realize the value-added premium. In such an impetuous era, we should push the non-legacy craft to the market, avoid its vulgarization, and modernize the cultural connotation of the non-legacy so that craftsmen in the new era can survive first.
■ The inheritor said
Intangible products need to pay attention to contemporary life.
● Pang Yonghui is the inheritor of porcelain.
Not adapting to the living habits, needs and consumption trends of young people is a common problem faced by non-legacy. Intangible products need to pay attention to contemporary life and understand what is the core demand for products in this era. For example, ceramics, on the one hand, serve people’s spiritual life, such as decoration, art collection, etc., on the other hand, they should also serve life, such as flowerpots, tea sets, tableware and so on.
With the rapid development of contemporary social economy, our requirements for the quality of life are getting higher and higher. We need to start from these to change the intangible products and designs. So we cooperate with some contemporary designers to combine some fresh elements with porcelain, such as the hot elements like astronauts with porcelain. Therefore, I believe that intangible products need to reach out to young people through new designs, tell the heroic story of this era with our traditional memories, and bring this story into the life of every young person.
In addition, the market is changing. Over the years, our sales cost has been high, mainly through offline stores. But now, with the establishment of this mode of online consumption, it has become a living habit. Intangible arts and crafts also need to change to the living habits of young people, which has become an inevitability of the future sales model.
Finally, it is to influence others with contemporary intangible culture. For example, in addition to selling the quality, design and intangible value of Ding porcelain, we should also expand Ding porcelain culture and cooperate with other industries across borders to promote the spread of Ding porcelain while spreading culture.