Chinese sportswear and sporting goods brand Li Ning has established a flagship in the middle of Singapore. This is an important opening for the brand and will form the basis for further expansion into South East Asia.

China's Xie Xiefang playing in a tournament in Singapore

After having scored a great success in the summer, the brand’s founder lit the Olympic flame for the Beijing 2008 Games, Li Ning is counting on conquering the whole of Asia. “Anything is possible” is the slogan for this expansion, as the group is hoping to advance its current position of third in the Chinese sports manufacturer rankings. Li Ning has chosen to invest in South East Asia through the medium of one of the most popular sports of the region, badminton, around which the entire concept store has been based.

“The decision to open our first flagship outside China in the cosmopolitan city of Singapore is an important step in our group’s strategy, which highlights the differentiation of sporting categories and the internationalization of the brand”, explained Nicholas Chong, financial director of Li Ning Company Ltd. “Badminton is a popular sport, important and influential in South East Asia, which includes Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia. The development of this market displays not only our determination to become a sports brand synonymous with badminton, but also the solid basis that the group is built on for its development in other markets.”

“In the current climate, while global conglomerates and local businesses are reducing their staff number and cutting costs, it is commendable that Li Ning has chosen Singapore,” commented Lee Yi Shyan, Minister of Commerce and Industry for Singapore. “Furthermore, the involvement of Li Ning in the local development of sports through to a strategic collaboration with the Singapore Badminton Association (of which Lee Yi Shyan is the president, ed.) is good news for the many badminton fans in the city and its region.”

By Jonathan Fulwell (Source: Matthieu Guinebault)