A brand fitting for a nation of NS slaves THIRD CLASS CITIZENS !!
=================================
==================
The Hong Kong-listed company aims to capitalize on the brand name of its founder and Chairman Li Ning, 44, who won three golds, two silvers and a bronze at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics.======================
===========================================
Li Ning Aims to China Sales by 2013 on Rising Incomes (Update1)
By Wendy Leung
Aug. 28 (Bloomberg) -- Li Ning Co., the Chinese sportswear maker and retailer founded by a former Olympic gymnast, aims to double sales in China by 2013 as rising incomes spur demand for leisure clothing and shoes.
``The future growth prospects are very strong,'' Chief Financial Officer Tan Wee Seng told reporters in Hong Kong today. The company will spend about 200 million yuan ($29 million) this year and 150 million yuan in 2009 on opening new stores, Tan said.
Li Ning is taking advantage of increasing affluence in the world's most populous nation, where average earnings have doubled over the past five years. The China market expanded as much as 24 percent last year, helping the company post sales growth four times that of Nike Inc., the world's biggest sportswear maker, and 18 times that of No. 2 Adidas AG.
The sportswear maker added 717 stores in the first half, almost matching its full-year target of 800, helping the company boost sales by 60 percent to 3.06 billion yuan in the six months to the end of June.
Li Ning plans to increase its total number of outlets to 10,000 by 2013 from 6,393 now, Tan said today.
The Beijing-based retailer yesterday reported first-half profit surged 68 percent to 333.7 million yuan as the Olympics spurred demand for sports apparel and footwear. Sales rose 43 percent from a year earlier during the Games, Tan said today.
The Hong Kong-listed company aims to capitalize on the brand name of its founder and Chairman Li Ning, 44, who won three golds, two silvers and a bronze at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics.
Overseas Sales
Referred to as the nation's ``Prince of Gymnastics'' by China's media, Li lit the Olympic Torch atop the Bird's Nest stadium at the opening ceremony of the Beijing Games on Aug. 8, watched by an estimated 2.3 billion television viewers.
Chief Executive Officer Zhang Zhiyong said today the company plans to increase the contribution of overseas sales to 20 percent of total revenue by 2018 from 1.1 percent in the first half.
Li Ning's shares have gained 13 percent since the start of the Games, compared with a drop of 4 percent in the benchmark Hang Seng index. The stock closed 3.4 percent higher at HK$19.84 in Hong Kong today, while the index fell 2.3 percent to 20,972.29.
To contact the reporter on this story: Wendy Leung in Hong Kong at [email protected]
=================================
==================
The Hong Kong-listed company aims to capitalize on the brand name of its founder and Chairman Li Ning, 44, who won three golds, two silvers and a bronze at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics.======================
===========================================
Li Ning Aims to China Sales by 2013 on Rising Incomes (Update1)
By Wendy Leung
Aug. 28 (Bloomberg) -- Li Ning Co., the Chinese sportswear maker and retailer founded by a former Olympic gymnast, aims to double sales in China by 2013 as rising incomes spur demand for leisure clothing and shoes.
``The future growth prospects are very strong,'' Chief Financial Officer Tan Wee Seng told reporters in Hong Kong today. The company will spend about 200 million yuan ($29 million) this year and 150 million yuan in 2009 on opening new stores, Tan said.
Li Ning is taking advantage of increasing affluence in the world's most populous nation, where average earnings have doubled over the past five years. The China market expanded as much as 24 percent last year, helping the company post sales growth four times that of Nike Inc., the world's biggest sportswear maker, and 18 times that of No. 2 Adidas AG.
The sportswear maker added 717 stores in the first half, almost matching its full-year target of 800, helping the company boost sales by 60 percent to 3.06 billion yuan in the six months to the end of June.
Li Ning plans to increase its total number of outlets to 10,000 by 2013 from 6,393 now, Tan said today.
The Beijing-based retailer yesterday reported first-half profit surged 68 percent to 333.7 million yuan as the Olympics spurred demand for sports apparel and footwear. Sales rose 43 percent from a year earlier during the Games, Tan said today.
The Hong Kong-listed company aims to capitalize on the brand name of its founder and Chairman Li Ning, 44, who won three golds, two silvers and a bronze at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics.
Overseas Sales
Referred to as the nation's ``Prince of Gymnastics'' by China's media, Li lit the Olympic Torch atop the Bird's Nest stadium at the opening ceremony of the Beijing Games on Aug. 8, watched by an estimated 2.3 billion television viewers.
Chief Executive Officer Zhang Zhiyong said today the company plans to increase the contribution of overseas sales to 20 percent of total revenue by 2018 from 1.1 percent in the first half.
Li Ning's shares have gained 13 percent since the start of the Games, compared with a drop of 4 percent in the benchmark Hang Seng index. The stock closed 3.4 percent higher at HK$19.84 in Hong Kong today, while the index fell 2.3 percent to 20,972.29.
To contact the reporter on this story: Wendy Leung in Hong Kong at [email protected]
