Many Chinese lubricant suppliers have begun taking tips on marketing from their Western counterparts. Now some are doing the same in the area of packaging.
Chongqing-based Xiandai Petro, a major regional lube blending plant in Western China, recently bought Chongqing Yinfeng Plastics to change the packaging of its entire product line, including diesel engine oils and motor oils, said Tang Yongzhi, director of the plant.
Yinfeng has a great design team which will also allow us to have our own design patents in the future. Package design is an important part of our products, Tang told Lube Report Asia, adding Xiandai is also hiring designers to expand the team.
Another reason for the buyout, he said, is to avoid delays in delivery, which is common among Chinese suppliers.
Before the deal, we were just one of Yinfengs clients, so it often missed our deadlines. Now it works for us only, and hopefully there will be no more delays, Tang said.
Xiandai runs two brands – Sheng Tai and Si Te Bao. Oils of the two brands are blended with a variety of base stocks, including domestic and imported synthetic stocks. In fact, it has recently changed the package of all Sheng Tai oils, which are also sold at Xiandais online store at Tmall, the largest Chinese B2C platform. Popular products include SM5W-40 synthetic motor oil, priced at CNY246 (U.S. $39.40) for four liters, and SN0W-40 synthetic motor oil with a price tag of CNY336 for four liters, which is slightly higher than Castrol and Mobil.