2014 – 2016 BUD Funding Project

Project Title

Establish a B2B business platform for Hong Kong eyewear industry to extend the distribution network in domestic market

Background

Hong Kong eyewear manufacturers possess rich experience in producing high quality eyewear with innovative design and the fulfillment of international standards for renowned international brands. Facing the economic downturn in the western countries and the continuous rising of operating costs, our eyewear manufacturers, especially SMEs, are difficult to maintain their business under traditional OEM operation. Recently, the rising of wholesale price by the international brands has significantly reduced the profit of optical shops. With the support from China Optometric & Optical Association COOA, this is a good timing for high quality Hong Kong eyewear brands to enter the Mainland market. However, the optometry chains in Mainland are influential in distribution of spectacle frames, as most of the optometrists are the owner of the optical shop. Therefore, it is essential for Hong Kong eyewear manufacturers to build up business partnership with them for collecting market information and extend their distribution effectively. Through collaborating with COOA, Mainland optical shops, eyewear wholesalers and distributors will be invited to visit the “Hong Kong Eyewear Pavilion” in Shanghai Optical Fair and Beijing Optical Fair.

To project a consistence high quality Hong Kong eyewear brand, seminars with topics on innovative design, high quality manufacturing and compliance with international standards will be organized in the optical fairs. Also, an eyewear distributor and wholesaler e-database will be developed. Overall, this project will increase the brand image of Hong Kong eyewear and assist local eyewear industry to extend their distribution network in Mainland.

Project Deliverables

- Hong Kong Pavilion at China International Optics Fair (Beijing) and China International Optics Fair (Shanghai)

- Business networking events and seminars during the two fairs

- Hong Kong Eyewear Album

- Hong Kong Eyewear Video

- An experience sharing session of extending Mainland market

- eDatabase of retailer and wholesaler in Mainland

Dissemination of project result – Click Here