Last Friday, three members of Rayme’s US inspection team returned to the company headquarters and reported the results of their visit to the US to the company’s general manager, product design department, and product development department managers.
This American expedition will follow the West Coast of the United States and join the Central United States after arriving in Los Angeles. They conducted on-site inspections of the use and development trends of outdoor camping tents, outdoor camping furniture, outdoor camping kitchen utensils, and outdoor camping bedding in large-scale outdoor supply chain stores, beach camping sites, and mountain camping sites in the United States, and communicated with some of our company’s purchasers in the United States.
1. Consumer preference: from “durable” to “smart and lightweight”
The inspection team found that American campers are no longer most concerned about the extreme durability of their tents – although this is still a basic requirement. We have discovered an interesting phenomenon, “said Li Gong, pointing to the photos they took at their campsite in California.” More than 60% of young campers now value lightweight tents, quick setup, and eco-friendly materials.
2. The hidden innovation of competitors
Director Wang shared their findings during visits to large retailers such as REI and Cabela’s. On the surface, the design changes of mainstream tent brands may not be significant, but there are hidden mysteries in the details, “he showed a comparison picture.” The top three tent brands in the United States have all added smart device charging interfaces, modular storage systems, and improved air circulation designs internally
The group particularly noticed that a medium-sized brand has increased its market share by 40% in the past year through the concept of “customizable internal accounts”. Consumers can assemble tent spaces based on the number of family members like building blocks, which is a thought-provoking idea.
3. The diversified revolution of sales channels
The most shocking thing for us is the change in sales channels, “Manager Zhang pulled up a set of data.” The proportion of traditional physical store sales has decreased from 70% five years ago to 45%, while three new models of direct sales on social media, camping experience activities, and outdoor club cooperative sales are emerging
The group participated in a camping event organized by an Instagram outdoor blogger in Colorado. More than one-third of the 200 participants scanned the QR code on the spot to purchase the tents used in the event. The conversion rate of this experiential marketing is astonishing.
4. Neglected segmented markets
During the inspection, the group accidentally discovered two niche markets that were overlooked by mainstream manufacturers: urban balcony camping and rooftop tents. In New York and San Francisco, we encountered several young people living in apartments who set up small tents on their balconies as’ urban escape spaces’. With the revival of RV travel in the United States, the demand for roof tents on pickup trucks has increased by 300%.
5. Traditional classic products still have vitality
Although traditional roof tents have a history of 50 years, they still have strong vitality in the US market after improving and upgrading the fabrics and enhancing local functions. For example, a 380 gram cotton tent is treated with biological water repellent technology on the surface of the fabric, which greatly improves the waterproof effect and also has good insulation and heat insulation effects. The modular combination based on traditional tents has given them new vitality.
Next step: From observation to action
At the end of the report, the general manager announced the establishment of a special group: the Materials Innovation Group will research sustainable lightweight materials; Design restructuring will develop a modular tent system; The market expansion team will attempt to establish direct cooperation with American outdoor clubs.
The most valuable takeaway from this inspection, “the inspection team concluded,” is that the American outdoor market is no longer a single ‘high-end durable’ label, but a fertile ground full of layered demands, expectations of innovation, and willingness to pay for true value
Our production line will change as a result of this inspection – not simply imitating, but innovating with a deeper understanding. Next spring, a series of tents designed to meet the new demands of the US market will be rolled down one after another, and those three dusty explorers have once again devoted themselves to translating insights into products.
In the next month, members of the inspection team will also visit Henan, Tianjin, Zhejiang, Henan and other places to exchange ideas with technical personnel from Rayme’s various production bases.
