European packaging companies fully enter the packaging market in China

In recent years, Stora Enso, which has long used Europe as a major market, has accelerated the pace of strategic adjustment. On the one hand, in response to the slowdown in consumer demand for paper products in Europe and the United States, some paper mills have been shut down and millions of tons of capacity have been compressed. On the one hand, it focuses on developing emerging markets such as Asia and South America, which are rapidly growing in consumption. At the same time, while maintaining its competitive advantage in the papermaking field, the Group has actively advanced into the fiber-based packaging industry and obtained higher benefits by extending the industrial chain. In Kang Youkun's view, the Chinese market is the top priority for Stora Enso's future business development. Prior to this, Stora Enso has successively invested in the establishment of four factories in China to produce high-grade copperplate paper, calendered paper and other products, and launched a papermaking forest construction project in Guangxi. This time, in conjunction with Zhengyuan International, It is the first time in China that the Group has been involved in paper packaging projects. What is the purpose of Stora Enso’s move?

Kang Youkun, who once held important positions in multinational companies such as ABB and Philips, introduced that if a company wants to continue to develop, it must follow the market rhythm. China's economy is developing rapidly and it is becoming a manufacturing country. The packaging industry is also growing rapidly and growing rapidly. According to Stora Enso's forecast, by 2015, the size of the consumer product packaging market in the Asia Pacific region will surpass that of North America to become the world's largest, and the next 10 years. Half of the growth in the Asian packaging market comes from China. For such an important market, the group cannot of course ignore it. In addition, many European companies now invest and set up factories in China. Among them, Finland alone has more than 260 companies operating in China with an investment of more than 10 billion euros. There are more than 500 Swedish companies in China. In Europe, Stora Enso's customers are packaging products. The packaging business in China is conducive to the integration of relevant resources of the Group and provides customers with comprehensive solutions.

Song Daoqiu, president of Stora Enso China, has a more detailed understanding of the development of the Chinese paper packaging market. He said that in 2009 China's total paper industry output was about 85 million tons, of which printing paper accounted for about 40%, and the rest was packaging paper, that is to say, China's annual paper packaging for more than 50 million tons. In addition to corrugated paper products used for product packaging, it also includes food packaging, pharmaceutical packaging, fast food packaging and product specifications. Over the years, China's paper packaging market has maintained double-digit growth, and there is still much room for growth in the future. Fiber-based packaging, in particular, is more and more popular because it is more environmentally friendly than plastic packaging and can be recycled for recycling. When talking about Stora Enso's failure to invest in and set up a plant, and instead entered the Chinese packaging market in the form of an equity purchase, Song Wangqiu said that this would enable the group to carry out this business five to ten years in advance. International is a very good company. Cooperation between the two parties can achieve a win-win situation.

It is understood that in 2009, the group's profit mainly comes from two businesses. One is news and book paper. Its sales account for 15% of total sales, while operating profit accounts for 40%. Second, it is used for civil packaging paperboard and packaging products. The amount only accounted for 21% of the total, while profits accounted for 51%, and the profit of wood products was negative. It is easy to see that Stora Enso is eager to enter the Chinese packaging market.

Zhengyuan International, a partner selected by Stora Enso, is also a leader in the domestic packaging industry. This private enterprise founded in 1998, through continuous innovation and development, has increased its annual revenue from more than 10 million yuan to more than 800 million yuan, and has established business organizations in India and South Korea. In the company's workshop, all kinds of advanced printing and packaging machinery are busy. A high-speed printing machine is used to print the pattern on Pizza Hut's packaging box, and other brands' outer packaging samples are also displayed on the side. The person in charge of the workshop said that the machine was imported from Germany and it cost 100 million yuan. The printing speed is as high as 300 meters per minute. A class only needs three workers to manage. Guo Qiang, chairman of Zhengyuan International, has his own calculations for the “marriage”. First of all, with the help of Stora Enso’s global network and customer resources, the company will accelerate its scale expansion. Then there is the introduction of an international advanced management system. Improve its competitiveness. As for who controls the company, "it is actually not important. The key lies in the close cooperation between the two parties and jointly make the company bigger and stronger."