Down coat brand Orolay finds fame on Amazon

Qiu Jiawei, founder of down coat brand Orolay, was astonished when the brand name went viral on the internet overnight among some of the most fastidious buyers in the world.

The last week of February was the most grueling time since Qiu founded the brand in Jiaxing in East China's Zhejiang province seven years ago. Bombarded with phone calls and messages, Qiu said he received interview requests from more than 20 media organizations.

The company's signature garment－an olive green paneled down coat priced under $100－has been given a special moniker by consumers: the Amazon coat. Qiu estimates Orolay's annual sales revenue will hit $40 million this year, while the figure was only $5 million in 2017.

The internet, especially social media, was responsible for Orolay's instant fame and profitability. A news story that appeared in New York magazine in late March 2018 first revealed the passion of buyers in New York's Upper East Side for the down jacket. Lauren Epstein, a Chinatown-based stylist, told the magazine that the Amazon coat reminded her of the Italian luxury clothing brand Moncler or The North Face's black puffy coat that first appeared in the 1990s. The coat even stole the heart of Ana Maria, the fashion director at the US luxury department store Neiman Marcus, who described the coat as a near ubiquitous item.

Apart from its own hashtag, the coat even has its own Instagram account under the name "the Amazon coat", which has registered more than 260 posts since January, showing pictures of people of all ages and from all professions wearing the viral consumer hit.

One year later, the Financial Times described the Orolay down jacket in an op-ed column as "a crucial distinction from past fashion sensation" that would possibly pose disruptive threats for the luxury goods industry.

Overseas buyers have continued to show a preference for the jacket this winter, spurring the company to raise the price from under $100 to nearly $140.

To date, the coat has won more than 7,000 four-star and above reviews on Amazon－its major distribution channel. At the Amazon Global Selling summit held in Shanghai on Dec 11, Jiaxing Zichi Trade Co Ltd－the parent company of Orolay－was named the most innovative seller for 2019. The affordable price, the quality comparable to luxury brands and the interest among global consumers were the reasons that Orolay won the award together with big industry names such as Chinese electronics giant Xiaomi Corp.

When Qiu first launched the brand on Amazon in 2013, he never imagined that Orolay would become the top-seller in North America among all of the 150 million products sold on the platform. During the first year, the company only sold 400 pieces.

With a production base in Jiaxing, the independent design center established in 2016 is key to Orolay's success in the US market, according to Qiu. Over time, the company has built a 20-person design team, the majority of whom have grown up with the brand. As Qiu explained, it is quite difficult to find experienced designers who know the preferences of US and European consumers. Therefore, training designers based on market response is the best approach.

"Most of the down jackets or coats sold in North America have features such as waterproof materials. Fashion elements are less stressed, which is the signature of Orolay down coats," said Qiu.

While the company also produces chairs, storage cabinets and bar stools, more than 80 percent of its annual sales revenue now comes from down coats. Although the exact number could not be released, Qiu said that the annual growth rate was more than 200 percent since 2017. The success in North America helped Orolay move into the European market in 2018. Now, Europe is the fastest growing region for Orolay down coats, he said.

At present, Orolay down coats are only available in overseas markets. During the early days, Qiu tried to set up business on Alibaba's platform. But the intense competition on the domestic e-commerce platforms as well as the continually increasing costs prompted him to choose another trajectory: cross-border e-commerce.

The global selling service launched by e-retailing juggernaut Amazon in 2012 came just in time. A total of 13 overseas sites including those in the US, Canada and Italy are open to Chinese sellers, on which products made in China can be sold directly to overseas buyers in those countries.

A survey from global consultancy Accenture released in April showed that the annual sales revenue growth rate of cross-border e-commerce was double that of domestic platforms. Up to 20 percent of the global e-commerce turnover is contributed by cross-border e-commerce.

Cindy Tai, vice-president of Amazon China, said at the summit on Dec 11 that Chinese companies, which have shown competitive edge in manufacturing and industrial chain mapping in the past, have seen their innovation capability enhanced over the past few years, making an important contribution to the global industrial chain. While Amazon is more competitive in import and export business in China, its focus will remain unchanged for the upcoming year, she said.

After the successful experience with Amazon, Qiu is dreaming big.

"We would like to create a fashion brand loved by people all over the world," he said.