Gifting one's way to business potential

Yanzhifang Food Co Ltd, a nutritious grains producer based in Anhui province, is growing at a rate of 50 percent annually from a new business category — gifts.

The company, which has been relying on retail and e-commerce to reach more health-conscious consumers, expects its gift products business to reach one quarter of total revenue, or 500 million yuan ($69.1 million), by the end of this year.

"Branded health grain products for families, friends, or as welfare for employees, have been in great demand since 2020," said Kong Qingfang, director of corporate affairs at Yanzhifang. "We've developed gift products customized for every client's budget and request."

A rising number of domestic companies that target individual consumers at the retail level are banking on the surging growth potential of China's gifts industry.

The Chinese gifts market, which primarily comprises marketing or promotional items, giveaways and employee welfare products, is thriving as such products help enhance consumer relations, boost purchases, and foster employee-employer ties.

China is the world's largest producer and exporter of promotional giveaways. The market size of China's gifts industry is forecast to reach 1.38 trillion yuan in 2024, according to the "2024 China Gift Industry White Paper" by RX Huabo and Kantar.

In 2022, the overall scale of China's gifts industry reached 1.23 trillion yuan, with the annual growth rate exceeding 9 percent from 2018 to 2022. Projections anticipate an average growth rate of 4 percent between 2023 and 2027, according to the report.

The gifts sector in China harbors significant growth potential. By comparison, the mature gifts industry market in the United States, particularly gift cards, reached $275 billion in 2022.