Bright exec hopes to turn Opple into a major brand

A local Opple sales partner joins the company's month-long promotion in Bangkok, Thailand, in an effort to increase brand awareness. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Opple clocked in industry leading sales revenue and retail outlets last year, raking in more than 3.8 billion yuan ($630 million), up 13.3 percent year-on-year from more than 30,000 sales points.

This year's Nov 11 online shopping festival saw the online store bring in 120 million yuan within 24 hours.

That domestic base feeds into forceful regulatory actions in Europe, as well as growing awareness on using energy-efficient lighting globally. For example, the European Union has ruled in 2010 that by 2020, all new buildings should consume "nearly zero" energy.

Opple has operations in more than 50 countries with recent strong performance in the United Arab Emirates, Chen noted, since starting exports in 2004. But it was only last year that a global expansion saw offices in India and the Netherlands－which sees its office sit on the same street with healthcare, consumer goods and lighting conglomerate Royal Philips of the Netherlands.

The Dutch connection was not accidental. Opple has partnered with Dutch research and development company Seaborough to launch the world's first interchangeable LED light tubes.

The product is key for growth in 2016 as it allows buyers to use existing sockets that hold lighting tubes.

The payoff for Chen and Opple is potentially high with manufacture slated for China, and a sales pitch that is estimated to cut electricity costs by half and promise a new way to light homes and offices in major European markets.

"You see very little evolution in the industry in recent years. It challenges everyone in the market to make a breakthrough," he said.

"When we are talking about becoming 'a global leading lighting brand', we literally stick to every single word of it."

Paul Van Doorn, CEO of Seaborough, defined the tube as "a Chinese technology product that helps solve an environmental problem in the US and Europe", during the signing of the collaboration agreement in Shanghai in October, when Dutch King Willem-Alexander made a state visit to China.

Still, reports noted Opple's European office suffered a loss of 28.39 million yuan in 2014, which Chen said was expected for an operation just getting underway.

"The difference between firework and lighting is that the former looks beautiful but is a flash in the sky. Same in the world of business. If all you want is a good-looking number on the report, it usually doesn't last long," Chen said.

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