In the race for supremacy in China’s sportswear market, foreign brands are suddenly finding new footing after years of falling behind. Or at least newer brands are doing quite well, while older stalwarts like Nike and Adidas are suffering alongside homegrown Chinese names like Anta and Xtep.
在中国运动服饰市场的龙头之争中，外国品牌多年落后后，突然重新站稳脚跟。至少，新兴品牌表现不俗；耐克、阿迪达斯等老牌巨头，则与安踏、特步等中国本土品牌一同陷入困境。
That’s one of the biggest takeaways from the latest quarterly update from Xtep International Holdings Ltd. (1368.HK), which is placing increasing bets on its foreign brands, most notably its Saucony running shoes. The bigger picture is that Xtep, along with domestic peers like Anta (2020.HK) and Li Ning (2331.HK) are grappling with a major slowdown at home as China’s economy loses momentum after years of strong growth.
这是特步国际控股有限公司（1368.HK）最新季度运营更新所呈现的主要信息之一。公司正加大对旗下外国品牌的押注，尤其是跑鞋品牌索康尼。从更大的层面看，特步与安踏（2020.HK）、李宁（2331.HK）等本土同业一样，正面对中国经济多年高速增长后动能减弱所带来的内地市场大幅放缓。
As business slows, including a rare sales contraction for Xtep in the first half of this year, newer foreign brands are some of the few that continue to find growth in China, though even that growth is losing steam. That’s also pushing Xtep and its peers to look for new markets overseas – a common theme among Chinese retailers these days.
在业务放缓之际，特步今年上半年更罕见地录得收入下跌。新兴外国品牌是少数仍能在中国市场取得增长的品牌之一，但增速也在放慢。这也促使特步及其同业开拓海外新市场，成为近期中国零售商的共同趋势。