“Laziness” Can Also Be Productive.
As a new consumer product emerging alongside the trends of the "lazy economy" and AI technology, smart home cleaning appliances, especially the popular newcomers such as robotic vacuum cleaners and mopping robots, have rapidly gained traction in the household appliance market. Initially dubbed as an "IQ tax," these appliances have now become a real-world embodiment of the "pleasure principle" for smart home cleaning appliances, offering liberation from manual labor, heightened domestic bliss, and simplified household chores.
With a profound shift in consumer attitudes, demanding higher quality of home life and healthier living environments, the cleaning appliance industry has entered a new phase of development, emerging as a standout category within the household appliance sector. According to data from market consultancy firm GfK, the scale of China's cleaning appliance market has surged from 29 billion yuan in 2012 to 348 billion yuan in 2022, marking a twelvefold increase over a decade, with an average annual compound growth rate of 28.2%, significantly outpacing the overall 2.3% annual growth rate of the Chinese household appliance market during the same period.
Simultaneously, the competition in the smart home cleaning appliance market has intensified. Domestic appliance giants such as Midea and Haier have begun to venture into the cleaning appliance sector, while internet behemoths like Xiaomi and Huawei, along with specialized brands like Ecovacs, Stone, and Trifo, have aggressively expanded their presence, even gaining higher market penetration overseas. In this context, EqualOcean has taken stock of robotic vacuum cleaner brands that have deeply cultivated and achieved interim success in overseas markets.
Genhigh
Established in Shenzhen in 2017, Genhigh Technology advocates the concept "cleaning is the subtraction of life." Its product line includes robotic vacuum cleaners, smart floor scrubbers, smart cat litter boxes, and pet grooming tools. In 2021, Genhigh Technology secured tens of millions of yuan in Series A funding. In the same year, the company launched its robotic vacuum cleaner, Neabot, in the domestic market, receiving widespread acclaim from consumers. This robotic vacuum cleaner has also achieved remarkable success overseas. In late July 2021, the Neabot Q11 product raised nearly 200 million yen in 48 days on Makuake, Japan's largest crowdfunding platform, setting a record for the highest amount raised for a Japanese household appliance product through crowdfunding.
Genhigh Technology embarked on its international expansion as early as 2017. In the initial stages, the company delved into multiple product categories such as smart Wi-Fi sockets, recording headphones, automotive accessories, and phone cases. After creating several popular products, the company turned its focus to smart cleaning and pet care products. In addition to the Neabot Q11, Genhigh Technology also introduced the Netabot P1 Pro pet grooming tool, which became the top product in its category on the Amazon platform. Presently, Genhigh Technology's business spans over 60 countries and regions, including the United States, Japan, South Korea, and China. "Genhigh Technology's mission is to provide first-class innovative products and services to global users," stated Wang Zhonglin, the founder of Genhigh Technology. He expressed the company's commitment to establishing it as a global brand of innovative smart small home appliances, aiming for 10 million households worldwide to use Genhigh's smart small home appliances by 2025 and 100 million households by 2030.
Dibea
Since its establishment in 2007, Dibea Appliances has been forward-looking, aiming at the "smart home appliances" market, becoming one of the first brands of intelligent floor-sweeping robots in China. In 2018, with the increasing strength of the company, Dibea successfully established itself in overseas markets. The sales of its products in the South Korean market have been among the highest, leading to what was once referred to as the "Chyson" phenomenon in related media reports. As of now, Dibea's products include wireless vacuum cleaners, intelligent floor scrubbers, handheld vacuums, mite eliminators, and high-speed hair dryers. The company has a mature industrial chain system covering design, production, assembly, and sales. Its market coverage has extended to over 80 countries, with trademarks registered in over 100 countries and regions globally, serving millions of households.
Additionally, Dibea Appliances has always been committed to localizing its layout in overseas markets to meet the needs of global users. By establishing international social media channels such as Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, YouTube, LinkedIn, and Dibea's official websites in various countries, the company listens to the voices of different users, understands and integrates into local cultures to drive consumption better. According to official information from Dibea, starting from March this year, the brand will continue to participate in industry-related international exhibitions in countries and regions such as Japan, the United States, and Russia, showcasing a range of new and significant products on the world stage, bringing more intelligent and technologically advanced electrical appliances to the international market.
Trifo
Trifo is a brand under Shenzhen TRIFO Technology Co., Ltd., established in Silicon Valley, USA in 2016, and completed an angel round of financing in the same year. Its core members come from world-renowned universities such as Tsinghua University, Peking University, Zhejiang University, the University of Michigan, and Carnegie Mellon University, and have previously worked at top companies such as Apple, Microsoft, Intel, and Magic Leap. The company is dedicated to developing AI home smart robots with autonomous sensing, perception, and decision-making capabilities driven by technology. It has five major series: Viva, Lucy, Ollie, Max, and Emma. In addition to the Chinese market, Trifo sells its products on Amazon platforms in the United States, Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Japan, India, and has received consistent praise and recommendations from offline stores and channels such as Walmart, Bed Bath & Beyond, Home Depot, D&H, and Kohl's.
Currently, Trifo has completed multiple rounds of financing. Regarding future development, Trifo's founder and CEO, Zhang Zhe, stated, "Floor sweeping and mopping robots are our entry point for entrepreneurship. In the future, a home service robot can chat, interact, recognize gestures, and have a greater imaginative space."
Lexy
Lexy Electric was established in Suzhou in 1994 and is a manufacturer of high-quality cleaning appliances for global consumers, with high-speed electric motors as its core technology. Its five independent brands include LEXY, JIMMY, Bewinch, SieMatic, and Lexcook. In May 2015, the company successfully went public on the Shanghai Stock Exchange with the stock code 603355.
In 2009, Lexy Electric announced the launch of the brand "LEXY," transitioning its business from the "ODM model" to the "independent brand + ODM model," officially entering the downstream field of household appliances, targeting middle to high-end consumer groups. To date, Lexy Electric's products have been sold to over 100 countries worldwide, with a user base of 250 million globally. As a leading company in the global cleaning appliance industry, Lexy Electric has responded to the country's "Belt and Road" initiative, actively exploring the "Belt and Road" market and establishing overseas manufacturing bases. In June of this year, Lexy began construction of its second manufacturing base in Thailand, with a total investment of $28 million, aiming to achieve an annual production capacity of 2 million units of garden tools and small household appliances, as well as 1.8 million electric motors, expected to be completed by the end of this year. It is reported that the order volume at its Vietnamese factory is growing, and the market is gradually opening up.
Orvibo
Orvibo, established in Shenzhen in 2011, is a company specializing in the smart home sector. Leveraging an open platform, Orvibo has developed a substantial smart home ecosystem. Over the past decade, Orvibo has evolved into a global "AIoT+ new energy" unicorn enterprise in the field of comprehensive home intelligence. In 2022, Orvibo concluded its latest round of financing, with Tencent, Sofia and Pingxiang State-owned Assets participating, resulting in a total investment of ten billion.
Currently, Orvibo's third-generation robotic vacuum cleaners utilize their self-developed LDAR laser navigation technology, enabling rapid scanning of diverse household layouts and achieving 24/7 real-time precise navigation. Furthermore, Orvibo has made robust strides in research and development. Publicly available information indicates that Orvibo currently holds over 400 patents, including 100 invention patents, and has received numerous global product design awards.
Eufy
Eufy, founded by Anker Innovations in 2016, marks Anker's initial foray into the smart cleaning category. Eufy encompasses eufy clean, a primary family smart cleaning solution featuring robotic vacuum cleaners, and eufy Security, focusing on smart home security systems, including smart doorbells, locks, and wireless security cameras.
Presently, Eufy enjoys robust sales in markets such as Europe, the United States, and Japan, positioning itself among the top tier of Chinese robotic vacuum brands in terms of sales volume. Eufy products cover 37 countries, serving 5 million users overseas. Its individual products consistently lead the sales rankings for robotic vacuums on Amazon in Europe, the United States, and Japan, with a user rating of 4.5 stars. Eufy has surpassed the leading American robotic vacuum brand iRobot, becoming the top-rated robotic vacuum brand on Amazon in terms of user satisfaction.
Shunzao Technology
Established in Beijing in July 2019, Shunzao Technology Limited is an innovative tech company specializing in the development of indoor cleaning appliances and robots, outdoor gardening tools and robots, photovoltaic operation and maintenance robots, as well as household and commercial energy storage systems. Its products target both domestic and international markets, covering household, commercial, and new energy scenarios. In 2021, Xiaomi's ecological chain enterprise Shunzao Technology completed a USD 50 million USD Series B financing round.
Currently, Shunzao Technology has established a presence in 20 countries and regions, including Germany, Russia, Japan, and Singapore, and is in the process of establishing its own overseas teams to facilitate localized development in global markets. Tang Cheng, the founder of Shunzao Technology, stated, "The post-pandemic era will be the best opportunity for Chinese products and brands to go global. Shunzao will continue to iterate and create a Chinese brand that belongs to the world."
Lefant
Lefant is a home cleaning service robot brand launched by Shenzhen Lohas Technology Co., Ltd. in 2016. The brand focuses on intelligent floor sweeping robot technology and products, adhering to the brand mission of "dedicated to the experience and exploration of quality living." In the field of floor sweeping robot technology and applications, Lefant concentrates on research and development while integrating industry supply chain resources, dedicated to providing floor sweeping robot solution planning. On November 11, 2021, Lefant officially entered OPPO Smart Living.
Lefant Technology was established in 2011, headquartered in Shenzhen, focusing on intelligent robot technology and products, operating as an enterprise integrating research and development, manufacturing, and marketing. Over nearly a decade of development since its founding, Lefant has achieved significant overseas expansion. Several products independently developed by Lefant have received widespread acclaim, among which M210 is a star product in the intelligent floor sweeping robot category on Amazon, maintaining strong sales year-round. According to Oversea Mirror data, in the floor sweeping robot category on the Amazon platform in the United States, Lefant's sales volume ranked 8th in 2023, mainly targeting the mid-to-low price range of $300 and below, and consumers.
Ecovas
Ecovas was founded in 1998 in Suzhou, primarily engaged in vacuum cleaner OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) services. In 2000, it established a home service robot research and development team, commencing independent research and development of floor sweeping robots. As early as 2012, Ecovas achieved certain results during "Black Friday" through the Amazon online platform. Concurrently, Ecovas also established a presence in overseas offline channels, entering BestBuy, Costco, Target, and other offline stores in the United States starting in 2018. Financial reports indicate that in the first half of 2023, Ecovas' overseas market revenue increased by 25.6% year-on-year, accounting for 34.3% of the total revenue, bringing the company closer to its goal of 40% contribution from overseas markets. Overseas markets have become an important source of revenue for Ecovas.
Currently, Ecovas has established seventeen primary subsidiaries in China and has also set up overseas subsidiaries in Germany, the United States, and Japan, laying the foundation for the global market development of the Ecovas brand. Ecovas home service robots have successfully penetrated markets in over 60 countries and regions, including Spain, Switzerland, France, Canada, the Czech Republic, Poland, Germany, Iran, Malaysia, and others.
Dreame
Dreame Technology was established in Suzhou in 2017 and is a globally leading manufacturer of intelligent home appliances. It is known that Dreame completed a Series D financing round in 2022, having received financial support from YunTai Capital, Xiaomi Group, and Taikang Asset Management. In 2023, Dreame Technology's high-end strategy began to show initial results, rapidly growing into a benchmark for the high-end segment of the intelligent cleaning industry. Guo Renjie, President of Dreame Technology China, stated that from 2019 to 2023, Dreame Technology achieved a compound annual growth rate of over 100%, leading the intelligent cleaning industry in growth rate and becoming a leading global brand in the intelligent cleaning industry.
Currently, Dreame products cover more than 120 countries and regions globally, including Germany, France, Italy, and Japan and South Korea. Public data indicates that from October to December 2023, Dreame's floor sweeping robots increased their market share in Germany from 33% and 34.8% to 37.5%, maintaining the industry's top position. In the Italian market, Dreame's floor sweeping robots held the industry's top market share in November 2023.
Roborock
Established in 2014, Roborock is an emerging player in the field of robotic vacuum cleaners and was formerly part of the Xiaomi ecosystem. The company has completed multiple rounds of financing, securing investments from firms such as GIC and the Singaporean government's investment corporation. In February 2020, Roborock went public on the Shanghai Stock Exchange's Sci-Tech Innovation Board. Expanding its global reach through overseas distributors, the company has built a worldwide distribution network and conducts online and offline marketing promotions to further increase its international market share. Online sales primarily occur through B2C platforms such as Amazon, while offline sales are facilitated through cross-border distributors like Sunvalley, Mucen, and eufy, or via direct partnerships with overseas local distributors.
The latest financial report indicates that in 2023, Roborock's overseas revenue reached CNY 42.29 billion, marking a 61.65% year-on-year growth. Overseas sales revenue accounted for 48.9% of the total income, approaching nearly half of the company's revenue share. Presently, Roborock operates in over 170 countries and regions, serving more than 15 million households globally, with over a million daily active users on its app. The company holds the top spot in sales volume in the Nordic markets, market share in Germany, sales volume in South Korea, sales revenue in Turkey, and ranks second in sales revenue in North America. For instance, in the U.S. market, according to Miro Research's data on Amazon, Roborock's premium products priced above USD 800 command a market share as high as 57%, surpassing the leading overseas brand iRobot.
Narwal
Founded in Shenzhen in 2016, Narwal, under the umbrella of Yunjing Technology, focuses on household robotics and is dedicated to developing revolutionary technological products. Over the years, Narwal has secured funding from various investors, including XBOT PARK and ByteDance. In a short span, Narwal Intelligence has launched five robotic vacuum cleaners and two intelligent floor scrubbers, reaching nearly 2 million households globally.
Narwal's overseas expansion has been remarkably successful. On the debut day of its North American launch, the Narwal Freo X Ultra, known as the Narwal J4 overseas edition, claimed the top spot on Amazon's bestseller and new product lists in the United States and Canada, showcasing Narwal's innovative strength and market influence in the smart cleaning sector. The company has expressed its intention to accelerate its presence in overseas markets by customizing products to address diverse needs and pain points of international consumers.
Conclusion
As the leading subcategory within the smart cleaning appliance sector, the future development of robotic vacuum and mopping machines harbors boundless potential. In this fiercely competitive arena, Chinese brands are progressively assuming more significant roles, leveraging robust research and development capabilities along with extensive supply chain support. However, as competition intensifies, brands are intensifying their R&D efforts, often converging on similar breakthrough directions. In this context, the ability to develop genuinely innovative products and maintain long-term development objectives will determine which brands can stand out amidst intense competition. Nevertheless, EqualOcean believes that over the next 5-10 years, more unicorns and publicly listed brands will emerge in the field of cleaning appliances. They will lead the industry forward through innovation and brand influence, offering consumers a broader array of choices and surprises.