On December 18-19, 2024, the "2024 GoGlobal Forum of 100 • Shanghai" (GGF2024 Shanghai), hosted by EqualOcean, a leading think tank for globalization, successfully concluded in Xuhui District, Shanghai. The two-day event featured four full-day forums: the Leadership Forum, the Brand Globalization Forum, the Overseas Insights Forum, and the Emerging Industries Globalization Forum. With 107 speakers, 100 award-winning institutions, and over 3,000 attendees, the forum aimed to advance globalization, drive "true" global expansion, and create a new chapter for Chinese companies going global in 2025.
On December 19, during the Overseas Insights Forum, a roundtable discussion titled "Southeast Asia – Has It Become a Red Ocean?" was held. The panel included Calvin, Managing Director of Nutz Capital; Long Jie, Chief Advisor of TOMORO COFFEE Indonesia; Xu Lejia, Founding Partner of Living Water Capital; Liu Linhai, Founder and CEO of Dreamer Age; and Wu Ji, Founder of Singapore TNT Digital Entertainment and Indonesia TNT Media. The discussion was moderated by Zou Yang, Partner at China Lion Global. Below are the highlights from the panelists' remarks.
Xu Lejia: The Power of Overseas Chinese Cannot Be Underestimated; "Time-Space Folding" Aids Globalization
Xu Lejia, Founding Partner of Ondine Capital (Living Water Capital), manages multiple RMB and USD funds. The RMB funds focus on China's native technology, while the USD funds target consumer technology in Southeast Asia. Current investments in Southeast Asia include the automotive e-commerce platform Carsome, women's fashion brand Love, Bonito, home furnishing brand Dekoruma, fresh produce e-commerce Sayurbox, battery-swapping platform SWAP Energi, B2B e-commerce platform Borong (Dropee), used motorcycle trading platform iMotorbike, and the East Asia Super League (EASL) international basketball league. Notably, Carsome has become Malaysia's first unicorn company.
When considering factors for entrepreneurs entering the Southeast Asian market, Xu offers unique insights. He emphasizes that entrepreneurs must first clarify their business direction and conduct in-depth research on the demographic background of the target market to ensure their products or services precisely match local needs.
Xu also highlights the significant role of the overseas Chinese community in Southeast Asia, a force that cannot be overlooked. Despite a 200-year history of Chinese migration to Southeast Asia, entrepreneurs often overlook the existence and development of this community. The history of the overseas Chinese community in Southeast Asia is rich with experiences and lessons. Their struggles, challenges, and current development status provide valuable references for new entrants, helping entrepreneurs better understand the local market environment and cultural context, avoid repeating mistakes, and increase the likelihood of success.
Through the case of investing in an Indonesian furniture and home furnishing chain, Xu elaborates on his "time-space folding theory." For example, some business models of this company resemble those in China 15-20 years ago, while others align with models from 5-10 years ago. At the same time, the company is keeping up with current trends in China, such as actively using TikTok for promotion. From the perspective of the "time-space folding theory," in the same sector in Southeast Asia, one can observe business models from different stages of China's development. This means entrepreneurs have the opportunity to tap into demands from various developmental stages in Southeast Asia. With keen market insight and the right resources, they can identify opportunities at multiple levels, achieving business growth and innovative development.
Long Jie: Entering Indonesia Requires Understanding Differences to Seek Growth
Long Jie, an EMBA graduate from Tsinghua University, has held prominent roles in various companies, including Vice President of CAR Inc. and UCAR (2013), founding team member and Vice President of Luckin Coffee (2017), and CEO of Zhixuan Technology (2021). He currently serves as Chief Advisor for Indonesia's TOMORO COFFEE and Tongcheng Travel Indonesia. Under his guidance, TOMORO COFFEE has opened over 600 stores in just over two years, and Yilong Hotels completed site selection within four months.
With years of experience in the Indonesian market, Long views Indonesia as an ideal consumer bridgehead for Chinese companies going global. The primary reason is Indonesia's status as a populous nation with significant demographic红利, a young population structure, and the anticipated baby boom of the Islamic population, which promises immense potential for the consumer market.
However, Long also cautions that entering Indonesia requires more than just recognizing opportunities; risks must also be carefully considered. On one hand, the market is highly competitive, with many Chinese companies entering the space. For example, Mixue Bingcheng has opened over 2,800 stores in Indonesia, but some stores are underperforming due to severe market homogenization. On the other hand, while Indonesia has a large population, the spending power of the general public is limited, and物价 remains relatively high, reflecting the complexity of the consumer market.
Long advises that companies must deeply understand cultural differences in Indonesia and respect local religious customs. For instance, employees praying at noon is a normal religious practice, requiring companies to incorporate religious considerations into their management and operations, showing respect and understanding for employees. In terms of product iteration, companies should not simply replicate Chinese models but instead adapt to the actual development stage of the Indonesian market. By leveraging China's technological and organizational strengths while aligning with local market characteristics, companies can reasonably price and improve product cost-effectiveness.
Long emphasizes that companies must adopt a long-term perspective when entering the Indonesian market, deeply understanding market trends and adapting to market demands. Avoiding a short-term speculative mentality is crucial for achieving sustainable development in Indonesia.
Calvin: Strategizing Southeast Asia E-commerce – Clarify Strategy and Anchor Direction
Calvin, Managing Director of Nutz Capital, focuses on global opportunities in advanced manufacturing and consumer technology. He has led or participated in investments in companies such as Green Union Technology, Sijiu Technology, Metalans, Musu Group, Laifen Technology, Diyi Logistics, Lilysilk, and 7or9.
When it comes to globalization strategy, Calvin emphasizes that companies must consider multiple factors. To enter these markets, companies need to assess whether they have the capability to build a localized content team and secure a stable localized supply chain. A localized supply chain is a critical factor for establishing a foothold in the market. Companies must not only be able to deeply penetrate the local market and find suitable local partners but also ensure that both parties can achieve mutual benefits based on shared strategic goals, avoiding situations where the local market dominates and their own interests are compromised.
Looking at future trends in e-commerce, Calvin highlights two key directions:
Live-streaming E-commerce: Currently, live-streaming e-commerce penetration in Southeast Asia exceeds 20%, with some regions like Indonesia reaching 25-30%, showing strong growth momentum. When deploying live-streaming e-commerce, companies should not focus solely on short-term gains. Instead, they should plan their product portfolio structure from a long-term perspective, allocating resources reasonably. For example, the business ratio of platform e-commerce, offline channels, and live-streaming e-commerce could be planned at 50%, 50%, and 30%-40%, respectively. This approach avoids over-reliance on a single channel and ensures the stability of long-term business structures.
AI Technology: 2024 marks the beginning of AI development in Southeast Asia. Companies that actively leverage AI to improve business efficiency can save more resources for product optimization, localized supply chain construction, and partner expansion. However, the widespread adoption of AI will also intensify market competition. Companies can no longer rely solely on traditional methods for differentiation and must pay more attention to researching segmenting target markets. Over the next 3-5 years, companies should deeply understand the demands of markets like Thailand and Indonesia, seize product innovation opportunities brought by IECP (Industrial Ecosystem Collaboration Platform) and local supply chain upgrades, and capitalize on the development opportunities created by the deep integration of traffic and supply chains.
As a materialist investor, Calvin also shared insights on opportunities in manufacturing globalization. From the perspective of globalization motivations, Vietnam's lower labor costs compared to Thailand make it suitable for labor-intensive industries, while Thailand has advantages in upstream industries like advanced manufacturing. In the long term, Vietnam's leading birth rate, better labor coordination, and low mobility, coupled with the increasing number of domestic engineers going abroad, present numerous opportunities. In terms of market dynamics, differences in motorcycle prices between Southeast Asian countries and China, high tariffs in Vietnam, and the high frequency of electric vehicle usage with price insensitivity also influence the market. Chinese OEMs going global should leverage local markets to improve efficiency. Currently, there are many opportunities to enhance digitalization levels and capacity utilization rates in Southeast Asian factories, especially for Chinese companies expanding overseas.
Wu Ji: Weighing Globalization Opportunities – Avoiding E-commerce Pitfalls and Embracing Entertainment
Wu Ji, Founder of Singapore TNT Digital Entertainment and Indonesia TNT Media, is a seasoned professional with a rich background in the tech and entertainment industries. He previously served as Executive Vice President of Lazada Group at Alibaba, Product Director at Tencent Music, and Head of Commercialization at NetEase Cloud Music.
Wu holds a cautious view on the development prospects of e-commerce in Southeast Asia, believing that directly transplanting China's e-commerce model to the region faces numerous challenges. The overall average order value in Southeast Asia remains relatively low, and any business model relying solely on low prices is unsustainable.
Challenges in E-commerce:
Intense Offline Competition: Southeast Asia is home to many well-established local Chinese conglomerates with deep roots and extensive control over offline channels. New e-commerce entrants find it difficult to compete with these entrenched players.
Platform Profit Squeeze: As market competition intensifies, platforms often prioritize their own profits, squeezing the margins of e-commerce businesses through various means.
Policy Risks: Some e-commerce companies overly rely on information asymmetry and media-driven marketing strategies. The limited employment impact of the e-commerce industry and potential issues such as unreasonable taxation can draw scrutiny and dissatisfaction from local governments.
Opportunities in Entertainment:
In contrast, Wu is optimistic about the potential of the entertainment sector in Southeast Asia, particularly the emotional economy driven by Z-generation consumption trends. He notes that as consumer demographics evolve, Z-generation (those born after 1995, especially post-2000) has become a dominant consumer force. This group values emotional experiences and spiritual fulfillment, willing to pay for products or services that provide emotional value, high-quality content, and pleasant experiences.
Wu points out that due to factors like religion, overseas consumers, especially the Z-generation, exhibit stronger idealistic tendencies. Their pursuit of material goods is relatively basic, while their demand for spiritual and emotional fulfillment is more pronounced.
In this consumption trend, Wu firmly believes that high-quality content has vast market potential. China's years of development in content creation have accumulated rich experience and successful models, which are highly adaptable to the Southeast Asian market. He emphasizes that companies expanding into Southeast Asia must deeply respect local culture, maintain a humble and calm mindset, and actively integrate into the local market to avoid conflicts arising from cultural differences. At the same time, companies should discard overconfidence and recognize their own shortcomings.
Additionally, Wu notes that globalization is not an inevitable choice for all companies. Businesses should weigh their options based on their actual circumstances, avoid blindly following trends, and make decisions with a rational and calm attitude.
Liu Linhai: Establishing Roots in the Southeast Asian Market, Synergizing Online and Offline Development
Liu Linhai, Founder and CEO of Dreamer Age, a global brand focused on the Southeast Asian market, has established local subsidiaries in multiple countries across the region and manages nearly 10,000 local online and offline channels. The company’s core services include offline channel development, agent network construction, physical advertising, online e-commerce agency operations, social media agency operations, influencer marketing, affiliate marketing, and brand co-creation. Dreamer Age helps Chinese companies expand globally by providing end-to-end localization services, enabling them to efficiently participate in local markets.
Regarding the characteristics of the Southeast Asian e-commerce market, Liu pointed out that the online market is highly competitive, with Chinese sellers dominating the landscape. However, most rely heavily on Chinese supply chains, leading to severe market homogenization and vicious competition. For example, on platforms like TikTok, Chinese sellers are numerous, but many are resource-dependent, competing primarily on supply chain advantages rather than differentiation. Despite this, platforms like TikTok also provide rare opportunities for small and medium-sized enterprises to establish a foothold and voice in overseas markets.
Liu emphasized that the key to success in Southeast Asia lies in the synergistic development of online and offline channels. Companies should first leverage the powerful content creation and marketing capabilities of online platforms to enhance brand awareness and then extend their presence to offline markets. The offline market in Southeast Asia offers unique advantages: while prices are generally high, offline shopping supports installment payments, effectively addressing the challenge of low consumer income and limited savings, which often hinder high-ticket purchases. Additionally, the hot climate in Southeast Asia makes shopping malls popular leisure and cooling destinations, driving significant foot traffic and boosting offline economic activity.
For companies integrating into the local market, Liu highlighted two critical points. First, respecting time: companies should not enter the market with a high-dimensional advantage mindset but must recognize the time required for market entry and avoid rushing at the expense of market cultivation. Second, focusing on product cost-effectiveness: this is the core factor in winning the trust of Southeast Asian consumers. In this market, consumers are highly sensitive to cost-performance ratios, but this does not mean low price and low quality. Companies should strive for the best quality within an optimal cost-performance range to meet consumer needs, enhance brand strength, promote product repurchases, and capture consumer mindshare.
About the GoGlobal Committee of 100 (GGC100)
Since its inception in 2018 as a spin-off from EqualOcean, the GoGlobal Committee of 100 (GGC100) was officially launched at the "2023 Globalization Summit" (ESG2023) in Shenzhen in June 2023. The committee, initiated by EqualOcean and over 100 renowned entrepreneurs, investors, and scholars, aims to serve Chinese companies' globalization efforts. From "gathering 100" to "reaching 1,000," from "industry dialogue" to "global empowerment," the GGC has gathered over 500 elite members worldwide, hosted 1,600+ corporate executives sharing insights, and built a 20,000+ precision-targeted globalization community, covering industries such as new energy, AI, FMCG, and food and beverage, with a total market value of 10 trillion RMB. The committee has organized 8 large-scale conferences with thousands of attendees, 20+ industry salons, 10+ elite gatherings, and multiple study tours.
About the GoGlobal Forum of 100 (GGF)
The GoGlobal Forum of 100 (GGF), hosted by EqualOcean and the GoGlobal Committee of 100, is held annually in June in Shenzhen and in December in Shanghai. Each conference lasts 2-3 days, with over 2,500 attendees, 70% of whom are director-level or above. It is the largest and most prestigious gathering in the field of globalization, attracting significant industry attention. For collaboration opportunities, please contact EqualOcean's team.
About EqualOcean
EqualOcean is a new think tank and core resource connector focused on serving Chinese companies going global and helping overseas companies or institutions seize China's development opportunities. With the mission of "connecting China and the world," our core strength lies in having the strongest team in the industry, bridging official and private sectors, integrating technology and traditional industries, and possessing a global perspective and resource network. Founded in November 2018, EqualOcean currently offers products such as the New Globalization Research Institute, New Globalization Academy, GoGlobal Committee of 100, media events, and the Huang Yuanpu Channel. We provide in-depth Chinese and English reporting and analysis, globalization strategy consulting, overseas market research, benchmark study tours, overseas study tours, globalization conferences, and closed-door meetings. In 2024, the EqualOcean team also published the book The New Wave of Globalization, which sold 100,000 copies.
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