One of the most legendary bag-makers shares his secret of success with MegAsia.

A visit to Tiger Enterprise's' showroom in its Hong Kong office was an absolute eye-opening experience, even for someone like me (the MegAsia reporter), who has been out of school for quite a few years.

The bag-making specialist is renowned for its durable, sharp-coloured bags popular with particularly European customers. In addition to that, Tiger also manufactures colourful, fun pencil cases that would make going to school more fun than ever. "Our pencil cases, much like our well-known school bags, have been well-liked by our customers with the diverse materials used to make them. We have anything from leather-made pencil cases to fluffy-looking ones to satisfy customers' various preferences," said Mr. Anthony Chan, executive vice president of Tiger Enterprise Corporation.

According to Mr. Chan, Tiger Enterprise's success owes much to its capable production team, which devotes itself to creating the reliable, quality bags the company is renowned for. Tiger currently has an office in Hong Kong, staffed by some 20 dedicated employees, whose duties involve design, customer service, as well as merchandising. Also working its magic to make Tiger the leading bag manufacturer, of course, is the larger-than-life factory located in Shenzhen, China. "We have about 1, 800 workers in our Shenzhen factory, as well as a laboratory, which is accredited by the China National Accreditation Board. Tiger's production team is usually busiest from July to September, with its typical selling period running from September to January." Mr. Chan said, elaborating the company's well-established structure.

The quality products that come out of Tiger's factory eventually land on the hands of the European customers, a majority of them being Germans who value quality more than anything else. "Apart from adopting designs that would favor the taste of our German customers, we also put safety and quality into top concerns when making our bags so that they live up to these customers' expectations," said Mr. Chan, explaining his customers' top priorities.

Realising quality and product safety are the main concerns coming from customers, Tiger stops at nothing to ensure that they are both perfectly delivered for any orders placed. "Tiger prides itself in its high quality bags that come with many attractive features," Mr. Chan stated. "With our newly developed NANO anti-bacteria coating technology, our bags promise to inactivate over 99 per cent of wide-spectrum bacteria. They are also water repellent, odorless and with ultra-strong UV protection." Together, these features guarantee durable bags that can sustain any harsh environment, perfect for children to carry on a daily basis.

While unveiling concept behind NANO, Mr. Chan also gave credit to the Hong Kong Polytechnic University for its active participation in the development of the said technology, while showing gratitude for the students' strong and observant sense of new trends. "Teaming up with these young talents from the university has been a cost-effective and mutually-benefiting experience for us," Mr. Chan commented with a smile. "The students have had the opportunity to explore the technological aspect of producing bags, while providing us with the latest news in the fashion world, which eventually enables us to design products that are compatible with other hot items on the market. Also, because these students are doing the experimental part of NANO technology, we have managed to save much cost on the research front."

Apart from gathering industry news from students who are on the frontline of the retail trends, Tiger also keeps itself posted on the industry's latest "goss" through other sources. As Mr. Chan said, "Communicating with our customers is crucial, as they obviously have a better idea as to what is in high demand at the moment. We take part in trade shows around the globe, in which we can learn from our peers and exchange market intelligence." That said, as much as Tiger values its customers' ideas, its ultimate aim is to be able to lead them, and to show them all the upcoming trends lying ahead on the market.

Thanks to Tiger's continuous determination to lead its customers, the company has been fine-tuning itself from day one as a way to keep up with the ever-changing market. The company's recently-launched "Tiger Plus" is a brand new line of bags that are sure to stir up quite a storm in the market. Similar to other bags made in the most environmentally-friendly way possible, this new line has a different appeal from Tiger's original school bag series, which has been around for quite some time. "Our decision to introduce a different line was based on a few conclusions that we have made over the past few years," Mr. Chan, sharing his vision with MegAsia. "First of all, our school bag business is a seasonal one that only keeps us busy from July to September - there is only so much profit we can make with such rigid production schedule. By launching "Tiger Plus", we are able to ease our business risks by relying on two product lines instead of one." Mr. Chan also explained that because Tiger's original line of school bags cater for only European customers, they tend to be less attractive to the North American customers due to their different preference in product design. "Tiger Plus", on the other hand, is guaranteed to be a hit favored by a different breed of customers from around the world for its refreshing, exciting design. "We are confident that by diversifying our product line, our customers will see us as a proactive, innovation-driven company willing to take risks and evolve with the market," Mr. Chan said.

The vision does not stop there, either. In addition to "Tiger Plus", Tiger has also decided to welcome this year's upcoming season with never-seen-before schooling accessories, "Made of plastic, these accessories we will introduce are fun and educational at the same time. Children can learn new vocabularies through the making of little craft items!" Mr. Chan is excited about the company's newfound paths, and has no doubt about all the business opportunities they will bring.

The legacy of Tiger goes way back to 1972, when the company was first founded. "Tiger is actually a byproduct of Kan Hing Plastic Products - a company that specialised in all things plastic. By separating itself from its mother company, Tiger was able to reach a more specific group of customers who demand only the best quality bags with superb durability." Mr. Chan remarked, revealing the reason behind the strategic move that changed the bag business forever.

Looking ahead, Tiger will continue searching for new ways to lower production cost, as it is only survival in the cut-throat bag business. As Mr. Chan concluded, "We have come to realise that unique products alone do not make us any more successful than our competitors. At the end of the day, customers want quality bags at the lowest prices they can get. That is why we need to make sure that the prices we offer to customers are reasonable as well as competitive." In order to achieve this very objective, Tiger plans on relying more on technology and advanced machines to ensure a highly reliable and cost-effective production process. Also, the company will step up its move to hit the North American market, or even markets in different parts of the world with "Tiger Plus".

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