The Power of Demand

By Liu Sha

A victorious hero who can inspire millions shall bear wounds and scars with an exhausted manner when returning home.

This is what we call “supplydemand” mentality. A hero with wounds and scars is desired among the hero himself and the spectators (including the authorities) at such a grand occasion. Just imagine how magnificent it is! If not, the scene will eclipse no matter how great a battle the hero might have won.

So, intricate as it is, such a“supply-demand” mentality is hidden deep in the inner heart.

Rimowa, one of the international suitcase brands, can be found in most supermarkets and shopping malls. Rimowa’s suitcase is easy to be depressed and scratched because of its aluminum material which surprisingly, has made it one of the best sellers in the market.The fact is that most buyers love the scratches on the suitcase,deeming them a symbol of traveling a lot and an expression of their attitude towards life.

What a miracle it is! If you hang around the airport, you may find that many white-collars or even celebrities are carrying suitcases of this kind.Evian, a famous brand of mineral water, is now selling at a price of 7 or 8 yuan per bottle, a price approximately similar to its Chinese counterparts. However,more than a decade ago, it would take maybe 15 to 20 yuan to buy one bottle.. Even with such a high price, it enjoyed a lion’s share in the market.

Again, the consumers’

英雄凱旋時，最好傷痕累累，還要帶點疲憊的神態，這樣就很配。

其實這是一種“雙向需求”，英雄、觀眾（上司）都需要，傷口在合適的時間、合適的地點出現。你想象一下，這個場景多么好。而如果沒有，那戰績再大的凱旋，也會略遜幾分。

需求很微妙，藏在人性深處。

在旅行箱市場中，有一個叫Rimowa的品牌，在大超市里都能買到。這種旅行箱是鋁制的，非常容易因磕碰導致刮花、凹陷。但是，就是因為這種特性，這種旅行箱在市場上大賣。因為旅行箱上的傷痕，往往被人潛意識地解讀為主人經常外出旅行，代表的是一種生活態度。

這真的是一個非常奇妙的產品。如果你到機場觀察一下，就會發現，用這種鋁制旅行箱的往往是都市白領，還有不少明星。

依云礦泉水現在似乎不那么高高在上了，超市里七八元一瓶的也有了，與許多中國品牌差不了多少。但在十多年前，依云礦泉水很牛，高則二十多元，低的也要十五六元，曾經非常好賣。

還是人的需求。國門洞開之后，剛剛富起來的中國人崇尚歐美人的生活，而依云的廣告渲染的也是歐美貴族生活。

隨著走出國門的中國人越來越多，很多到法國旅行的人發現，依云在國外賣得并不高，也并非歐美貴族的專用水。

依云通過十幾年的運作，已在中國站穩了腳跟，而且它要比許多中國品牌都懂得消費者的心理，接下來的高端水之戰，到底誰能笑到最 后， 還是一個未知數。

誰能觸摸到真實的需求，誰就能觸摸到對方的錢袋。這在商業社會中是一條亙古不變的真理，大家拼的是，你有沒有比別人更早地感受到，有沒有以更快的時間去滿足它。

浙江嘉興有一家公司，生產的是智能睡眠床，它可以監測人的心跳、脈搏以及睡眠情況，并可以根據人的睡眠情況自動調整床的高低和角度，這家公司是世界最大的智能床生產商。

這種產品的發明者，認識一位德國朋友，對方的妻子因為在睡夢中心臟病突發，悄然去世，丈夫卻渾然不知。他從中得到啟發，這種智能床在崇尚生命健康的歐美一炮打響，去年的銷售額達到200億元，覆蓋了美國三成以上的市場。

所以有人說，最極致的商業主義，其實是實用主義，而不是理想主義。

需求的力量非同凡響，那是一種可以開天辟地的洪荒之力。

（摘自《深圳青年》2017年第7期）

demands are doing the magic.After the implementation of reform and opening-up policy in China, a group of neo-rich citizens adored western life styles. Evian skillfully commercialized its water products as a representation of high-quality life of western upper class, which impressed the Chinese consumers, and thus became one of the most successful premium water brands in China.

Later on, as more and more Chinese people went traveling in the western countries, they found that Evian water is neither a “luxury” nor a symbol of upper class life. And Evian seems to have passed its prime time in China.Nevertheless, you should never underestimate a company with more than ten years of experience in Chinese markets and an indepth understanding of the customers’ needs. It is too early yet to claim the final winner of the Chinese premium water market.

It is a golden rule in business community that whoever grasps the inner demand of the consumers grasps their wallets.The truth is that who first understands and satisfies the consumers’ needs wins.

A Zhejiang-based company,one of the largest smart bed manufacturers in the world,produces smart beds that can monitor people’s heart rates,pulses, and sleep patterns, and automatically adjust to their sleep position accordingly. Its designer was originally inspired by a German friend of his, whose wife had died of a heart attack in her sleep. His friend was unaware of his wife’s death until the next morning. On hearing the sad story, the designer was committed to inventing the smart beds in the hope of preventing such tragedies.

The product became an immediate success in the US and many European countries. The company reached sales of 20 billion yuan last year. Over 30%of smart beds sold in America are produced by his company.

It is universally acknowledged that ultimate commercialism is a form of pragmatism rather than idealism. The power of demand is mystically forceful and unusually tremendous.

(From Shenzhen Youth, July 2017. Translation: Li Xiang)