Revitalization of the LI-NING Brand Takes China's Sports Goods Industry on a Quantum Leap

BEIJING, June 30 /PRNewswire-Asia/ -- With the momentum of remarkable growth in recent years behind it, LI-NING's brand revitalization comes on the 20th anniversary of their establishment by founder, Mr. Li Ning, who will personally make the revitalization announcement and official unveiling of the new logo and new slogan at Li-Ning's Beijing headquarters on June 30th 2010. A large group will gather at the LI-NING Centre to celebrate the launch including LI-NING Company executives, investors, representatives from each of LI-NING's five gold medal-winning teams, and many other VIP guests.

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The LI-NING brand, through its two decades of rapid development, has become an accomplished leader in sports brands in China. It has been harnessing the evolution of sports culture and value system of consumers in China. With its intuitive market judgment, the LI-NING brand has long been fostering strong momentum for a review in sports culture that will take the whole sports goods industry in China on a quantum leap. Taking reference with its in-depth research into the maturity cycle of the market, industry growth drivers, competition landscape analysis and positioning and consumption trends, the LI-NING brand proactively adopted a re-invention approach. This approach kick-started a three-year preparatory phase which saw the brand's DNA reconfigured and the brand's systems reintegrated to give birth to a new personality and attitude for the LI-NING brand.

The move that attracted most of the attention is the change in the brand's iconic logo and slogan. The Group unveiled in the event the brand's new logo and new slogan, "Make The Change." The new logo displays a modern interpretation of the iconic attributes of the original logo in a modern design language that spells out a global perspective. Not only has the new logo narrated the rich visual heritage of the classic "LN" symbol, it has also abstractly outlined the "Li Ning Cross" gymnastic posture invented by Mr. Li Ning. The new logo has effectively communicated the brand's sports values using the resemblance of its shape to the Chinese character "Ren," which means people, encouraging everybody to express and actualize himself through sports. It features a cleaner cutting to convey a tough, motion- and energy-rich silhouette. The new slogan "Make The Change" is adapted from a new brand manifesto that speaks out the evolution from "dare to think" to "dare to do," encouraging everybody to embrace changes and breakthroughs. It is a calling to a new breed of consumers, the "Generation 1 Creators."

Mr. Zhang Zhiyong, CEO of the Group, said: "We believe the Generation 1 Creators have been born. This is what initiated our urge for a change. These people have global visions. They love innovations. They demand high product quality. They are giving new meanings to sports. To gain their recognition, we need to become more sensitive, more refreshed, more energetic and have stronger personalities. The LI-NING brand and all young people are eager to express and actualize themselves. We are communicating with them in a new language. People will gradually notice that the LI-NING brand is gradually evolving into a young chap with light-hearted wit, who is true to life, curious and inventive!"

This young chap has a strong urge to pursue excellences and championships. He has sports in his blood: This is the first professional sports brand ever established by a true Olympic champion athlete. Mr. Li Ning said: "I am proud to have lived such an extraordinary life. No matter whether I am on the peak or in the trough, I always tell myself: 'I am an athlete. I always need to be proactive and aggressive on sports fields.' It is this far-sightedness that earn us the opportunity to be the ultimate winner." From the early 1990s when the LI-NING brand was first established until now the brand revitalizes itself to communicate with Generation 1 Creators, Mr. Li Ning spoke with charm: "I feel like I am a Li Ning born after the 1990s."

A Li Ning born after the 1990s constitutes the main theme of the advertising campaign for this brand revitalization exercise. This Li Ning born after 1990 is not going to be a book to be judged only by its cover. Behind this facelift the Group carried out a number of revitalization moves at the institutional level, including systemic upgrading of its sports events planning, business geographical breakdown, product research and development and design. The Group also unveiled today new product collections that carry rich new features: the "Athletic Pro" collection of top-notch sports equipment for professional athletes, the multi-function "Urban Sports" collection for light urban sports, the all-orange-color "Brand Heritage" collection that illustrates the brand equity, and the "Crossover" collection that collaborates local and foreign design talents.

The original logo and the legacy "Anything is Possible" slogan of the LI-NING brand are not retiring. They will become part of the Group's brand assets and be appropriately deployed. Societal and business leaders attending the event, including Mr. Long Yongtu, Mr. Zhang Weiying, Mr. Liu Chuanzhi, Mr. Wang Shi, all agreed that revitalization of the LI-NING brand is an illustration of a strong courage and sends a strong signal for a quantum leap in the sports goods industry in China.

SOURCE Li Ning Company Limited