Increased tech and ASEAN focus for Li-Ning
Chinese media have reported that the ASEAN Li-Ning Center was recently inaugurated in the Guangxi-ASEAN Economic and Technological Development Zone in the city of Nanning.
ASEAN refers to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, a regional grouping focused on fostering primarily economic strength among the following ten nations: Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
Guangxi, a southwestern Chinese province, shares a border with Vietnam.
The sports brand’s eponymous founder and former Olympic gymnast, Li Ning, who was born in Guangxi, was in attendance, along with “many Olympic and world champions”, local media said.
The new, “smart” centre will focus on sports science research, as well as the research, development and design of sportswear, shoes and gear. It will also form the crux of an intelligent manufacturing and logistics ecosystem, intended to help build a “sports city” in Nanning.
It is estimated that the project will be completed by 2026. Once production starts, the centre’s annual output is expected to be 25 million pieces across the sports shoes, clothing and equipment categories.
Executive director and joint chief executive of Li-Ning, Kosaka Takeshi, commented during the ceremony that the complex will aim to incubate innovation in the areas of sports science, technology and “high-tech” human resources. “Let Chinese sports brands integrate with ASEAN and let us build the ASEAN Li-Ning Center into a benchmark for the Asian sports industry,” he said.
The new centre builds upon earlier local investments by the brand, including the Guangxi Li-Ning Sports Goods Company factory in Nanning (established in 2018) and the Li-Ning Sports Park, also in the locality, which was built in 2010.
News of this latest investment by the company comes on the heels of recent announcements by Anta Sports and Invista, both of whom have made significant investments in the areas of sports fashion and materials research and development in China over the last couple of weeks.
Image: Li-Ning via Instagram.
