中國"虎媽"愛上日本紙尿褲

Japan's second-largest diaper maker is apparently struggling to meet surging demand from Tiger Moms.
日本的第二大紙尿褲製造商花王集團(Kao Corp.)顯然難以滿足中國“虎媽”高漲的需求。

Kao Corp.'s breathable Merries diapers have gained a reputation abroad for being good for a baby's development, appealing to mothers who want to maximize the head start they give their children, Kao Chairman Motoki Ozaki said in a recent interview.
花王社長尾崎元規(Motoki Ozaki)說，花王的妙而舒(Merries)透氣紙尿褲在海外獲得了有利寶寶成長的美譽，吸引了希望使孩子贏在起跑線的媽媽。

Mr. Ozaki said Japanese diapers are selling much better than expected in China, and also in Russia, fetching up to double their selling price in Japan--though only the made-in-Japan nappies are attracting premium prices, he added, not locally made ones.
尾崎元規說，日本紙尿褲在中國的銷售遠好於預期，在俄羅斯也是如此，並促使他們將該產品在日本的售價提高了一倍，但只有日本製造的紙尿褲提價了，中俄當地製造的紙尿褲沒有提價。

'It makes sense that no diaper rash means a happier baby who will develop more quickly,' Mr. Ozaki said. 'But we have been completely taken aback by the strength of demand.'
尾崎元規說，說不會引起尿布疹的紙尿褲能使寶寶更快樂，進而成長的更快，這是有道理的，但如此強勁的需求還是令我們大吃一驚。

To meet that demand, the maker of cosmetics, detergent, and sanitary products says it will spend ¥5 billion on building a new diaper factory in northern Japan, while raising capacity at its two existing plants. The new diaper factory will be the company's first in Japan for 12 years.
爲了滿足強勁的需求，這家化妝品、清潔劑和衛生產品製造商說，該公司將斥資50億日元在日本北部興建一座新的紙尿褲工廠，同時提高現有兩家工廠的產能。這將該公司12年來首次在日本建新廠。

Sales of Merries diapers made in Japan jumped by more than 10% in the year ended in December, despite a stagnant market where bigger rival Unicharm -0.20% has seen no growth. Those sales could expand even more this year, Mr. Ozaki said.
截至去年12月份的一年，妙而舒紙尿褲在日本的銷量大幅增長了逾10%，儘管市況不景氣。同期規模更大的對手尤妮佳(Unicharm Corp.)的銷量並未增長。尾崎元規說，今年在日本的銷量增幅可能會擴大。

Kao has a 30% market share in Japan compared with Unicharm's 34%, but it is a newcomer on the global stage. Half the international market is taken by P&GPG +0.01% and Kimberly-ClarkKMB +0.86%, while Unicharm comes in at No. 3 with 10%, according to Unicharm figures.
花王在日本紙尿褲市場的佔有率爲30%，尤妮佳爲34%，但花王在國際市場還是新來者。據尤妮佳的數據，國際紙尿褲市場有一半的市場份額由寶潔公司(Procter & Gamble Co.)和金佰利(Kimberly-Clark co.)佔據，尤妮佳則位居第三，市場份額爲10%。

But Kao is not counting on Tiger Mom demand to project its international presence over the long term. Lasting growth will come from lower cost products for Asia's rising middle classes, Mr. Ozaki said, speaking on the sidelines of a consumer goods forum in Tokyo.
但花王並不依靠中國“虎媽”的需求來建立長期的國際地位。尾崎元規在東京一個消費品論壇上說，持續的增長將來自針對亞洲不斷壯大的中產階級的低價產品。

In an effort to catch up to Unicharm, Kao built a factory in China last year to make diapers that sell at roughly half the price of Japan-made ones. It is also building another ¥10 billion diaper factory in Indonesia to begin operation at the end of this year.
爲了趕上尤妮佳，花王去年在中國建立了一家工廠，製造售價比日本產紙尿褲便宜大概一半的產品。花王同時正在印尼投資100億日圓興建另一個紙尿褲工廠，該廠將於年底啓動運營。

'The high-end users help give our diapers brand value, but we will continue to push hard in the volume zone in Southeast Asia,' with cheaper diapers, Mr. Ozaki said. 'Diapers transform lives by lifting a huge burden. So there's huge growth potential there.'
尾崎元規說，高端用戶幫助賦予花王紙尿褲的品牌價值，但公司將繼續大力推進在東南亞市場的銷售。他說，紙尿褲消除了人們的一大負擔，改變了人們的生活，所以市場潛力十分巨大。