Johnson Su, director of key accounts discusses his company’s efforts in cotton spunlace wipes, feminine hygiene, medical products and its expansion into new markets
Nonwovens Industry: Winner has been making cotton spun laced nonwovens for more than 15 years…How has the introduction of nonwovens changed your business during that time?
Johnson Su: In 2005, Winner Medical achieved an important innovation in the non-woven industry, marked by the successful independent research and development of cotton spunlace nonwoven technology. The company creatively utilizes the product advantages of 100% cotton spunlace non-woven fabrics to expand its application field from medical treatment to consumer goods, creating healthier, more comfortable and more environmentally friendly high-end cotton daily necessities. Since then, the dual fields of medical care and consumer goods have been opened, and the product range covers medical and health care, personal care, home care, maternal and child care, home textiles and apparel and other categories of comprehensive and rapid development. In the medical field, relying on cotton spunlace non-woven fabrics, the company has formed a business development pattern that attaches equal importance to the OEM production of developed countries in Europe, America and Japan and the production of independent brands in domestic and foreign developing countries.
In the consumer sector, we have promoted cotton spunlace non-woven fabric to the surface layer of sanitary pads, which have been favored by many leading global hygiene products brands, which greatly increased the company’s non-woven fabric revenue growth.
NWI: Do Chinese consumers continue to favor the use of cotton soft products for medical and hygiene applications?
Su: Due to the publicity of social welfare organizations and the improvement of environmental protection awareness, medical and health care products made of natural materials have gradually gained favor among consumers. As one of the representatives of natural materials, cotton has always been favored by consumers around the world, including Chinese consumers, for its comfort, environmental protection, and sustainability. Cotton is the most natural fiber and can be used without any processing. Cotton is also an eco-friendly fiber, which can absorb a large amount of carbon dioxide during the growth and purify the air. Cotton products can be biodegraded within three months in a variety of natural environments and become organic fertilizers, so it is also a sustainable fiber. Due to the unique porous structure of cotton fibers and a moisture content of 8%, cotton has excellent breathability and comfort.
As the global plastic pollution problem intensifies, consumers will pay more and more attention to natural and environmentally friendly products. For brands and retailers, one of the most important ways to engage with consumers on safety and environmental issues is to promote the use of cotton, which will permeate all aspects of medical, hygiene, personal care, and more.
NWI: Have you seen cotton gain importance in feminine hygiene applications?
Su: The importance of cotton in feminine hygiene applications is obvious. As you’ve already noticed, there are buzzwords that revolve around feminine hygiene, such as plastic pollution, organic cotton, sustainable materials, eco-friendly, biodegradable, etc. These hot words reflect the core needs of the market and women for feminine hygiene products, and these needs can be satisfied by cotton.
According to some consumer research, a majority of women globally say they prefer feminine hygiene products made from cotton, which they believe is more comfortable and safer than chemical fibers. And most women are willing to pay more for feminine hygiene products made from cotton.
That’s why the world’s leading companies are entering the competition for feminine cotton hygiene products. Emerging brands focusing on natural organic materials are also gradually occupying the forefront of the sales list. The importance of cotton in feminine hygiene applications will become even more prominent under the marketing offensive of leading companies and emerging brands.
NWI: This year Winner has made three important medical-related acquisitions—Pingan Medical, Longterm Medical, Guilin Latex? Why were these companies considered a “good fit” for Winner Medical?
Su: The core purpose of Winner Medical’s acquisition is to give full play to the advantages of both teams and industry chains, and combine the advantages of both channels, R&D, and digital operations to jointly empower the company’s development, increase the penetration rate of the global market, and form a value-added effect of scale and synergy.
During the acquisition, we adhered to the industry-oriented approach, and paid great attention to and attached great importance to the technological innovation and R&D capabilities of the invested companies, especially the product innovation capabilities, in order to create greater value for users and the society, and achieved the leading trend to drive industrial development. At the same time, it also contributes continuously to the development of the local economy.
We hope to become a trusted and respected supplier of medical consumables in the global medical consumables market with more than 30 years of industry accumulation of Winner Medical, combined with the product advantages of the acquired company.
In 2021, Winner Medical’s sales of cotton spunlace non-woven fabrics accounted for 21.67% of the global market share.NWI: What are the core advantages of Winner Medical’s cotton spunlace nonwovens?
NWI: What are the core advantages of Winner Medical’s cotton spunlace nonwovens?
Su: In 2005, Winner Medical independently developed the technology of cotton spunlace non-woven fabric. At present, we have 21 advanced spunlace nonwoven production lines, which can produce 4,200 tons of fabrics per month. In 2021, Winner Medical’s sales of cotton spunlace non-woven fabrics accounted for 21.67% of the global market share (Data from QYRearch).
With more than 31 years of medical dressing production experience, our quality control standards are even more stringent. We select the best quality cotton in the world and use the vision fabric inspection method to strictly control the product quality from material source to production.
The core advantage of our cotton spunlaced nonwovens is that we use a post-bleaching process. Different from other non-woven fabric manufacturer, we use unbleached cotton for production, which can effectively guarantee the fabric’s tensile strength. We bleach the fabrics chlorine-free in the final step of nonwoven production, which ensures cleanliness and reduces bioburden.
With strict production standards, strong production capacity, advanced R&D capabilities and keen market insight, we have established long-term and stable business with customers in more than 110 countries.
NWI: 7. Tell me about your plans for growth both within China and outside of China? What will drive this growth?
Su: Since its establishment in 1991, Winner Medical has set a global development goal. In the medical dressing industry with strict standards, Winner Medical has been recognized internationally and has ranked among the top three exporters of medical dressings in China for many years. From the medical field to the consumer goods field, from B2B to B2C, Winner Medical has become an enterprise with the coordinated development of medical care and consumption.
Our products have now covered more than 110 countries around the world, and we will continue to promote the development pattern of product globalization in the future. We will continue to increase product innovation, deepen category penetration, expand product boundaries, and empower the market value of major customers with higher-standard products and delivery capabilities. In other markets, we also hope to enhance the brand awareness of Winner Medical and create greater value.