▌Don't lie flat.

When Shanghai pressed the pause button, 'But we can't stop,' said Yu Yi, the general manager of Yunfeishi Cosmetics (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Yunfeishi).

From this cosmetics production enterprise located in Fengxian District, Shanghai, which has been operating for 14 years, we can see the resilience of Chinese cosmetics enterprises, and there are also ample reasons to believe that driven by these excellent enterprises, the post epidemic era Shanghai economy will be able to achieve rapid recovery.

▲External view of Yunfei Poetry Factory 

▌Adhere to closed-loop production during the epidemic period

It is understood that since March 28th, Yunfei Poetry has been forced to switch to closed-loop production due to the epidemic. But throughout the entire epidemic period, its production was almost uninterrupted, completing a seemingly impossible task.

▲Production lines that remained operational during the pandemic

Because before the lockdown, we had already prepared some materials for production and supplies for employees to live on, and also successfully left some employees in the factory, so we can ensure that closed-loop production can be carried out for a period of time even in the event of a later lockdown, 'Yu Yi explained.

However, during this period, Yunfei's poetry also encountered many difficulties. According to Yu Yi, 'As the factory does not have employee dormitories, temporary employee resettlement sites can only be set up in the factory area, and the living environment is relatively simple. Moreover, during the closed-loop production process, employees can only stay in the factory and cannot go out, which inevitably leads to some negative emotions.

▲Temporary relocation of employees

In order to appease employees' emotions, Yunfei Shi first made certain adjustments to her commuting time, including delaying work hours and extending lunch breaks; Then, in terms of food, we will do our best to ensure the supply of fruits and other items; Another and more important point is that the corresponding benefits and benefits for employees, whether working in the factory or from home, remain unchanged.

▲Food for employees during the epidemic period

During the epidemic, due to the impact on operations, some companies may reduce employee benefits accordingly, which is often considered reasonable. However, in the view of Yunfei Shi, the epidemic has also led to a significant increase in the cost of living for many employees, many of whom have no savings or have mortgage or car loans to repay. Once their income decreases, the impact on them may be greater than that of the enterprise.

With the unremitting efforts of Yunfei Poetry, the goal of continuous production was ultimately achieved. Even so, its production capacity during the epidemic was still far below normal levels. As Yu Yi said, 'It's basically impossible to be unaffected by anything, so what we can do is to minimize losses

▌Make every effort to minimize losses

It is reported that during the epidemic period, except for production activities that were affected, all other business activities of Yunfei Poetry continued as usual, and even added some activities that were rarely done during normal times but would be beneficial for future operations, such as employee training.

Since the implementation of the new regulations, the environment faced by cosmetics production enterprises has undergone significant changes, including not only changes in business norms, but also significant changes in the overall competitive environment. Therefore, Yunfei Poetry fully utilizes the period of the epidemic to provide training for employees, including new regulations, especially for frontline employees, in order to lay a solid foundation for standardized operation in the future.

At the same time, Yunfei Poetry also provides value-added services to customers online. For example, through communication with customers, one can fully understand their needs and lay the foundation for better service after comprehensive resumption of work and production; On the other hand, we can develop some co creation products with our customers to assist in their future sales.

▲Testing rooms that operate normally during the epidemic

In addition, after being listed as the second batch of key industrial enterprises in Fengxian District, Yunfei Poetry's production capacity has been further restored. Although it is not yet possible to fully recover to normal, it is basically possible to do so without affecting customer sales, especially for the upcoming 618 promotion, 'Yu Yi said.

But he also mentioned that the biggest problem faced by enterprises at this stage is not production capacity, but the portion of output value that disappeared due to the epidemic. According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics, the total retail sales of cosmetics in March this year decreased by 6.3% year-on-year, while the data for April may be even worse.

▌Professionalism will be the core competitiveness of the future

For cosmetics production enterprises, the challenges they have faced this year are not only the pandemic, but also the implementation of new regulations and the continuous rise in raw material prices.

For example, on May 1st, according to the new regulations, all registered/registered cosmetics must submit four additional documents, including the product execution standards, product label samples, filling in the product formula of domestic ordinary cosmetics, and uploading label images of special cosmetics sales packaging. Otherwise, production or import will be suspended; Meanwhile, cosmetics registered/filed between May 1 and December 31, 2021 must complete the evaluation of their efficacy claims and upload relevant evidence.

Although the Food and Drug Administration finally allowed enterprises affected by the epidemic in Shanghai and other places to delay submitting the above-mentioned materials, those who should have come still have to come. For cosmetics production enterprises, the biggest change brought about by the new regulations is the increase in operating costs, including research and development investment costs to meet efficacy evaluation, software and hardware investment to adapt to new registration/filing regulations, etc. And this will be a great test for those small and medium-sized enterprises.

In fact, before the implementation of the new regulations, there was already a change in the cosmetics production field in China, where more and more factories no longer emphasized their omnipotence, but began to exert efforts in a specific segmented field. Therefore, in the future, factories that focus on a certain field and have accumulated strong professional advantages will gain stronger competitiveness, 'Yu Yi said.

Throughout, Yunfei Poetry has also been known by the industry for its outstanding professional ability in packaging creativity. Since 2010, we have been developing and developing irregular bag filling, becoming a revolutionary in bag products; By 2017, we will develop bullet ampoules and seize the first wave of plastic ampoule vents; By 2020, the launch of plant-based soft capsule products had successfully improved the issue of adhesion and odor in animal derived soft capsules. Every innovative breakthrough in product packaging by Yunfei Shi had won the hearts of a large number of customers.

▲Some products of Yunfei Poetry

As a 'treasure trove' factory located in a creative professional subdivision field in Shanghai, the impact of the epidemic on Yunfei Poetry is self-evident. However, it did not lie flat or complain blindly. Instead, it carried out self rescue through a series of practical actions such as adhering to production and actively planning for resumption of work and production, striving to minimize losses, and becoming a sample of self rescue for Shanghai cosmetics factories under the epidemic.

I believe that in Shanghai, there are many enterprises that are actively fighting the epidemic like Yunfei Shi, and they will take on the heavy responsibility of economic recovery after the epidemic.