Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/550331
60 tobaccoasia A brand from Shanghai Tobacco Group According to the agreement on the joint venture, CTBAT will own and manage CTGIC's Double Happiness brand in markets outside China. Meanwhile, they will present Double Happiness in a new international version under the tagline of "Chinese Taste, Global Sharing", which signi- fies that Double Happiness will greatly quicken its steps in developing international markets. It was reported that the existing products under the Double Happiness brand are mainly designed for overseas Chinese. CTGIC will, on the basis of the assets of the existing brand products, manage to improve its performance among target market consumer groups, and selectively extend sales into other target markets by means of the international marketing advantages, distribution networks, part- nership with retailers, etc., of BAT. In comparison, the new international version of Double Happiness is designed specifically for international consumers. Accordingly, CTGIC will, by defining the basic notion of the new international version, diversifying leaf tobacco and blending formulas, innovating and integrating images of the brand, etc., manage to keep creat- ing new specifications of cigarette products of the new international version while striving to make Double Happiness better known around the world. "On the basis of analysis, the joint marketing taskforce of CTGIC and BAT estimates that by the year 2016, Double Happiness will be avail- able in 21 countries on five continents around the world, and will have taken certain market shares in the five major target markets of Russia, Vietnam, Japan, Germany, and Canada," said Li Weiqing, director of the investment management depart- ment of CTGIC "In managing a dual brand system, CTGIC will pertinently adopt different marketing policies for different groups of consumers, in order to realize common development of both the existing mem- bers of the Double Happiness brand and the new international version of it in particular target mar- kets," Li said. Upgrading of overseas operations While developing cooperation with foreign to- bacco manufacturers in cigarette production and marketing, upgrading and technical transformation of overseas production and marketing bases is yet another leading approach for promoting exports adopted by the tobacco industry. Viniton Tobacco Co., Ltd. based in Cambo- dia is a most important overseas production and marketing base operated by CTGIC After operat- ing for more than 20 years, the existing produc- tion equipment and facilities in Viniton Tobacco no longer meet the relevant technological, techni- cal, and quality requirements. Therefore, produc- tion conditions have become a bottleneck against sustainable development and also against further Oversea sales staff of China Tobacco Guangdong Industrial Corp. is distributing cigarette for convenience stores in Hong Kong.