Excellence and specialization are the core of a brand; Chinese air pumps sell well overseas.

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Can a foreign trade company that focuses solely on product development and lacks expertise in expanding distribution channels truly grow and succeed?

What to do if a competitor "copys" your innovative product that you have painstakingly developed and invested heavily in?

Flextail, a brand specializing in outdoor electric equipment, has provided excellent answers to the above two questions.

Let's take a look at Flextail's main achievements so far.

In 2023, "Flextail" successfully surpassed the RMB 500 million mark in sales, and its products were sold to more than 160 countries around the world.

Its TINY PUMP series products have achieved remarkable sales results, with a cumulative sales volume of over 2 million units.

This product series ranks first in sales in the outdoor electrical equipment category, making it one of the few brands in this sector with sales exceeding one million units.

“The outdoor brands we are familiar with have basically been around for 50 years. I think a brand is formed naturally, and we are constantly moving closer to our goals and vision.”

Here's how Chen Tao, the founder of "Flextail," views the concept of a "brand."

I. Brands are formed naturally.

“Sports is a competition, and in any competition, there will be good and bad equipment, equipment tiers, and brand differentiation. Such a market is difficult to be affected by plagiarism.” For founder Li Tao, a superior product is the brand’s greatest strength in the face of plagiarism. The Flextail brand’s products are driven by technological innovation.

According to reports, over 80% of Flextail's employees are engaged in product development and supply chain operations.

In 2022, to reduce production costs, improve efficiency, and ensure product quality, Flextail also established its own factory in Huzhou. In 2023, its R&D expenditure reached 30 million RMB.

In Li Tao's view, who has many years of experience in outdoor sports, the outdoor field has long been a market lacking high-quality solutions.

If a good solution exists that meets users' essential needs, then users will be willing to pay for it.

Indeed, in the early stages of their business, as a grassroots team, they lacked awareness of channel development and did not seek other channels for promotion and publicity, apart from a few overseas crowdfunding platforms.

However, because the product was innovative enough and had never been seen before in the market, it attracted media attention from relevant industry outlets. As a result, distributors and buyers flocked to the company.

What is it about their products that makes them so appealing?

Second, "Light means fast, fast means safe."

“Lightness is extremely important in hiking or mountaineering, and it can greatly improve the experience... Now it’s about carrying as little stuff as possible so that I can walk fast enough and be safer as long as I get to my destination and pitch my tent sooner.”

Since its founding in 2015, Flextail has been committed to providing users with a more comfortable and freer outdoor experience, with the vision of "making people live more freely in outdoor activities".

【Ultimate lightweight design】is the core pursuit of their product development.

The development process of "Flextail's" first outdoor air pump was full of twists and turns, and the mold alone took nearly a year to refine.

As a result, after the product was launched in 2016, many users reported that the product was too large and not suitable for carrying when hiking or mountaineering outdoors.

So in 2018, they released the TINY PUMP series, with the TINY PUMP 2X being the smallest three   in-one waterproof outdoor pump, measuring only 1.8*1.7*   inches and weighing only     , as compact as AirPods Pro.

This product has multiple uses, serving as an air pump, vacuum pump, and camping light. It can meet outdoor needs such as inflating large inflatable products, vacuuming, starting fires, and lighting. Its price on the official website is $39.99.

Upon its launch, it quickly garnered widespread acclaim on overseas crowdfunding platforms, powerfully demonstrating the high level of acceptance of this type of innovative product in overseas markets. To date, sales of its TINY PUMP have exceeded 2 million units.

On November 14, 2023, they launched the world's smallest sleeping pad pump, ZERO PUMP, which ultimately garnered support from 16,462 people and raised a total of $671,488. It is currently priced at $46.99 on the official website.

According to public reports, founder Li Tao said that the current revenue of the "Flextail" brand is between 400 and 500 million yuan, with online revenue accounting for 70%, mainly through online channels such as business website and e-commerce platforms .

III. Business website international expansion

In 2022, Flextail officially launched its business website, making it a key promotional platform for the brand.

According to Similarweb data, searches for "Flextail" are on a strong upward trend, especially between June and September each year, when search volume peaks significantly.

In September 2024, the "Flextail" business website received 356,000 monthly visits.

This is mainly because the desire for outdoor activities and travel increases significantly in the summer, making "Flextail" products, which have been operating in the outdoor equipment business for many years, a natural choice for outdoor sports enthusiasts.

According to data from SimilarWeb, 70.52% of Flextail's users are male, and the age group is concentrated between 25 and 54 years old.

Its website design, product style, and content matrix all cater to the aesthetics and interests of male users.

◆ Website Design

The "Flextail" business website features a clean and simple design, with color schemes and scene illustrations that appeal to male users.

During the BFCM (Black Friday & Cyber ​​Monday) sale, "Flextail" conveyed promotional information through the first banner image on its official website: the higher the order amount, the greater the discount, with a maximum discount of 20%.

◆ Product Planning

"Flextail" has built four core product lines to fully meet the diverse needs of outdoor adventure.

Tiny Pump 2X and Zero Pump, as core products of the ultralight series, have accumulated nearly a thousand user reviews on the site. Their "compact and lightweight, fast charging" features have been widely recognized, making them essential backpack items for many adventurers.

In addition, "Flextail" continues to expand its product line, launching high-quality outdoor equipment such as insect repellents, outdoor shower products, high-performance lighting, comfortable mattresses, and portable fans.

◆ Content Matrix

It's clear that the employee in charge of the content matrix for the "Flextail" business website is a master of Google SEO.

Based on CTMON's experience with Google SEO, product buying guides or blogs related to short trips are often more favored by Google's search engine and attract more user attention.

Flextail dedicates a significant portion of its blog section to building a content platform that integrates education, practicality, and fun, promoting a positive, healthy, and responsible outdoor lifestyle.
With detailed guidelines and suggestions, "Flextail" provides easy-to-understand explanations of precautions for outdoor activities.

From basic equipment preparation and safety knowledge to emergency response strategies, professional knowledge and practical skills enable users to enjoy nature while ensuring safety and comfort.

Meanwhile, official operations staff explained the role of   "Flextail" product in the campaign using real-world scenarios. This "scenario-based marketing" approach deepened consumers' brand awareness and positive feelings, stimulating their desire to purchase.

According to Semrush, from the beginning of 2024 to September, 64.92% of the traffic to the "Flextail" business website came directly from traffic sources, demonstrating high brand awareness and a certain percentage of loyal users.

Of these, paid search accounted for 2.66%, organic social and paid social traffic together accounted for 6.58%, and organic search accounted for 14.9%.

This indicates that "Flextail" has achieved some success in brand operation and is on the right track. It's not possible to sustain brand website traffic solely through organic traffic or highly engaged brand users .

Epilogue: Little Creator Has Something to Say

In today's business environment, almost every industry is dominated by comprehensive business giants.

For "newcomers" who want to make a name for themselves and carve out their own niche in the industry, the situation is indeed quite challenging.

The path taken by the "Flextail" team seems to provide a viable example for these followers.

That is to accurately identify the vertical segment of demand in the market of your industry, and then meet those demands with superior product capabilities.

In this way, they can avoid direct competition with comprehensive business giants in the mainstream market, and instead cultivate their expertise in niche markets, creating products and brands with unique competitiveness, thereby gradually gaining a foothold in the market and carving out a development space that belongs to them.

This may be an effective way for new entrants to break through and develop in today's business landscape dominated by giants.