Enson International:Taiwan's Umbrellas Take the World by Storm

Eight years ago on ROC National Day (10 October), the recently opened Core Pacific City Living Mall in Taipei held a special rooftop sales event. Tucked inconspicuously amidst the splendid array of sales carts with clothes and accessories was one loaded with collapsible umbrellas that opened and closed automatically at the push of a button. This was in fact umbrella maker Enson International's very first foray into selling its products directly.

With perseverance and encouragement from their clients, Enson has gone from being solely a contract manufacturer to operating retail stores and maintaining their own brand products. The middle picture shows their retailer, Rain Story (photo by Jimmy Lin); on the left is a pleated umbrella with floral patterns; on the right is a raincoat that has a netted lining that allows moisture and sweat to evaporate, and zippers on the sides.

Woefully inexperienced at the time, Enson dispatched only one company worker to the site to manage sales. A few hours after the event began, the company received an unexpected call from that same employee urgently requesting backup. It turned out that patrons were intensely curious about this novel umbrella in three folds that opened and collapsed just by pressing the button on the stem. The moderate price tag of NT$399-499 was to the customers' liking as well, and within a short while, a buying frenzy ensued-even the media showed up to do a story. Taken completely by surprise, the people back at Enson were in a dither.

"Eventually the company just decided to send 10 female employees to help out. That month the company ended up earning NT$2 million in sales," says Yvonne Mao, brand manager of the company's retail stores, Rain Story, as well as the daughter-in-law of company founder Wu. She recalls how in trying to promote their own Enson brand they had to accept the challenge of the retail market. After that first successful excursion put them on the map, the Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Department Store lost no time in offering them retail space, allowing them to leave ad-hoc sales events and move into the big leagues.

Wu is a dyed-in-the-wool R&D man who loves experimenting with different umbrella structures and materials. To date, he has applied for more than 100 patents, most notably for the automatic opening and collapse design that won him a gold medal at the Geneva International Invention Exhibition. He initially made no plans for life after retirement, but when an erstwhile steady and reliable client, the American umbrella brand totes, approached him as a potential business partner-seeking him out in person, no less-he opted instead to embark on a second career.

After he started doing OEM for totes, Wu churned out a profusion of original products that have performed well in the European and North American markets. These included the mammoth, 140-centimeter-diameter two-person automatic umbrella that was featured in a life insurance commercial; a flat, compact umbrella that can be stowed in a lady's purse; an umbrella with a five-part opening and closing mechanism that also has LED lights on top of the umbrella and at the base of the tube; a feather-light, foldable mini-umbrella weighing a mere 160 grams; and a wind-resistant dual layer umbrella whose top layer has vents that open to reduce wind pressure during storms. He established his own Enson brand to enable him to better probe market currents by releasing his products directly to consumers.

It was at approximately the same juncture that totes sought to expand its presence in Asia, and named Enson as its sole distributor in Asia, encompassing Korea, Japan, and Taiwan. Moreover, a Korean client was interested in collaborating with them on sales in big shopping centers. A partnership was formed and Enson's Korean retail sales were underway.

The "Apollo" umbrella's dome shape offers greater coverage and protection to the user.

"The Korean client noticed that Taiwanese women like to dress up, but don't think about picking a suitable umbrella to match-it's really incredible, actually. But this gave us a niche to exploit," says Yvonne Mao. Enson took the impetus provided by this client and moved gradually from contract manufacturing to brand development and eventually into direct interface with consumers with the opening of their Rain Story outlets. In the process they have discovered the tastes of the Taiwanese public, as well as helping them discover the umbrella's aesthetic side.

"In the past, there were only two considerations when purchasing an umbrella: cost and effectiveness. But nowadays Taiwanese value design as much as functionality," elaborates Mao. Traditionally the boom season for umbrella sales is before Christmas in Europe and North America; in Asia, it is the four-to-six-month-long plum rain season. Previously, umbrella manufacturers had to begin export preparations for the busy season six months in advance. With umbrellas becoming as much of a fashion accessory as a weather guard, there is now less seasonal distinction.

In terms of umbrella design, there are some essential seasonal differences. Summer umbrellas exude freshness and are lighter in color while winter umbrellas display a heavier palette. Taiwanese women have a penchant for products suggestive of a theme or image, such as the countryside, fashionable ladies, or cute animals. One loyal customer has collected 98 of these themed umbrellas!

In order to keep up with market demand and provide a greater supply of themed product choices, Rain Story obtained authorization from Disney and Japan's Sanrio to use images of Mickey and Minnie Mouse, Winnie the Pooh, and Hello Kitty.

Umbrellas with LED lights installed in the handle make rainy nights feel safer.

Enson has invited a number of illustrators from France and other European countries to illustrate umbrella canvases. Each month the company issues umbrellas with new colors and designs. There are limited-edition umbrellas specially designed for occasions like Valentine's Day and Christmas. Every year, the company studies assiduously the events and accomplishments of fashion weeks in Europe and North America so as to introduce elements of haute couture to umbrella design.

For example, in the past two years, leopard prints, satin, and purple hues have been in vogue, and Enson's umbrellas have reflected the trend in the design of the canvas and the umbrella tops. Features of perennial fashion favorites like bodices, and sparkling rhinestones, have been used to adorn the umbrella roof and even the umbrella case, as well. Even the lower-end umbrellas have not ignored couture dictates, using alternately acrylic or rubber as material and applying a glossy finish.

In Japan, the umbrella has long since risen from its lowly origins as a household item sold in a supermarket and has taken its place amongst the more glamorous fashion accessories housed in retailers bearing the names of famous designers. Rain Story has already collaborated with the posh Japanese-styled brand Che Che New York in creating designer umbrellas, and in the future they hope to strengthen ties with other designers around the world. There are even plans in the works for an event modeled on fashion week in which new umbrellas will be paraded out with much fanfare for people to ooh and ah. They envisage a future in which umbrellas will be just like clothing, capable of reflecting the different moods and whimsies of their owners.

Only 16 cm long and weighing only 200 grams, this environmentally friendly umbrella's canvas is made from 100% recyclable PET plastic. The frame is 70% recyclable material, and the handle and ferrule are made of bamboo.

In the beginning Enson had no factory of its own, outsourcing all of its production to others. Two years later, the company established its own factory at Huiyang in Guangdong Province. A second factory followed closely afterward. At present they have 900 employees that produce 60,000 dozen umbrellas per month, a total of more than 8 million units per year.

Though there are more than 10,000 factories in mainland China involved in producing umbrellas, most of them only are responsible for a single rung of the process, such as building the frame or assembling the finished product from its constituent parts. Enson's factories are the only ones that handle everything from start to finish, including structure, cutting and sewing the canvas, preparing the springs and the ferrules, and so on.

Umbrella production involves a great deal of specialized labor that must work together in a dense chain of production. Numerous processes involved are so delicate they cannot be fully automated, such as punching holes in the segments of metal that link up to form the umbrella skeleton, measuring the stitch interval, and cutting and sewing the cloth. Any errors at any point of the process may cause unevenness or result in leakage.

Umbrellas' ordinary appearance belies their intricacy. Including the buttons and the strap, there are over 300 parts that require meticulous assembly. Moreover, umbrellas sold in the US are required to be packed in boxes and also must come with a display case, all of which is very labor intensive.

Because of the massive number of peripheral parts involved, umbrella production must be situated in a collaborative stream of factories, with raw material suppliers "upstream," and parts manufacturers "downstream." Enson's location in Huiyang, Guangdong gives it access to a production chain controlled by other Taiwanese-run businesses, though the company still maintains its headquarters in Taipei County's Wugu Industrial Park.

"Patent protection has been a key issue. We're constantly having to fend off pirates," says Mao. Mechanically speaking, umbrellas are simple, but coming up with breakthroughs in design is another thing entirely. Once a new design is out there, reproducing it is not a problem for the dedicated copycat. Knowing how difficult it can be to survive in the umbrella business, Enson generally strives to avoid lawsuits against those who make illegal use of their innovations, preferring to rely on moral persuasion instead.

(right) The custom umbrella that Enson made for Rihanna had two layers, a plain inside and patterned outside, and was decorated on top with sparkling rhinestones. Fans greatly prize these umbrellas as collector's items.

Three years ago at Christmas Eve, totes revealed to the American shopping public an umbrella equipped with an LED light at its crest, enabling it to double as a flashlight to help people look at their watches or find a keyhole at night. This innovative product sold furiously off the bat, reaching 1 million units the first year, and leveling off in subsequent years to a still impressive 400-500,000 units per year. It was one of Wu's most satisfying creations, though its success came rather suddenly.

Four years ago at the Chinese New Year holiday, totes' American headquarters was busy brainstorming a star product to be released in time for the American Christmas shopping season. They had reviewed a number of sample items, none of which were to their satisfaction. When they saw a handmade prototype of the LED umbrella, the decision was made instantly, and they got in touch with Wu immediately to request his presence to begin negotiation. Unfortunately for Enson employees, the request disrupted their holiday, and many of the factory managers were forced to return to Huiyang from their homes in Taiwan.

"The LED white light that we use on the tip of our umbrella is a Japanese patent, so we had to negotiate with that company before we could start production. We were so busy, the office was in a state of complete bedlam!" says Mao. That Chinese New Year was the only truly chaotic event in the company's history, and something that none of them will ever forget.

His head always wrapped up in his research, Wu had previously designed umbrellas with miniature LED lights both on top and on the periphery. His work with the Disney Company in designing umbrellas for kids had attracted attention from media giant CNN. In producing the umbrella with the light embedded into the head, Wu experimented extensively with different kinds of LED lights and batteries. He also reconfigured the power switch to a pushbutton instead of a knob and came up with a way to increase light output and conserve power by adjusting the shape of the lens. His improvements met with resounding commercial success.

With perseverance and encouragement from their clients, Enson has gone from being solely a contract manufacturer to operating retail stores and maintaining their own brand products. The middle picture shows their retailer, Rain Story (photo by Jimmy Lin); on the left is a pleated umbrella with floral patterns; on the right is a raincoat that has a netted lining that allows moisture and sweat to evaporate, and zippers on the sides.

In addition to the worldwide success Wu has achieved with both his automatically opening and closing and LED umbrellas, he has also scored more recently with consumers with his dual layer, wind resistant umbrella and his dome shaped "Apollo" umbrella that is especially effective in protecting the upper body during heavy downpours.

In addition to making improvements in both function and structure, Wu has been instrumental in designing umbrellas that fold as many as three to five times, a big improvement over the mere two folds typical in the past, making them more compact and portable.

Modifying the structure of the umbrella was another intensive effort. Umbrella frames used to be made of steel or aluminum, both of which are susceptible to corrosion. The eventual move toward titanium, sturdy in strong winds and resistant to chemical erosion and rust, or light but sturdy and pliable glass fiber, which is particularly easy to bend back into shape when strong gusts blow it inside out, came after prolonged sessions of trial and error. Only then were they able to create umbrellas that were compact and light but resilient after continual use.

At present, 70% of all umbrellas are made in mainland-owned factories, and most of them are cheaply mass produced. The advantages that the Taiwanese manufacturers bring to the table are the innovative designs and improved quality that, while costing more to produce, are capable of capturing the imagination of the world's best name-brand retailers.

Relatively new at the retail side of things, the people at Enson have no qualms admitting that 85% of their revenue still comes from the contract work they do for others. In addition to producing 50% of the merchandise for the biggest name in umbrellas around the world, totes, Enson also does work for well-established brands like Burberry, United Colors of Benetton, and Sisley.

With perseverance and encouragement from their clients, Enson has gone from being solely a contract manufacturer to operating retail stores and maintaining their own brand products. The middle picture shows their retailer, Rain Story (photo by Jimmy Lin); on the left is a pleated umbrella with floral patterns; on the right is a raincoat that has a netted lining that allows moisture and sweat to evaporate, and zippers on the sides.

As for Enson's retail stores, Rain Story, now in existence for seven years, they sell umbrellas by totes and the French company Isotoner. They also sell bathing caps and handbags that are made from the same material used to make umbrellas, and have branched out to other items like indoor slippers, gloves, and socks, as well as raincoats, rain boots, and other weather-related merchandise. Not only is everything colorful and varied, the line is comprehensive, plus there is a warranty, all of which has made it a popular destination for consumers wanting to pick up rain supplies.

There are currently 14 Rain Story stores throughout Taiwan that earn collectively from NT$4 to 6 million per month. They have a presence at several shopping centers in Japan, as well, at FrancFranc, Plaza, and Hands. They've also made some inroads into Korea, whose In the Rain franchises carry a limited quantity of the Enson brand products, a situation that, though far from ideal, at least makes their presence known and positions them to make further advances when the opportunity arises.

"Establishing the brand name is of course the main prerogative, and the ultimate goal of all companies that work in OEM," comments Mao. She hopes one day to make Enson's umbrellas both a conspicuous symbol of femininity as well as an inspiration for Taiwan's emerging brand-name industries.

Knowing how Taiwanese consumers love umbrellas with themes and characters, Enson got permission from the Japanese Sanrio company to incorporate some of their famous cartoon characters into their designs. Here we see a Hello Kitty summer umbrella.

Enson does contract manufacturing and distribution for America's biggest rain boot, umbrella, and raincoat brand, totes, a relationship that both companies find extremely beneficial.