As the first company in China to professionally develop outdoor obstacle races, when Skullcandy Sports first launched the "Mud Run" event in the Chinese market, it set its mission as "developing premium event IPs in niche markets and allowing Chinese sports enthusiasts to experience top-tier competitive events." In 2016, Skullcandy Sports delivered a surprising result to the industry and sports fans, achieving a breakthrough from 0 to 1 in the Chinese market. In just one year, its first product, the "Mud Run," was launched in three cities, with eight events attracting over ten thousand sports enthusiasts, and establishing its own running groups and participants' community. At the same time,“training camps”and“challenge races”as derivative products of the "Mud Run" were also launched, enriching the product matrix while increasing user engagement.
Han Ze, executive director of ZuoYu Capital, believes that the current sports industry still lacks high-quality supply and products. The Mud Run perfectly combines the professionalism and entertainment of the event, forming a stable and loyal user base, making it a rare premium event IP in the market. As a leading IP incubation and marketing company in the industry, Skullcandy Sports has a deep understanding of IPs and sports events, and excels in event operations and promotion. He believes that in the near future, Skullcandy will bring more diverse, high-quality, and engaging events and products to the sports industry, and will drive consumption of destination products through its premium event IPs.
Sheng Xitai, founder of Hongtai Fund, believes that there is an opportunity to build a platform in any field, and the Mud Run is actually a product within such a platform. Therefore, Skullcandy’s transformation today is very meaningful, as it can aggregate many products, expanding from a vertical point to a broader surface, thereby increasing the brand’s own value.
Meticulously crafting premium products Strongly launching proprietary eventsIP
In 2017, the flagship product "Mud Run" will continue to design more fun, innovative, and targeted event content based on the quality foundation of 2016, and will be held in seven cities. At the same time, paired with“training camps,”it will launch“certified coach training camps”to influence more niche audiences.
In addition, Skullcandy Sports will premiere its independently developed event IP, D.O.W “Warrior Medal,” which was grandly introduced by CEO Zhou Quan at the press conference. This real-life shooting competition league, derived from WARGAME, offers players an immersive war simulation gaming experience by simulating hundreds of battle scenarios and setting up dramatic characters and suspenseful plots. It will be launched in five cities including Beijing and Nanjing, becoming China’s first large-scale offline shooting event. The slogan of D.O.W “Warrior Medal,” "NO COMPROMISE, NO RETREAT," directly and boldly reflects the core spirit of this event IP. "Every event IP takes a long time to refine. We have always insisted on not compromising on product quality and style — this is the team culture of Skullcandy Sports. At the same time, we are committed not only to developing fun and enjoyable products, but also to delivering a core spirit and resonating with players’ values in the process,",said Zhou Quan, CEO of Skullcandy Sports, when launching the new product.
Wang Xudong, partner of ChinaEquity Group, also noted that Chinese society is currently undergoing continuous consumption upgrading, and the future trend will shift from hard products to soft experiences. The products currently developed by Skullcandy Sports are precisely focused on user experience, aligning with this trend. We can confidently expect the success of these two products in terms of user experience in the future.
Innovative operational models Building a multi-dimensional product matrix
Skylon Sports has not stopped at creating top-tier sports event IPs in niche areas. It also leverages its comprehensive channels and supply chain to seek partners who share its values, explores innovative operational models, and builds a more multi-dimensional and diverse product matrix. At this launch event, Skylon Sports announced strategic cooperation agreements with nine institutions.In addition to the Wild Snow Run,it will continue to collaborate with Shanhai Yuedong to co-produce 100-kilometer level events such as the Chongli 100 and Helan Mountain 100; partner with U.T.A (Global Tactical Alliance) to build a club system, introduce tactical rescue services, and co-produce the IDPA (International Defensive Pistol Association) series of shooting events; work with Paonar to enhance the event experience; and cooperate with Röder HTS Höcker to standardize event obstacles.
Regarding this strategic cooperation, Mr. You Lei, founder of U.T.A, stated: “2017 is a highly significant year for both Skylon Sports and U.T.A. We hope this ‘hand-in-hand’ effort will not only create a series of distinctive projects with unique highlights for China’s ‘new sports’ cultural industry, but also uncover and develop more high-quality projects in the future, enriching industry content while elevating overall industry standards.”
In fact, in 2016, Skylon Sports had already achieved commendable results. In late November, the “Wild Snow Run,” jointly produced by Skylon Sports and Shanhai Yuedong, kicked off at the Wanlong Ski Resort in Chongli, attracting over 200 sports enthusiasts. The New Year’s first edition of the “Wild Snow Run” was also successfully held on January 1, 2017. Meanwhile, Skylon Sports ventured into the entertainment industry for cross-industry marketing by participating in the investment of the movie *Hacksaw Ridge*, directed by Mel Gibson and released in December 2016.
Delivering the power of public welfare Practicing corporate social responsibility
Although still very young, Skylon Sports has been seeking the best ways to engage in public welfare cooperation, hoping to contribute modestly to charitable causes through its own platform and channels, and involving stakeholders as co-participants in corporate social responsibility. At the launch, Skylon Sports announced the initiation of the “FOR MUD FOR LOVE” rural children development support program in collaboration with Future Leaders for Children (FLFC) Volunteer Action, an initiative for foreign enterprises, and the Warmth Project Public Welfare Fund of the China Social Welfare Foundation.This public welfare project has received full support from the China Children and Teenagers’ Fund and the China Social Welfare Foundation, and will officially launch in March 2017, running throughout all seven “Mud Run” events organized by Skylon Sports.
The “FOR MUD FOR LOVE” campaign calls on all participants of the “Mud Run” to donate unused sports clothing, accessories, and other athletic gear.Skylon Sports will also match a certain percentage of each participant’s registration fee as a charitable donation, with all funds going through the Warmth Project Public Welfare Fund to support rural children's sports development initiatives. Additionally, Skylon Sports will specifically establish a children’s sports camp program and invite sports celebrities, KOLs, and supporting media to take part in the public welfare activities.
Upholding the “I Dare” spirit Building a virtuous ecosystem
Skylon Sports’ 2017 strategic layout extends its reach through self-developed event IPs such as “Warrior Medal” and various jointly produced projects, while the meticulous refinement of each product and added value continuously deepen its core essence. Skylon Sports is not simply doing addition. As expressed by its founder, Mr. Huang Sichen, at the launch, Skylon Sports is achieving a breakthrough from 0 to 1, deepening value from 1 to 1+, and creating infinite possibilities through 1+1=X. This precisely embodies the values and spiritual core carried by Skylon Sports’ 2017 brand slogan, “I Dare.”
Mr. Huang Sichen, founder of Skylon Sports, stated at the launch: “We’ve always said that what Skylon Sports does is something both cool and tough. We hope our team can truly move forward step-by-step like dung beetles—resilient and composed, yet also brave enough to ride the waves. In the new year, through vertical and horizontal exploration of premium event IPs in niche areas and attempts at cross-industry collaborations, Skylon Sports hopes to make efforts and contributions toward building a virtuous industry ecosystem. The ultimate goal is not to create a closed loop, but to achieve unlimited outreach, providing Chinese users with events of higher quality, more refined taste, and greater international perspective.”