Social variety
The piano, a once popular aristocratic toy, is now experiencing an unprecedented market storm. A piano worth 10,000 yuan has now fallen to a staggering 1,000 yuan in the second-hand market, highlighting the decline and turning point of this industry.
Six years after the abolition of the art examination bonus policy, the piano, an instrument that once symbolized the family's financial resources and tastes, is no longer the focus of middle-class parents and the market. At the same time, piano brands were also deeply affected by the market, and the sales of Hailun pianos fell by a third in four years, and a wave of closures of piano stores nationwide was inevitable.
In 2022, there will be more than 25,000 music stores in the country, and nearly 30% of them have declared closure a year later. The once bustling street is now full of people, and a large number of piano shops and training institutions have to face helpless closures.
In this once prosperous field, the size of China's piano market has grown from 1947 in 2018900 million shrank to 88 today9.6 billion. The piano industry is experiencing an unprecedented market downturn, but the main culprit is the piano itself.
The piano's "forced ceiling" once made it the "king of musical instruments" among musical instruments, and this status was quickly sublimated in the utilitarian needs of parents. In 2008, China's policy was promulgated that students who have obtained a piano examination certificate of grade 9 or above can get an additional 10 points in the high school entrance examination. This opportunity to "overtake in the corner" makes learning piano the primary reason for parents to choose, not only to reduce the pressure of their children's further education, but also to choose piano to become artistic students and solve the problem of college entrance examination.
However, with the abolition of the bonus point policy for art examinations, learning piano gradually lost its utilitarian advantages. The needs of parents have shifted from practicality to interest, and the piano has become a big toy that symbolizes aristocratic taste and is experiencing a market crisis. China's piano boom is partly the result of the involution of parents, institutions and brands, and this bubble burst in an instant after the policy adjustment.
Traditional piano manufacturers and institutions have begun to maintain their market position through star-making strategies after losing their policy advantages, such as the cooperation between Hailun Piano and Lang Lang. However, such a cooperation has not been able to change the decline of the piano market, on the contrary, the overall sales of the piano market have been sharply**. The sales performance of Pearl River Piano, the leading domestic piano, will drop by 31 in 202347%, the net profit attributable to the parent company of the industry giant Hailun Piano decreased by 93% year-on-year54%。
Faced with market adversity, piano brands had to change their strategies. Under the constraints of the forced ceiling, the piano industry is transforming in the direction of "sinking". The total market value of the electronic piano industry is increasing, reaching 102.6 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 1128%。The electronic piano has become the new mainstream, replacing the traditional mechanical piano in the market.
In the process of this change, the electronic piano, which was originally looked down upon by traditional piano brands, has now become a lifesaver for established piano companies. Pearl River Piano and Hailun Piano are both launching smart pianos, online training and electronic pianos in an attempt to regain market share.
However, in order to survive in the market, the piano industry must completely let go of the forced rules and adapt to the market demand. The high-end image of the past can no longer meet the needs of modern consumers, and only through a more civilian positioning and a more people-friendly **, the piano industry can usher in new vitality.
Electronic pianos and smart pianos have become their new directions, hoping to find new growth points in the market. However, in order to truly get out of the crisis, the piano industry needs to continue to innovate, re-establish the position of the piano in the best education, and provide consumers with a more valuable experience.