Costly celebrity campaigns fail to boost OSIM’s plunging sales

Weak environment in its core market China is alarming.

The household appliance company has been aggressive in promoting its flagship massage chair, uMagic, with celebrity couple Fann Wong and Christopher Lee being revealed as brand ambassadors. However, macro headwinds remain in Osim’s rear-view mirror, both locally and in China.

According to analysts from OCBC, even the SG50 Jubilee celebrations which were expected to boost Osim’s sales may not have helped much. They added that they are seeing an increased risk of a technical recession in 3Q15 for Singapore following a disappointing NODX performance.

“Mirroring the concerns on the local economy is the slightly weaker consumer confidence level in September according to the ANZ-Roy Morgan Singapore Consumer Confidence Index,” OCBC said.

Meanwhile, Osim does not lack in effort and craftiness, as it stepped up its promotion of its smaller product uHip, while it took advantage of the haze by promoting its air purifier uAlpine.

“Such A&P initiatives may likely improve sales traction, particularly for their flagship chair in 4Q,” OCBC said.