Amazon's "Project Sailor Star" Launches: Decoding the New Narrative of Chinese Brands Going Global | Frontline

Author: Ou Xue

Editor: Yuan Silai

Recently, the series of short videos "Sailor Project" jointly launched by Amazon Ads and Amazon Global Selling reached its five - year milestone and was officially upgraded to the "Sailor Star Project", which has been launched successively since September 10th.

At the premiere of the fifth season of the "Sailor Star Project", 36Kr learned on - site that this season of the program focuses on seven major themes, covering hot topics such as the exploration of new European markets, breakthroughs in niche sectors, and the construction of global brands. A total of 15 brands from various parts of the country participated, reflecting the comprehensive upgrade of Chinese overseas - going enterprises from "manufacturing" to "intelligent manufacturing" and even "creation".

For brands, differential innovation is a powerful competitive edge. Wang Xinxuan, the global e - commerce director of HOVERAir, mentioned in an interview that the product design stems from in - depth insights into user scenarios. After the product positioned as a "flying photographer" met the needs of land - sports enthusiasts, the natural extension of users' needs for water sports inspired the HOVERAir team to create a "water - sports camera". Especially in markets with strict regulations like Japan, HOVERAir adapted to local regulations by launching a super - light product weighing 99 grams, and it topped the Amazon Best Seller list on the first day of its launch, demonstrating the effectiveness of the "local - adaptation" strategy.

Wang Xinxuan emphasized that technological innovation and category definition are its core barriers. "We are not just discovering needs; we are creating them." HOVERAir positions its products as "Flying Cameras", emphasizing ease of use, portability, and automatic follow - up shooting, thus establishing a differentiated brand perception in the high - end market.

In addition, in - depth cultivation of product categories is also crucial for brands. He Zhiqiang, the founder of JisuLife, recalled that the company's brand underwent a strategic transformation from "multi - category product distribution" to "fully focusing on small fans". After the lesson of blind expansion in more than twenty categories, the team resolutely cut off other product lines and focused on solving the pain points of portable fans, such as short battery life and weak wind power. Through independent research and development of the "high - speed energy - saving fan" technology, JisuLife extended the product's battery life to two days, reversing the industry's stereotypical view of such products as "useless".

He Zhiqiang believes that in - depth innovation in product categories is far more valuable than broad expansion. "We strongly link the brand's fate with the category's fate. We use technology to reconstruct products and the market." Today, JisuLife's fans not only have the basic air - blowing function but also have derived functions such as inflating and dust removal, and reverse charging. They are still very popular in overseas markets at a high price of $70 - 80.

Meanwhile, in addition to meeting functional needs, emotional resonance is gradually becoming a powerful weapon for brands.

Li Yifan, the co - founder of Heybike, pointed out that electric bicycles are evolving from geek toys to mass - transit solutions, especially showing a trend of "replacing cars" in the European and American markets. In the Netherlands, the penetration rate of electric bicycles has exceeded 50%, and the product segmentation is becoming increasingly obvious, with corresponding products for commuting, cargo - carrying, and parent - child scenarios.

In terms of brand building, Heybike abandoned traditional hard - advertising methods and instead established in - depth connections with consumers through emotional content such as user documentaries, environmental tree - planting activities, and holiday public - welfare campaigns. "A brand should not only provide functional value but also emotional value, and even identity value in the future," Li Yifan said.

All three entrepreneurs emphasized that local operation is the most challenging and crucial part of the overseas expansion process. HOVERAir adheres to localizing all materials in the Japanese market, and even page design and marketing activities are carried out in Japan. JisuLife overcomes cultural barriers by having headquarters employees stationed overseas and living with local teams. Heybike completely localizes service, delivery, and user - insight processes according to the characteristics of the product category.

Li Yifan proposed that "Glocalization" is becoming a new paradigm for Chinese brands going global. "The advantage of China's supply chain + local operation capabilities" constitutes an overseas - expansion model that is difficult to replicate.

According to a survey by Amazon Global Selling in the first quarter of 2025, about 45% of cross - border e - commerce enterprises have used generative AI for product innovation. A survey by Amazon Ads in June also showed that 86% of small and medium - sized cross - border brands believe that AI is a key driving force for marketing success, and 82% have used or plan to use AI in advertising and marketing.

AI tools are helping enterprises save time and optimize processes, enabling them to focus more on market research and product innovation. From intelligent advertising placement to consumer insight, from multi - language generation to design assistance, AI has become an important tool for Chinese overseas - going enterprises to reduce costs, improve efficiency, and enhance competitiveness.