MELBOURNE, Nov. 8 (Xinhua) -- What is the thing drawing most attention in a horse race carnival? Besides beauty contending headwear, it is probably the TV screens. When race time starts, people stare at the screens attentively, cheering for the horses and riders.
The week-long Melbourne Cup Carnival, a legendary Australian horse race event with a history over 150 years, took place this week. More than 400 screens were installed throughout the venue to broadcast the matches and all of them were from a Chinese consumer electronics manufacturer.
Founded in 1981, TCL is one of China's leading TV manufacturers. TCL started to explore global markets 20 years ago to seek better development, commencing in Australia in 2004. Its sponsorship with the Melbourne Cup Carnival was established within the first year of its landing in Australia.
TCL has also sponsored Melbourne Victory Football Club's Hyundai A-League season for four years. The team had the highest attendance numbers in the A-League and won four Championships.
"We have business in more than 100 countries and conduct broad sponsorship globally, mainly in the areas of sports, entertainment and events with different cultural backgrounds. The sponsored object needs to be widely recognized in local community and be consistent with the image of our company and brand," said Harry Wu, vice president of TCL Electronics.
Now TCL occupies roughly 19 percent of Australia's TV set market, the largest among all brands, according to the statistics of the third quarter of this year from its sales team. One of its products was awarded the "best buy LCD TV of the year" by Australian professional assessment magazine Sound and Image.
TCL is planning to introduce more kinds of home appliance to the Australian market such as washing machines.
The company is not alone in this approach - the Australian market sees increasing numbers of Chinese entrepreneurs seeking to strengthen engagement with local communities and events.
This year, Chinese liquor brand Luzhou Laojiao signed with the Australia Open, becoming the largest Chinese sponsorship deal in the history of the tournament.
DeRUCCI, another Chinese furniture brand, also sponsored the Australia Open in 2019 and a team that participated in the Sydney to Hobart yacht race in 2017.
"Local engagement is very important. Sponsoring local events and sports teams make our brand better-known and help us better understand the cultural background and model of thinking of local market and clients," Wu said.
