iPhone Accessories from China

Everyone knows how ubiquitous and essential a smartphone, especially an iPhone, has become in our daily lives. The enormous success of the iPhone has created a big market for accessories. As you know, the iPhone itself is made in China (from imported components) – and so are most of the accessories. The most popular accessories include:

1. Screen protectors – the plastic coating layer you can self-apply to protect your iPhone’s touchscreen
2. iPhone case – the must-have casing that protects it from bumps and drops
3. iPhone selfie stick – devices that help taking pictures of yourself
4. Dust plugs – an accessory that plugs into your headphone jack to keep dust particles out
5. Mirror-backed metal bumper – Metal back, colored smartphone bumpers
6. Waterproof bags – In case you drop your iPhone in the water
7. Armbands – To hold the iPhone during workouts
8. Mobile Power – power cords and batteries that help you charge on the go. Including solar chargers.
9. USB data cable – cables that connect to USB ports on computers or adapters
10. Adapter – used for charging or connecting older cables to newer phones

Accessories provided by the following major tech brands are all mostly (if not entirely) sourced in China:

1. Spotify
2. PANDORA
3. fm
4. Google play
5. DEEZER
6. Groove
7. Amazon
8. TIDAL
9. Vevo
10. YouTube

It is difficult to determine the exact annual volume of China’s exports of these popular accessories because customs does not list iPhone accessories separately, but there is plenty of available data to conclude that the volume of exports is definitely trending up.

If you are active in the accessory field, and you want to source these and manage your China supply chain, it is useful to have background knowledge: that is the purpose of this article.

The most popular iPhone accessories and the industry leaders that handle their manufacturing are mostly Chinese manufacturing and sourcing companies (as opposed to foreign manufacturers with Chinese factories like Foxcon.). For example, data suggests that the company that exports the most iPhone cases is Shenzhen Hongflying Leather Manufacture Co., Ltd. and the biggest supplier of screen protectors is Shenzhen Tiansheng Microelectronics Material Co., Ltd.

Where are they made? The majority of the manufacturing of accessories is conducted in the Pearl River Delta area. The advantages on this concentration of manufacturing are:

• Geographical location: Proximity to international ports, including Hong Kong.
• Supply chain: Close interaction between specialty suppliers
• Chinese national policy favors this location: This means excellent infrastructure.
• High quality of the labor force, and convenient public transportation

What is the cost structure of manufacturing? Materials vs. labor costs are typically 80% for manufacturing costs versus 20% for labor costs. For the USB data cables, however the material vs. labor percentage is 50/50.

Export markets vs. domestic market? Many importers are now also looking to the China domestic market. Looking at the destination breakdown for each type of popular accessory (Export: Domestic) we note:

1. Screen Protectors – 75% : 25%
2. iPhone cases – 88.89% : 11.11%
3. iPhone stand holders – 80% : 20%
4. Dust plugs – 85% : 15%
5. Mirror back metal bumpers – 91% : 9%
6. Waterproof bags – 95% : 5%
7. Sport Armbands – 71% : 29%
8. Mobile Powers – 80% : 20%
9. USB data cables – 60% : 40%
10. Adapters- 91% : 9%

These numbers indicate that Chinese iPhone accessory manufacturing is mostly export oriented but only by an average percentage ranging from 61% to 90%.

Who are the top 10 factories in China? This is a tough question since we are looking at such a broad range of products and different quality accessories require different manufacturing specialization. But based on their individual total annual sales volume (ASV) we note the following. (Source: Alibaba-affiliated companies and CPG analysis based on the quantity of workers and said annual sales volumes.)

 

1. Shenzhen Hongflying Leather Manufacture Co., Ltd. –
   1. Product(s): Smartphone leather cases, Tablet PC Leather Cases;
   2. ASV: US $100 Million+.
2. Guangzhou Singstar Electronics Technology Co., Ltd. –
   1. Product(s): Cellphone cases, screen protectors, earphones, phone batteries;
   2. ASV: US $50-100 million.
3. Shenzhen Huaqing Touch Technology Co., Ltd. –
   1. Product(s): Tempered glass screen protectors, PET screen protectors, cell phone screen protectors;
   2. ASV: US $50-100 million.
4. Shenzhen U-First Science & Technology Co., Ltd. –
   1. Product(s): iPhone cases, Samsung cases;
   2. ASV: US $100 Million+.
5. Shenzhen Full Jion Digital Technology Limited –
   1. Product(s): tempered glass screen protectors, screen protectors (Apple and Android smartphone manufacturers)
   2. ASV: US $100 Million+.
6. Shenzhen Tiansheng Microelectronics Material Co., Ltd. –
   1. Product(s): Screen protectors;
   2. ASV: US $50-100 million.
7. Shenzhen Bundle Hitech Electronics Limited –
   1. Product(s): Case covers for iPhone/iPad, earphones, charger accessories for Apple;
   2. ASV:US $100 Million+.
8. Shenzhen Slinya Electronics Co., Ltd –
   1. Product(s): Mobile phone accessories, camera accessories, cables and networking;
   2. ASV:US $100 Million+.
9. Shenzhen Berudar Technology Co., Ltd. –
   1. Product(s): Mobile phone cases, silicon gifts, plastic product bags;
   2. ASV: US $50-100 million.
10. Shenzhen Blue Whale Technology Co., Ltd –
    1. Product(s): Plastic Phone cases, blank phone cases, custom phone cases, screen protectors, tempered glass screen protectors;
    2. ASV: US 50-100 million.