"When oranges grow in Huainan, they are oranges; when they grow in Huaibei, they become trifoliate oranges."

Differences in environment and soiloften cause the same thing to grow into completely different forms.This principleapplies to crop cultivation,and is equally relevantto cross-border sellers doing business both domestically and internationally.

Differences in living habitsnaturally lead to vastly different needs.

In China, most residents live in apartment buildings, and the landscaping within residential communities is basicallymanaged uniformly by property management;but in Europe, America and other countries, detached houses are very common,almost every household has a private yard, and lawn mowing and yard maintenance are daily necessities.

 

Image source:Google

However, given the high local labor costs and increasingly strict environmental regulations,havingefficient and portableelectric gardening toolsis especially important.

Withthe demand for intelligent and lightweight gardening tools among the European and American middle class continuing to surge,thishas directlydriventhis niche track to rise rapidly and usher in fast development.

According todata released by Grand View Research:

The global electric gardening equipment marketisvalued atUSD96.8 billion in 2024, and is expectedtoreachUSD 138.8 billion by 2030,with a compound annual growth rateof about6.3%during these years.

 

Image source:Grand View Research

The continuously expanding blue ocean market has left ample room for growth for gardening tools going overseas. However, although this cake is big, it is not easy to divide.

Brands likeHusqvarna, Gardena, and STIHL, these established German and Swiss giants, have been deeply involved in the industry for many years and have already firmly rooted themselves in the global market, holding most of the market share. It is indeed not easy for new foreign brands to break in.

However, there happens to be a small brand from Suzhou that has managed to carve out a path of counterattack.

From an unknown small brand, relying on intelligent gardening tools to break out of the circle, it has become a benchmark for overseas expansion with annual revenue exceeding1.4 billion yuan.

That brand isWORX.

How did a Chinese brand manage to break into and establish itself in overseas markets? What is the secret to its best-selling products?

 

Image source:Google

From OEM to Independent Brand: A Transformation "Forced" by Circumstances

According to public information,WORX is a leading brand under Suzhou Positec Technology, deeply engaged in the gardening tools sector.

Positec Technology was founded in1994. At that time, founder Mr. Gao resigned from his government job and started his entrepreneurial journey with four employees in an apartment in Suzhou.

In the early days, the company mainly did OEM for international brands such as Black & Decker and Bosch, gradually accumulating experience in the industry.​

Later, as China's manufacturing industry collectively awakened, Positec Technology gradually recognized its core for development. Relying solely on OEM would eventually lead to price wars and internal competition; only by mastering core technology and building its own independent brand could it achieve long-term breakthroughs.

Therefore, in2004, Positec officially launched its own brand WORX, embarking on the road of branding.

In terms of product positioning and differentiation,WORX's approach was very clear: precisely target the mid-to-high-end home market, avoiding the fiercely competitive professional-grade tools red ocean. ​      

To better meet user needs, the brand independently developed the world's leadingPower Share lithium battery sharing ecosystem, where one battery can be compatible with hundreds of tools, covering electric drills, smart lawn mowers, high-pressure washers, and various household and gardening products, greatly reducing users' repeated accessory purchase costs. ​

 

Image source:Google

At the same time, in terms of intelligent experience,WORX is also particularly attentive, equipping its products with practical functions such as AI navigation and mobile APP connectivity, making them more convenient for users. ​

It is precisely these innovative designs that meet user needs that have accurately addressed the pain points of mid-to-high-end households in Europe and America, laying a solid product foundation for its overseas breakthrough.

 

Image source:WORX

Dual Online and Offline Drive, Firmly Rooted in Overseas Markets

For overseas brands, strong product capability is only the foundation; a complete sales channel is the key to long-term success, andWORXunderstands this very well.

From the beginning of its overseas market layout, the brand adoptedadual onlineandoffline development strategy, expanding the market from multiple points.

In terms of online channels,the brandhasenteredAmazon,AliExpress,Wayfair, Walmart, eBay and other mainstream cross-border e-commerce platforms, relying onthird-partyplatformsfortraffic, accurately reaching the core consumer groups in Europe and America.

 

Image source: Amazon

In addition,WORX hasalsobuiltits own independentwebsite, accumulating private domain users, and with refinedSEO optimization, enabling overseas target customers to quickly search for and understand the brand, further expanding organic traffic.

 

Image source:WORX

Offline layoutis alsosolid and comprehensive. In addition toenteringHome Depot, Lowe'sand other European and American retailgiants,covering mainstream building materials and supermarket channels in Europe and America, it has alsobuilt a complete regional distribution network in Europe and North America, covering local small and medium-sized hardware stores and offline gardening stores, continuously penetrating the market and expanding sales channels.

Relying on an integrated online and offline layout, the brand'srevenuehas grown steadily.In2023,WORX'sannual revenuehas alreadyreached nearlyUSD 200 million(equivalent toaboutRMB 1.445 billion).

Itsflagship best-sellingproductLandroid smart lawn mowing robothasfrom2020 to 2025,maintainedthe top sales position for five consecutive years.

 

Image source:WORX

Mastering TikTok, Reaching a New Generation of Consumers with Content Marketing

Product strength and channel layout are the foundation for brands going overseas, but to truly break through in the European and American markets, the core is to deeply understand the local social media ecosystem.

While many traditional tool brands are still relying on hard advertising to acquire customers,WORX has already taken the lead, firmly grasping the core track of TikTok traffic marketing.

OnTikTok, WORX employs a variety of strategies, each precisely matching the content preferences and viewing habits of overseas users.

Strategy 1: Content Reuse, One-Click Coverage of Similar Overseas Markets

Many overseas brands build localized regional accounts for different target markets, which is a common industry practice.

ButWORX broke out of the conventional model of creating original content for each region, and for markets with similar cultures and consumption habits, the brand formulates a unified content strategy for distribution.

Take the French and Spanish markets as examples. Both countries are European football powerhouses with a strong football culture, and their people are highly receptive to outdoor lawn leisure activities.

Based on this commonality,when operating the @Worx.France and @Worx.Spain regional accounts, WORX uses lawn football leisure scenes as the core of its content, shooting batches of fun short videos of playing football outdoors, naturally integrating its lawn mower products, and distributing them simultaneously on both accounts.

This lightweight content reuse strategy has achieved good results. Even with a small number of followers, the accounts have repeatedly generated millions or even tens of millions of views, achieving low-cost, high-exposure communication effects.

 

 

Image source:TikTok

Strategy 2: Deep Collaboration with Vertical Influencers, Leveraging Small Influencers for Big Traffic

In addition to refined operation of its own accounts,WORX also focuses on influencer marketing.Instead of blindly pursuing influencers with huge followings, it focuses on small influencers in vertical fields such as home improvement, crafts, and repairs.

For example, the brand once collaborated with a TikTok micro-influencer @Stainless pro utility knife, who had only9,054 followers, to release a real video of using a WORX electric drill to install cabinets.

The video showed the actual effect of the electric drill during installation, especially how the rotating head simplified the cumbersome process of frequently changing drill bits, making its differentiated advantages clear at a glance.

Currently, this video has garnered4.1 million views and 90,300 likes, with the comments section full of active inquiries and interactive messages from users.

It can be seen that as long as the content is vertical and authentic enough, even small influencers can bring amazing conversion results.

 

Image source:TikTok

Conclusion

Looking back at the case ofWORX, you will notice an interesting trend:The gardening needs of European and American households are being redefined by intelligent and lightweight Chinese products.

In the past, people thought electric tools were dominated by German and Japanese brands, but now Chinese brands, with lithium battery technology, intelligent navigation, and more flexible marketing strategies, have managed to carve out a space.

After all, the overseas market has never been monolithic. Those tracks that seem to be firmly held by established giants can be broken into by finding the gaps in user needs, leveraging product strength, and matching with the right channels and social media strategies—Chinese companies have every opportunity to break through.

What WORX has achieved can also be achieved by brands in other niche categories. The key is whether you dare to take that first step.