Invited by The Ningbo Municipal Home Industry Association, iko iN, founder of iN Design Lab recently traveled to Ningbo, China, to attend the “Safe Overseas Brand Expansion: Practical Execution in Southeast Asia” sharing session held at the YARDCOM Outdoor Living Art Museum.
The venue was filled to capacity, bringing together brand representatives, general managers, and heads of overseas business development. Seated amidst artfully arranged outdoor furniture and a natural, tranquil atmosphere, attendees engaged in deep discussions on how Chinese home and lifestyle brands can leverage Malaysia as a strategic hub to precisely navigate and capture the vast Southeast Asian market.
Stepping into the YARDCOM Outdoor Living Art Museum, guests were immersed in a quiet, contemplative atmosphere infused with Eastern humanistic aesthetic. The gallery architecture pairs rough-cut natural stone walls with refined timber screens and soft, warm lighting, seamlessly merging raw natural beauty with meticulous craftsmanship. “Taking half to complete the whole.” The Eastern philosophy embedded within the YARDCOM brand was vividly expressed through every detail of the spatial layout and ambient light play.
Before the presentation commenced, guests embarked on a curated showroom tour. Attendees interacted directly with tactile material samples, tested the ergonomic comfort of outdoor seating, and immersed themselves in the relaxed elegance of the “semi-outdoor” lifestyle framed by the poetic rhythm of light and shadow filtering through timber grilles.
Opening the session, Ma Qingjiang, founder of YARDCOM, shared the brand’s philosophy on high-end outdoor living and its long-term vision for global expansion.
Delivering the keynote presentation—”Embracing the Southeast Asian Blue Ocean: Launching from Malaysia” iko iN drew upon years of deep insight into the regional interior design market and media ecosystem to present a comprehensive, end-to-end practical execution path for Chinese brands entering Southeast Asia. This roadmap encompasses professional editorial product photography and physical showcase integration at the iN Design Lab experience space, alongside direct connections with local interior architects, property developers, regional distributors, and turnkey commercial projects. It further provides one-stop operational support covering event curation, business matching, corporate entity registration, and brand agency importation, while leveraging strategic synergies with BizCore X iN Design Hub—a 40,000-square-meter one-stop home design and commercial hub in Malaysia—to build an efficient and resilient distribution ecosystem across Southeast Asia.
During the interactive dialogue that followed, iko iN joined Ma Qingjiang, representatives from the Ningbo Home Products Industry Association, and brand leaders for a roundtable discussion. The panellists explored crucial operational topics, including localized design language translation, practical overseas execution, and distribution channel alignment.
Moving forward, iN Design Lab will continue to serve as a vital bridge for cross-border design dialogue and industrial integration—partnering with outstanding brands and design forces to drive the tangible localization, growth, and shared prosperity of the home and living ecosystem across Malaysia and Southeast Asia.
