Big brands dominate, private labels rise, and bold flavors are popular! From Bianlifeng's post-90s consumption list, we've identified 10 interesting new consumption trends.
Recently, my social media feed was flooded with a 'post-90s consumption list'. Many of those sharing it were friends from FMCG companies, but also plenty of young people who simply love food. Logically, there should be many year-end awards and rankings, so why did this one go viral?
Upon clicking, it became clear. This list was compiled by Bianlifeng using its consumption data, and compared to most lists based on sample surveys or online voting, its reference value is far superior. This is exactly what consumers and the market need.
As a consumer who loves food and life, it's enjoyable to live in this era. We can easily search online for the best-rated restaurants and travel long distances to 'check them out'. But there's a drawback: for the dazzling array of snacks, beverages, and other offline products, there is no 'guide' to help us decide.
Physical retail lacks sufficient and detailed data, and the long-term absence of consumer reviews is understandable. But it's 2020, and it's unacceptable for the retail industry to remain so primitive. Consumers won't stand for it either. Bianlifeng launching this list is what it should do. As the first digitally-driven convenience store, this is also something Bianlifeng must do.
The FMCG industry needs this list even more than consumers. According to statistics from the National Bureau of Statistics, total retail sales of consumer goods in the first 11 months of this year grew 8% year-on-year, 1 percentage point lower than the growth rate for the whole of last year. Against this backdrop of slowing growth, the FMCG business will become increasingly difficult, and competition will intensify. This is not a prediction for the future, but a reality already unfolding.
The e-commerce industry has produced many good reports, which are undoubtedly of strong reference value. However, no matter how high the growth rate of e-commerce is, it still accounts for only 20% of total retail sales. Physical retail remains the mainstream of China's retail market. Convenience stores, which have led the growth of physical retail in recent years, will have an increasingly strong voice in the future of the consumer goods market.
I asked Bianlifeng's executive director Xue Enyuan why Bianlifeng wanted to create a post-90s list. He replied that both retailers and suppliers must look forward. The post-90s and post-00s generations have become the main force in the current consumer market, and their disposable income is expected to rise, so their opinions need to be heard. Convenience stores are the retail format with the most young people, so Bianlifeng is well-suited for this.
Convenience stores are a product of highly urbanized societies and are currently mainly distributed in first- and second-tier cities in central and eastern China. According to past patterns, consumption trends in first- and second-tier cities have a strong radiation effect on third- and fourth-tier cities. Consumption hotspots often form in first- and second-tier cities and then spread to third- and fourth-tier cities. At this point, capturing the high ground of convenience stores is even more important, as it often implies stronger growth potential in the future.
Many friends in the FMCG industry have told me that Bianlifeng's data-driven product selection strategy has brought them great challenges. If a product's competitiveness is slightly inferior, or if sales data underperforms, it faces the risk of being delisted. However, even so, they are still willing to go to Bianlifeng because Bianlifeng has many young people. Entering Bianlifeng means reaching the youth. To win the future, they must win this battle at Bianlifeng. After all, if an FMCG product can stand firm at Bianlifeng, other channels will naturally follow.
On the other hand, Bianlifeng's data also reveals many future product trends. For example, in this list, low-temperature milk accounts for more than half of the dairy products list, and a newly launched plant-based yogurt also made the list. This provides the most convincing evidence for the industry's consumption trend research and helps consumer goods companies adjust their market direction.
Even as a pure foodie, this list is worth savoring. After all, it's a list that post-90s have 'eaten' out, so we can follow it as a guide. (The full list is attached at the end.)
This list effectively conveys some new consumption trends and is very useful for understanding the new consumption industry. Below, New Consumption Insider has identified many interesting directions based on this list:
1. In convenience store channels, traditional big brands still dominate.
Most of the products on this list are from traditional big brands, proving that in the offline channels of the FMCG sector, product innovation is difficult, and users still prefer traditional big brand products.
From this data report, we found that this phenomenon is most evident in the beverage industry. The top-ranked brand is still the classic Coca-Cola Zero, followed by classic brands like Yili, Mengniu, and Nongfu Spring. The only new brand that unexpectedly made the list is Yuanqi Senlin, the biggest dark horse in the beverage industry this year.
From this, we can see that innovation in the beverage industry is very difficult. Traditional beverage brands, relying on strong advertising resources and strong channels, still firmly occupy this market, proving that in the beverage sector, it is not easy to get users to try new products and capture their minds.
2. In the beverage sector, products with major IP crossovers have the largest user base.
The top-ranked product, Nezha, was undoubtedly greatly influenced by the Nezha movie. Its timely product launch also benefited from the rise of domestic animation, boosting a wave of products.
However, traditional IPs such as One Piece, Pikachu, Kumamon, and Peppa Pig still firmly hold strong positions, proving that these classic IPs are the most attractive to fans. When choosing brand collaborations, strong IPs remain the most important traffic drivers, just as big brands dominate the beverage sector.
3. Convenience store private labels are rising, offering consumers more diverse choices.
Observing the global retail industry, we can find that a large portion of revenue in major convenience stores comes from private labels. In the past, traditional convenience stores were not very successful in managing private labels.
From Bianlifeng's list, we can see that whether it's their own food service products or yogurt and beverages, their private labels have been able to make the list and occupy a place in users' hearts.
This proves that convenience stores, after front-end user research and deep consumer insight, can successfully develop their own products based on digitalization and consumer understanding.
4. The rise of male beauty consumption: beauty is not just for women.
In the top 10 beauty products list, L'Oreal Men Expert Hydra Energetic Extreme Moisturizing Cream made the list, which surprised me.
In the past, consumers generally believed that men did not have skincare needs. However, in recent years, with the advent of the new consumption era, men are spending more and more on beauty, and they have become drivers of this beauty wave.
I mentioned in a speech long ago that as men and women become more equal, women are increasingly picky about men's looks. Besides traditional resources, being good-looking has become a basic requirement, which brings great challenges and demands for men.
So, from this trend, we have reason to believe that the male beauty market in China will continue to grow.
5. In the bakery sector, branding trends are not obvious; category concepts outweigh brands.
From the list above, we can see that apart from Toly, bread products are mostly concentrated on category concepts. In the bakery bread sector, besides the new brand Xiaobai Xinli Ruan, there is the traditional big brand Toly. So, the branding trend in the bread sector is not obvious.
This indicates that in the purchase decision process, users are more attracted to products with categories or fillings like matcha, yogurt, and purple rice. This suggests that users buy these products as meal replacements, where satiety and basic nutrition are the core value, and they don't have high requirements for the brand.
This tells us that there is a huge opportunity for branding in the bakery industry. Whoever can emerge from this field without strong brands may gain more product premium capability.
6. The brands on the liquor list prove that high cost-performance liquor remains the core product in convenience store channels.
From the list, we can see that products like Hongxing Erguotou and Niulanshan are the most popular. These products are characterized by low price and high alcohol content, proving that young users' demand for liquor is partly not for social needs but for personal needs.
Among the top 10 brands, about one-third are foreign brands, and no wine brands made the list, proving that high-alcohol liquor remains a relatively mainstream market, while low-alcohol products like rice wine still need cultivation.
Of course, this may also be related to the special channel of convenience stores or the platform's product recommendation strategy, which tends to sell products with strong brand recognition and avoids brands that require user education.
7. Users' snack tastes are actually getting bolder.
From my analysis of creative products and snacks, in fast-paced life, users increasingly seek spicy and bold flavors. This is why spicy products and duck neck products are popular.
I once wrote that light-flavored products will not become the mainstream trend because in an environment with faster pace and greater pressure, users will prioritize trying bold flavors. Only with the strong friction sensation of spicy and beef jerky products can users experience a strong sense of relief from stress.
8. From the popularity of hot cuisines, Sichuan and Hunan cuisines remain the mainstream.
We previously created a 'Sichuan and Hunan Cuisine Popularity Map' and found that these cuisines are increasingly popular in China. This is partly related to population migration and partly because they are easy to prepare and standardize.
Most of the dishes on Bianlifeng's list are Sichuan and Hunan cuisines, which indirectly validates my point.
9. Users' consumption habits are greatly influenced by the internet.
Souffle, as a popular internet-famous product, has always been a hot topic on social media. Cheese products are similar; with the promotion of Junlebao's 'Zhang Zhishi' cheese yogurt, cheese products have risen in popularity and become an internet-famous category in users' minds. These are often influenced by social media.
These influences further affect consumers' purchase decisions and directly reflect in convenience store sales data.
10. Sparkling water and yogurt are the biggest winners in this round of consumption upgrade.
Sparkling water was definitely the hottest topic in 2019. This niche category has gradually produced some major players, and the yogurt market is an absolute battleground for giants.
The rise of these two categories actually reflects users' growing demand for healthier beverage options. Whether plant-based beverages will emerge next year remains to be seen.
Conversely, convenience store channels should continue to increase attempts at innovative products. If the future SKUs are dominated by traditional big brands, it's hard to say whether users will remain loyal to these brands as consumption habits evolve.
So, based on the above observations, we conclude:
1. Consumers still prefer big brands in the food and beverage sector, with few new brands emerging. This indicates that users favor traditional big brands in offline channels, and the cost of trying new products is high.
2. Private labels are definitely a huge trend in the convenience store sector, but which categories to enter with private labels still needs exploration.
3. Bold-flavored foods remain popular, which also reflects the high pressure on young people.
4. The popularity of innovative products like Sprite Noodles proves that the new generation of young users is willing to try new things.
Finally, we hope that convenience store channels will be brave in giving opportunities to innovative brands with personalized aesthetics. If big brands always dominate the shelves, it may cut off users' opportunities to try new brands and categories. A good convenience store in the future will definitely be an important incubator for new consumption and new brands.
Attached: Bianlifeng 2019 Annual Consumption List
1. Top 10 Hot Dishes
(1) Braised Tofu with Sauce (2) Scrambled Eggs with Tomatoes (3) Spicy Malatang (4) Braised Chicken with Rice (5) Potato and Beef Stew (6) Assorted Mao Cai (7) Scallion-Braised Pork Chops (8) Sweet and Sour Fish Fillet (9) Sautéed Potato Slices with Green Peppers (10) Dry-Fried Green Beans
2. Top 10 Milk Products
(1) Yili Ambrosial Greek Yogurt (2) Mengniu Pure Zhen Red Grapefruit Flavor (3) Nongfu Spring Plant-Based Yogurt Blueberry Flavor (4) Wei Chuan Raw Milk Preferred Fermented Milk (5) Junlebao Zhang Zhishi Cheese Yogurt (6) Herun Pure Yogurt (7) Sanyuan Forbidden City Milk (8) Bright Ruyi Fermented Milk (9) Fengzhixuan Haihe Milk Cocoa Flavor (10) Guanyiru Fermented Milk Oat and Walnut
3. Top 10 Beverages
(1) Coca-Cola Zero (2) Nongfu Tea π Peach Oolong (3) Uni Assam Milk Tea (4) Yuanqi Senlin Soda Sparkling Water White Peach Flavor (5) Red Bull (6) Vita Lemon Tea (7) Wong Lo Kat Herbal Tea (8) Perrier Sparkling Water Grapefruit Flavor (9) Pepsi Cola Salted Caramel Flavor (10) Fengzhixuan Peach Water
4. Top 10 Snacks
(1) Coolulu Juice Gummies Purple Grape (2) Dongji Salted Egg Yolk Malt Sandwich Cookies (3) Liangfeng Mylikes (4) Boulomono Chocolate Chip Cookies (5) Weilong Big Gluten (6) Jinjiao Laosichuan Five-Spice Beef Jerky (7) Fengzhixuan Dried Mango (8) Zhou Hei Ya MINI Color Pack Duck Neck (9) Baozhisu Yangzhi Ganlu Mango and Grapefruit Fruit Dessert (10) Shenghetang Suctionable Grass Jelly Lychee Flavor
5. Top 10 Creative Products
(1) Bianlifeng White Liquor Coffee (2) Christmas Latte Art Coca-Cola (3) Sprite Noodles (4) Fengzhixuan Porcelain Jar Yogurt (5) Salted Egg Yolk Ice Cream (6) Fengzhixuan Aromatherapy Mosquito Repellent Clip (7) FreshDoze Bottle Cap Drink (8) Cute Pet Hand Warmer (9) Haidilao Self-Heating Mini Hot Pot (10) Luo Bawang Luosifen
6. Top 10 Desserts
(1) Souffle Pudding (2) Ice Skin Moon Cake (Chocolate) (3) Taiyaki Ice Cream (4) Salty Xiaobai (5) Rabbit Rabbit Milk Candy Roll (6) Pearl Mochi (7) Half-Baked Cheese (8) Red Velvet Cake (9) Soy Milk Box Cake (10) Coconut Milk Jelly Cake
7. Top 10 Breads
(1) Whole Wheat Chia Seed Thick Cut Toast (2) Tiger Skin Cake Roll (3) Fresh Taste Thick Buy One-Bite Cake (4) Yogurt White Bread (5) Matcha Honey Bean Toast (6) Toly Happy Purple Rice Glutinous Bread (7) Whole Wheat Toast (8) Pork Floss Flavor Cake (9) Rock-Baked Cheese Toast (10) Xiaobai Xinli Ruan Sandwich Bread Yogurt Flavor
8. Top 10 Anime/Comic Products
(1) Nongfu Spring 'Nezha' Vitamin Water (2) One Piece Co-Branded Yili Guliduo Milk (3) Huafeng Girl Limited Edition Spicy Malatang Rice (4) Yili Pikachu JoyDay Xin Qiduo Yogurt (5) Kumamon Warm Sticker (6) Peppa Pig Watch Strap Milk Candy (7) 'Chicken Dinner' Edition Wong Lo Kat Custom Drink (8) Hershey's Marvel Heroes Limited Chocolate Gift Box (9) Mizone Kuai Kan Comic Edition Drink (10) Ovaltine Oat Original Flavor
9. Top 10 Alcoholic Drinks
(1) Niulanshan 42° Aged Liquor (2) Hongxing Blue Bottle 43° Light Aroma (3) Jiangxiaobai 40° Light Flavor (4) Green Grape Jinro Soju (5) Suzhouqiao Osmanthus Rice Wine (6) Ballantine's Finest Scotch Whisky (7) Absolut Vodka Original (8) Xiao Lang Jiu 45° (9) Johnnie Walker Red Label Whisky (10) Johnnie Walker Black Label Whisky
10. Top 10 Beauty Products
(1) Nethazzia Makeup Remover Wipes (Enhanced) (2) Mentholatum Mint Lip Balm (3) JAYJUN Black Water Glow Mask (Single) (4) miacare Invisible Acne Patch (5) Mini German Chamomile Hand Cream (6) Gatsby Styling Spray (7) Beiyu Three-Dimensional Gourd Makeup Sponge (8) Evian Mineral Water Spray (50ml) (9) Marie Dalgar Natural Brow Pencil (10) L'Oreal Men Expert Hydra Energetic Extreme Moisturizing Cream
Source: New Consumption Insider (ID: cychuangye)
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