--- title: "Betting Early! Wahaha's Unmanned Convenience Store Is Coming: Zong Qinghou Plans 100,000 Stores in 3 Years and 1 Million in 10 Years!" description: "Take Go's offline shopping experience is mind-blowing: no queues, no checkout, just grab and go. This disruptive force in offline smart retail could truly change the rules of the game. Recently, Bob's friends in Shanghai were abuzz with news that DeepBlue Technology's quixmart unmanned convenience store, Take Go, is about to start internal testing at a public store in Shanghai, and the announcement has ignited the internet." author: "New Distribution" publisher: "New Distribution" email: "zhaobo258@gmail.com" telephone: "+8615854817671" published: "2017-06-27" language: "en" canonical: "https://xinjignxiao.com/en/articles/betting-early-wahaha-s-unmanned-convenience-store-is-coming-zong-qinghou-49a07338/" markdown: "https://xinjignxiao.com/en/articles/betting-early-wahaha-s-unmanned-convenience-store-is-coming-zong-qinghou-49a07338.md" original_source: "https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/Vqmo_ABws4L01uY46a-AVQ" translation: "https://xinjignxiao.com/zh/articles/%E6%8A%A2%E5%85%88%E4%B8%8B%E6%B3%A8-%E5%A8%83%E5%93%88%E5%93%88%E7%9A%84%E6%97%A0%E4%BA%BA%E4%BE%BF%E5%88%A9%E5%BA%97%E8%A6%81%E6%9D%A5%E4%BA%86-%E5%AE%97%E5%BA%86%E5%90%8E%E8%A6%81%E5%9C%A83%E5%B9%B4%E5%BC%8010%E4%B8%87-10%E5%B9%B4%E5%BC%80%E7%99%BE%E4%B8%87%E5%AE%B6-49a07338.md" attribution: "New Distribution — https://xinjignxiao.com/en/articles/betting-early-wahaha-s-unmanned-convenience-store-is-coming-zong-qinghou-49a07338/" usage_policy: "https://xinjignxiao.com/ai-policy.txt" --- # Betting Early! Wahaha's Unmanned Convenience Store Is Coming: Zong Qinghou Plans 100,000 Stores in 3 Years and 1 Million in 10 Years! > Take Go's offline shopping experience is mind-blowing: no queues, no checkout, just grab and go. This disruptive force in offline smart retail could truly change the rules of the game. Recently, Bob's friends in Shanghai were abuzz with news that DeepBlue Technology's quixmart unmanned convenience store, Take Go, is about to start internal testing at a public store in Shanghai, and the announcement has ignited the internet. Take Go's offline shopping experience is mind-blowing: no queues, no checkout, just grab and go. Yes, it's not like buying; you just take it and leave. This barbarian of offline smart retail might actually change the rules of offline retail. Recently, Bob was flooded with messages from friends working in Shanghai, revealing that DeepBlue Technology's quixmart unmanned convenience store, Take Go, is preparing to start internal testing at a public store in Shanghai. The news released by DeepBlue Technology about Take Go has also ignited the internet. Since 2014, Yibai Technology (the predecessor of DeepBlue Technology) held a global launch event in Shanghai's Pudong, introducing the first application of media-free payment in physical stores on a large scale globally. Unlike cash, bank cards, mobile verification, online banking, and other payment media, Facepay completes payment directly through "face scanning and hand scanning," ushering in a new era of media-free payment. Facepay facial recognition payment After two years of dedicated development, DeepBlue Technology has achieved another remarkable result: a true quixmart unmanned store has arrived. Take Go unmanned smart retail store scenario display Any successful retail company is based on two points: either significantly improved cost efficiency or enhanced user experience. DeepBlue Technology has been developing an unmanned store system for offline retail over the past two years. In a year when the world's retail industry is facing an unprecedented cold winter, why is Take Go entering the market against the trend? Is it hype or a real disruption? ▌ No queues, no checkout, making traditional retail instantly look weak Take Go's offline shopping experience is mind-blowing. No queues, no checkout, just grab and go. Yes, it's not like buying; you just take it and leave. According to the quixmart official website, DeepBlue Technology's checkout-free shopping experience uses the same type of technology as self-driving cars: computer vision, sensors, and deep learning, even biometric payment. Radio frequency technology automatically monitors when items are taken off or put back on shelves and tracks them in a virtual shopping cart. When the consumer completes their shopping, they simply leave the store. Then, Alipay or WeChat will receive an automatic deduction notification. In the Take Go scenario, most quixmart unmanned stores will be located in communities, shopping malls, subway stations, and other places where office workers gather. Therefore, busy office workers and students can go directly to the store to pick items without waiting in line or at checkout, saving a lot of time. A few years ago, Bob followed RFID smart sensing technology. At that time, some future supermarkets in Germany had shopping carts with small screens showing the prices of items in the cart. At checkout, you only needed to place RFID-tagged items on a sensing platform to self-checkout. But Take Go even eliminates the checkout step. **"Take Go" means take and go. DeepBlue Technology's move will definitely confuse two types of companies: vending machine operators and delivery companies.** ▌ The essence of retail lies in cost efficiency and user experience Whether it's traditional retail or e-commerce, whether it's the overhyped O2O or Ma Yun's "new retail," the emergence and growth of all new retail formats are based on two points: **one is cost efficiency**, bringing greater price benefits to users, such as Walmart; **the other is enhanced user experience**, one-stop shopping experiences, such as Home Depot, Barnes & Noble as vertical category killers, and 7-Eleven convenience stores near communities. Of course, a successful retail format often combines both. This time, Take Go unmanned stores will significantly reduce labor costs for merchants and make payment more convenient for consumers, which is to some extent a disruption to traditional retail. ▌ Offline retail is in dire straits; why does Take Go "enter the market"? **Take Go makes many convenience store owners feel that without black technology, they'd be embarrassed to open a store.** Indeed, when DeepBlue Technology first released this information, many convenience store owners panicked because it wasn't just DeepBlue Technology; Uncle Ma Yun also publicly supported "offline Tmall," quixmart. The introduction of Alipay and Huabei is undoubtedly the best proof. From traditional retail to e-commerce, to the new retail integrating online and offline, every format change won't happen overnight. But at least, the disclosure of this news has opened many people's minds and given more retailers more opportunities and challenges. Wahaha Drops a Bomb: Plans 100,000 Take Go Unmanned Convenience Stores in 3 Years, 1 Million in 10 Years On June 25, what excited the retail world the most was not only the "AI Changing Retail" summit held by DeepBlue Technology, but also the explosive news that beverage giant Wahaha and DeepBlue Technology, a leader in AI retail, signed an agreement for 100,000 Take Go unmanned stores in 3 years and 1 million in 10 years. Signing ceremony between DeepBlue Technology and Wahaha Many people wonder what kind of company DeepBlue Technology's Take Go unmanned smart store is, that it could make Wahaha "spend money like water." In-depth reporting revealed that DeepBlue Technology is one of the earliest domestic companies dedicated to unmanned smart stores. It was founded by Chen Haibo, who returned from Australia to start a business in 2014. In 2015, it launched 24-hour unmanned stores. In early 2016, it entered the field of image recognition for product computer vision. In 2016, it launched the quiXmart smart retail system, which already applied cutting-edge AI technologies such as convolutional neural networks, deep learning, machine vision, biometric recognition, and biometric payment, basically achieving precise customer service and retail based on accurate recognition and analysis of users, products, needs, and habits. This was earlier than Amazon Go's similar unmanned store in the United States. In February 2017, together with Ant Financial, it launched the Take Go "grab and go" smart store system with "one registration, globally and lifetime valid." The company has more than 30 PhD and master's degree holders, and more than 10 returnees from prestigious domestic and international universities, accounting for almost 50% of the total employees. The project completeness, talent density, technological leadership, and internationalization are rare in China. It can be said that DeepBlue Technology's smart retail products have the potential to disrupt traditional retail. Their customized 24-hour unmanned smart stores for retail enterprises have entered the Japanese, Australian, New Zealand, and American markets. Currently, rising labor and rent costs, and diversified consumer demand are driving new business models. With the acceleration of China's urbanization and the rise of the internet, the pace of life for domestic residents is accelerating, and people's demands for daily consumption are increasing, especially in terms of flexibility, convenience, and speed. Consumers are more proactive than ever, and China's retail landscape is undergoing profound changes. For FMCG companies like Wahaha with a rich product range, in addition to existing premium supermarkets and convenience stores, Wahaha needs better ways to transform and more convenient sales channels. With DeepBlue Technology as a representative, AI is entering the retail sector. To provide consumers with a more convenient shopping experience, Wahaha is upgrading smart retail. Based on its own products, it is seizing industry resources and signing an agreement with DeepBlue Technology to deploy 100,000 Take Go unmanned stores in shopping malls, hospitals, parks, schools, stations, and enterprise factories. Building a nationwide smart retail terminal network with high channel profits fully demonstrates that Wahaha values consumer needs and is optimistic about the strong coverage and influence of Take Go unmanned stores on retail terminal channels. **Industry insiders also believe that this agreement makes Wahaha a beverage king that is better at using AI technology and understanding consumers.** Zong Qinghou Secretly Meets Liu Qiangdong: Two Big Shots Joining Forces? On the evening of the 24th, a JD.com employee posted two photos showing that Zong Qinghou of Wahaha Group met with Liu Qiangdong of JD.com on Saturday. The text indicated that they discussed cooperation in channels, technology, supply chain, and more. Recently, JD New Channel has been making frequent moves. The million convenience store plan has entered the offline implementation stage. On the 20th, an offline store in Renqiu, Hebei, opened, and within a few hours of opening in the morning, half a month's inventory was sold out. On the 24th, news broke of the meeting between Zong Qinghou and Liu Qiangdong's team. Does this have extraordinary significance for New Channel? In another JD employee's WeChat Moments, the content of the meeting seemed more "down-to-earth," not only confirming the cooperation between Wahaha and JD New Channel, but also specifically mentioning that Old Master Zong was very generous in proposing to "leave more profits" for New Channel. Surprisingly, **Zong Qinghou, who has always been conservative about the virtual economy of the internet, was particularly different this time in his meeting with Liu Qiangdong's team.** Besides praising the JD New Channel model, he also promised profit support for New Channel's business. Just at the end of last year, on CCTV's "Dialogue" program, he angrily criticized Ma Yun's new retail as nonsense and messing up the real economy. Ma Yun also responded publicly that Wahaha was too conservative and would be eliminated if it was self-righteous. Does this confirm the saying, "The enemy of my enemy is my friend"? In fact, according to the "Top 500 Zhejiang Merchants" list released by Zhejiang Business Magazine, Wahaha ranked 23rd in 2016 with revenue of 52.91 billion yuan, which is 3.5 times Nongfu Spring's 15 billion yuan revenue in 2016, and also ahead of Master Kong's beverage sales of 33.7 billion yuan. **Wahaha's scale still firmly holds the top position in the domestic beverage market. Wahaha's status and influence in China's food industry remain irreplaceable.** The 71-year-old Zong Qinghou is still active on the market front line. Earlier, media exposed Zong Qinghou traveling alone and waiting for a flight. This pragmatic and hardworking spirit has brought Wahaha to its current industry position. It is also this same pragmatism and hard work that has earned the trust of the old master for Liu Qiangdong and his JD team, and he is willing to cooperate with JD, trying the innovative channel of New Channel, and thereby making beneficial adjustments to Wahaha's existing channels. From the above, it can be seen that while the outside world is repeatedly pessimistic about Wahaha, Wahaha is quietly making efforts. Zong Qinghou is not an old stick-in-the-mud, and Wahaha is not an outdated brand, but a truly capable, thoughtful, and actively practicing old enterprise! **This article is compiled and edited by New Distribution** -END- --- ## Copyright and AI use This article is sourced from New Distribution. Search, quotation, summarization, and model training are permitted, but every use must credit New Distribution and retain the canonical source URL. Contact: zhaobo258@gmail.com · +86 158 5481 7671