Recently, I came across Evergrande Spring's disclosed operating data: from January to August 2021, cumulative revenue surpassed the full year of 2020, achieving a year-on-year growth rate of 38%. Among them, sales of the high-end product low-sodium water increased by 84% compared to the same period, and its share of Evergrande Spring's overall product sales rose by 10 percentage points, from 20% in 2020 to 30%. On the e-commerce channel, it grew by 48% year-on-year. Seeing these impressive results, many might wonder: after being quiet for so long, how is Evergrande Spring performing so well in the market? In fact, Evergrande Spring, now under Cuilin Agriculture and Animal Husbandry Group, has shifted from its previous high-profile, rapid expansion to a steady, scientific development approach. After eight years, Evergrande Spring has gone from initial spotlight to quietly cultivating the natural mineral water field, growing steadily with professional focus. Of course, to understand Evergrande Spring's growth this year, besides its long-term strategic goals, we must look at its specific operational strategies and the trend insights behind them. Through these interpretations, we can truly understand the logic behind Evergrande Spring's growth. ****Behind the Data Growth is Cognitive Education Speaking of cognitive education, we must mention the "one bottle, one code" interactive marketing campaign launched from April to October this year. Evergrande Spring used "happiness" as the communication point: by scanning the cap code, consumers could earn points in the Evergrande Spring points mall, cash red envelopes, and even a chance to win a trip to Changbai Mountain, with a total winning rate as high as 99.9%. Additionally, Evergrande Spring revamped the packaging of its natural low-sodium water and natural mineral water bottled water, with a simple design and a "red envelope" logo to highlight the "Scan code for red envelope, win a trip to Changbai Mountain" activity, increasing exposure. Low-sodium water: left is new packaging, right is regular packaging Moreover, Evergrande Spring posted TVC content on Douyin, WeChat Channels, and Weibo that resonates with young people's lives, gaining significant attention. Evergrande Spring also collaborated with Douyin financial media to interpret the economic value behind cap scanning from an investment perspective—from scanning for red envelopes, to winning a trip to Changbai Mountain, to the health benefits of low-sodium mineral water—offering a fresh perspective that made the public realize the "return on investment" of buying Evergrande Spring. This series of operations brought awareness of the Evergrande Spring brand and its product quality to younger consumer groups. According to official Evergrande Spring news, from May to October this year alone, over 3 million people participated in scanning codes, with 49% of users scanning multiple times. In terms of sales, all Evergrande Spring categories grew 105% year-on-year during the campaign, with low-sodium water up 159% and deep mineral water up 58%. That's the online approach. Offline, from July to October this year, Evergrande Spring placed 500,000 elevator ads in high-end communities in Hefei, Jinan, Zhengzhou, Nanjing, Qingdao, and other cities, expanding brand exposure across multiple cities to reach precise audiences, touching nearly 1 billion mainstream consumers with the most direct benefits. Beyond elevator media, from May to September, Evergrande Spring held over 20 brand shows in 14 first- and second-tier cities including Nanjing, Wuhan, Beijing, and Shenzhen, engaging users through various offline interactive experiences tailored to family entertainment preferences, achieving deep brand seeding and reaching over 1.5 million people. Looking at Evergrande Spring's series of market operations, three key core elements stand out: 1. Young consumer groups 2. Family consumption scenarios 3. Urban saturation attacks Young consumer groups are relatively easy to understand. Young people represent consumption trends; capturing their preferences means capturing future mainstream consumers, and their consumption also influences surrounding groups. Family consumption scenarios are reflected in community elevator ads. Many young people today work around 996, with daily paths between community and home; the core of community channels is penetration of household water. With high-end communities as the core point, combined with regional brand shows and social media marketing, it achieves point-line-surface networked interaction, ultimately improving market distribution and share. Urban saturation attacks: To do well in the offline water beverage market, it must be street-level warfare. Using individual regional markets as footholds, through media ads and offline brand shows, to establish a strong market presence. It is understood that as of now, the number of Evergrande Spring distributors has increased by 12% compared to 2020. Against the backdrop of slowing economic growth and market stock competition, maintaining such high growth clearly shows offline channel partners' recognition and confidence in Evergrande Spring. ****Behind Cognitive Education is Demand Insight Of course, for the above strategies to be effective and valuable, the prerequisite is accurate judgment of consumer demand. Regarding the development stages of drinking water demand, we can roughly divide them into three stages: The first stage: In the late 19th century, industrial development in Europe and America caused environmental pollution, and bottled water rapidly developed as a safe water source. This was also China's safe drinking water 1.0 era. The second stage: Beginning with the emergence of GB19298-2014, which standardized the domestic bottled water market, canceling descriptions like "mineral water," "small molecule water," and "oxygen-rich water," clearing the way for the recognition of natural mineral water. From 2014 to 2018 was the start of China's drinking water 2.0 era. The third stage: As Chinese consumers become more affluent, their attention to drinking water increases, and concepts begin to upgrade. Alongside this upgrade, the diversity of Chinese subcultures means that drinking water brands must not only meet health needs but also match consumer personalities. This is the current premium natural mineral water 3.0 era. Clearly, the water beverage industry has entered the 3.0 era: better mineral water. In March 2018, Evergrande Spring launched its strategic new product, the "Low-Sodium Water Series," with sodium content as low as 1.6-9.9 mg/L, far better than the international low-sodium standard of ≤20 mg/L. It supplements trace elements and minerals while effectively controlling sodium intake and reducing kidney burden. Behind the launch of low-sodium water is a pursuit of product quality, insisting on Changbai Mountain as the sole water source. The entire production line at the source factory uses leading-edge equipment, with advanced self-flowing water collection devices and patented water extraction technology to source water directly, ensuring every sip of Evergrande Spring is the purest rare mineral water from Changbai Mountain. Natural mineral water is an inevitable trend in the packaged drinking water industry, carrying a health label and gradually being accepted by consumers. This is the current trend. As the industry advances, further segmentation around natural mineral water will also be a definite trend. Evergrande Spring, with its high-quality source at Changbai Mountain as the core foothold, and low-sodium, healthier drinking water as the landing point, meets differentiated needs, preemptively occupying the healthier, higher-end drinking water market. ****Where is the New Growth for Drinking Water? Looking at the entire drinking water market evolution, 1-yuan water, unable to meet consumer cognitive needs or profit distribution across sales levels, will gradually exit the historical stage; 2-yuan water, the current mainstream market with limited growth space, will gradually move toward mass, universal, and convenient development; while 3-yuan water and above are about to usher in new development opportunities and incremental space. Currently, 2-yuan water is a duopoly of natural mineral water and purified water, but 3-yuan water will inevitably be dominated by natural mineral water alone. Deep cultivation of the 3-yuan water market centers on segmentation, and the logic of segmentation is product differentiation. The connotation of a bottle of mineral water mainly includes water and its mineral elements. It's almost impossible to differentiate solely on water; the most appropriate way is to focus on mineral elements in the water, using the content of a specific mineral element to reflect its impact on consumer health needs. Of course, to truly make consumers aware of this concept, a long-term battle is necessary, especially in consumer education, requiring sustained, professional, and uninterrupted cultivation and communication. From this perspective, Evergrande Spring's strategic positioning in the low-sodium field is actually seeing the overall industry trend, occupying the high ground through differentiation and specialization. After eight years, from establishing brand awareness, to accumulating product quality, to now spreading and understanding consumer cognition, it can be said that this is just the beginning of Evergrande Spring's "highlight moment." This also makes us believe in a saying: "As long as the direction is right, we are not afraid of a long road"! Are you "watching" me?