"Business is tough, hard to do," is the common feedback from distributors during recent market research. Indeed, the industry has changed dramatically in recent years, with new formats, models, and products emerging constantly. Online channels disrupt, offline competition intensifies, manufacturers set heavy tasks, and stores see slow sell-through. In this era, anxiety seems ubiquitous. However, during a recent visit to the Shandong market, we had the privilege of interviewing an outstanding distributor whose optimism is highly infectious.
He is the protagonist of this edition of "New Distribution 100 People" - Ma Xianqiang, founder of Rizhao Youguan Trading. This year marks Ma Xianqiang's tenth year as a distributor. He primarily deals in snack foods, representing over 50 brands including Master Kong, Lay's, Yanjin Puzi, Three Squirrels, and Liuliu Mei, with more than 1,800 SKUs, covering over 1,500 outlets, with a business scale of nearly 60 million yuan.
After in-depth communication, the author found that although Ma Xianqiang started relatively late, he has unique thoughts and insights on market operations and continuously learns new ideas and methods. It is hoped that some of his practices and experiences can provide inspiration and food for thought for fellow distributors.
Years of Deep Cultivation at the Frontline From Salesman to Distributor Rizhao Youguan Trading was established in 2014. Before that, Ma Xianqiang worked as a manufacturer's salesman for 7 years, gaining deep understanding and insight into the industry. When Master Kong biscuits were seeking an agent locally, Ma Xianqiang seized this opportunity and, leveraging his years of frontline FMCG experience, took on the regional agency, embarking on his entrepreneurial journey. At the start, it was a "workshop-style" operation: one delivery vehicle, one salesman, representing Master Kong biscuits and a few second- and third-tier small brands. At that time, there were few products, store turnover was slow, and each restock was basically only 100-200 yuan, earning just enough to make a living. But Ma Xianqiang always firmly believed that as long as he did well in the channel, the future business would not be bad.
Starting from 2014, Rizhao Youguan began to focus on channel development. Through the simplest and most direct "sweeping" store expansion, they quickly expanded their network coverage. Through deep cultivation of channels, Youguan's business gradually improved. Once they had stable store resources, Ma Xianqiang began to think about new growth paths. By horizontally expanding product categories, they increased their share of snack food shelves in stores, further seizing market share in the snack food category. However, the difficulty at that time was that the agency rights for first-tier snack brands were basically held by established local distributors, while new brands had no guarantee of sell-through at the terminal. Ma Xianqiang was not discouraged; instead, he delved deeper into market insights during business development. He noticed that most distributors focused on mainstream branded products, leaving a large gap in the market for specialty products. Realizing this, Ma Xianqiang began to focus on specialty products that align with the health trend and meet consumer demand. For example, Xianyinli instant lemon slices were an innovative product in a market dominated by preserved fruits; once introduced, they were warmly received by the market. Through this approach, Youguan Trading further expanded its share in the local snack food category. With increased bargaining power, many snack brands proactively approached them for cooperation. Youguan subsequently represented brands such as Licheese, Three Squirrels, Yanjin Puzi, Wangxiaolu, Wuqiong, and Jinye Hawthorn, gradually growing into a leading snack food trading company in Rizhao.
"Big Head" + "Small Head" One-Stop Supply for Snack Foods Initially, some of Youguan Trading's brands were not well-known to the public. However, over time and with changing consumer demands, these brands gradually emerged in the market, with some products showing strong growth momentum. This phenomenon is not accidental but stems from Ma Xianqiang's keen judgment and insight into the market and products.
First, break information asymmetry and be demand-oriented. In addition to actively participating in industry events such as the FMCG Conference and Sugar & Wine Fair, Ma Xianqiang also uses short video platforms and social platforms to observe current consumption trends, actively seeking emerging brands that have already shown promise in other markets and proactively pursuing cooperation opportunities.
Second, subdivide categories and select brands carefully. When adding products, distributors commonly face a contradiction: first-tier brands have stable sales and are store necessities, but they are usually dominated by manufacturers and have lower profits; non-first-tier brands have higher profits but often poor sell-through. How to balance this? The key lies in deep category segmentation. Ma Xianqiang divides products into "big head" and "small head." The so-called "big head" refers to big brands in big categories; "small head" is defined as big brands in subcategories, referring to the most representative brands in specific niche markets. They are not first-tier brands in the market but have significant competitive advantages in their subcategories. Youguan Trading not only represents "big head" brands but also makes "small head" a strategic focus, choosing representative and promising brands for cooperation. This ensures bargaining power in cooperation and increases sales and profits. However, product selection ultimately returns to the quality of the product itself. Through analysis of terminal feedback and customer repurchase rates, even if some products do not sell in high volumes, as long as there is demand, good turnover, and low return rates, the company will continue to operate them.
In terms of product promotion strategy, Ma Xianqiang differs from the common approach of using one model for all products. Instead, he adopts a refined approach, deeply exploring product strength, with each product having its own exclusive path. For example, for a newly launched potato chip, the business team will comprehensively consider the product's sales characteristics, specifications, and past market operation experience to accurately determine whether the product should be primarily placed in CVS or mom-and-pop stores, and whether it is suitable for shelves or end caps. In addition, they innovate promotional strategies, create consumption scenarios, and combine chips with beverages or other snacks for sale, positioning them as "camping packages" or "binge-watching partners," creating demand points and stimulating consumers' desire to purchase. By comprehensively considering the characteristics of different specifications and products, as well as the needs of the target market, they determine the appropriate sales model and display type to maximize the sell-through of each product.
Empowering Terminals: Only with Same Frequency Can We Co-Create! For distributors, customers are intangible assets; all sales and profits come from customers. Currently, Youguan Trading covers 1,500 outlets, of which 200 are supermarkets and convenience stores (CVS), and the rest are B and C class stores, accounting for 40% of the total outlets in the region. Yuan Lai, Chief Content Officer of New Distribution, once said: Brand agency is 1, store service is 0; the size of the business depends on the stores! Building a large-scale sales network is important, but how to empower terminals and enhance customer stickiness is the key to ensuring sustainable business development. Rizhao Youguan focuses on two dimensions: first, improving personnel efficiency, and second, promoting the growth of stores' own business.
First, it is reflected in the improvement of personnel efficiency, by increasing the efficiency of salesmen and increasing attention to stores. During the rapid expansion phase of Youguan Trading, the pace of adding products was fast, and it often happened that before fully understanding one product, new products were added, and salesmen's enthusiasm for promoting new products gradually waned. Ma Xianqiang told New Distribution that at this time, it is necessary to adjust the KPI and performance system of salesmen in a timely manner and introduce incentive policies. Youguan Trading adopts a compensation structure of "guaranteed salary + commission + project bonus" for salesmen. The KPI assessment directly affects the guaranteed salary. For example, if salesman A has a guaranteed salary of 5,000 yuan and a monthly sales target of 150,000 yuan, and if only 130,000 yuan is completed at the end of the month, then 200 yuan is deducted from the guaranteed salary as a penalty for not meeting the target, and then based on the shortfall, 50 yuan is deducted for every 10,000 yuan not achieved. So, salesman A's actual base salary for the month would be 4,700 yuan. The commission is adjusted according to different products; usually, the commission for second- and third-tier brands is higher than for first-tier brands, and the commission for first-time new product promotions is higher than for regular products. Project bonuses are mainly based on the number of new customers developed, increased shelf listings, increased floor displays, and additional bulk goods cabinets, with corresponding rewards. By adjusting the salary structure, ensuring that the interests of salesmen are aligned with company goals can effectively stimulate their enthusiasm, help them adapt to the pace of product expansion faster, and maintain customer relationships and empower terminal stores more responsibly.
In store management, Youguan Trading classifies the top 30% of customers by sales as key accounts, with salesmen focusing on new product promotion and operations, while for other stores, they guide store owners to order through online platforms. Based on the company's five core product categories: hanging area products, instant food, snack foods, alcoholic beverages, and bulk goods, with product illustrations, terminal store owners can see at a glance, ensuring product distribution rate while reducing communication costs. Through these strategies, Youguan Trading has significantly improved personnel efficiency and service quality to stores.
Second, by deeply empowering stores and proactively helping them do business well, they achieve symbiosis and mutual growth. In the past two years, with the rise of snack discount stores, terminal stores' market share has been seized, and sales have declined significantly. For example, some stores that originally had daily turnover of over 10,000 yuan now only have 4,000-5,000 yuan. The macro environment cannot be changed, but one can adjust one's own strategies. Facing this challenge, Ma Xianqiang proposed a joint business plan with terminal stores - using a "9.9 yuan hard discount zone" to counter the market impact. Set up a dedicated area in terminal stores, replicate the shelves of snack discount stores, display products priced at 9.9 yuan, attract consumers, and ensure customer flow. From planning to implementation, the distributor is responsible, while the store needs to provide the best display space, ensuring the zone is in the prime position visible to customers upon entering the store.
First, change the mindset of salesmen from traditional sales and distribution to discussing business and cooperation with store owners, guiding them to proactively seek change; clearly convey the advantages of their products, advanced marketing concepts, and the specific growth points these can bring to the store. After reaching initial consensus, Youguan Trading proceeds to formulate a resource exchange plan for implementation. In terms of shelf selection, given that snack discount stores have already cultivated awareness among store owners and consumers, Youguan Trading chooses to borrow from the shelves of stores like Haoxianglai and Zhaoyiming; and by arranging floor stickers, posters, and other materials to create an atmosphere, they strengthen the concept of hard discount. In terms of product selection, Youguan Trading leverages its rich product library to combine products priced at 9.9 yuan per pack, 9.9 yuan per combo pack, or 9.9 yuan per jin for bulk items. It is important to appropriately include well-known brands in the product mix to blur the price band; customers don't want cheap, they want the feeling of getting a bargain! This one-stop service greatly simplifies the cooperation process and reduces the operational pressure on stores. Through this cooperation model, Youguan Trading not only helps partner stores gradually increase and stabilize customer flow but also effectively promotes sell-through, even increasing monthly sales per store by 80,000-100,000 yuan, achieving a win-win situation for both parties.
Final Thoughts There is no incremental growth in the market anymore. How to fight this hard battle? Ma Xianqiang told us, "If it doesn't hurt, it's not transformation. Only by making the pain more painful and proactively seeking change can we survive!" How to change? Strong matching of hardware and software, comprehensive transformation from inside out! In such a fiercely competitive market environment, distributors need to conduct a systematic and comprehensive analysis of their own business: in what aspects are they lacking? Which links can be optimized and improved? Facing reality and proactively changing is the only way to remain invincible in fierce competition. At the same time, don't hesitate to step out of your comfort zone, visit and learn from excellent peers in the industry, and find business strategies that can be borrowed and replicated.