Click to read the original article for details Source: Qianjiang Evening News Have you ever seen the lights of an unmanned supermarket at two or three in the morning? Huang Chenbin, a 28-year-old from Lishui, Zhejiang, has been "working" in the community for half a month. The 24-hour unmanned supermarket project he is responsible for has just been launched in Cuiyuan Yiqu Community in the west of Hangzhou. Like the community activity center, the senior canteen, and the 24-hour library, this 40-square-meter supermarket has become part of residents' daily lives. Xiao Huang enjoys eating at the senior canteen. A resident uncle would greet him and chat about life stories. One evening, when he didn't have time to eat, an aunt brought him an enamel bowl with a piece of cream cake. "I like the human touch of the community," he said, smiling with his eyes narrowing into crescents. This post-90s young man has been striving in Hangzhou for five years. He has worked as an art teacher and in e-commerce. His first entrepreneurial attempt lost him hundreds of thousands of yuan. Two years ago, he joined this innovative supermarket project. Now his conviction is growing stronger: to go down to the community. There are 20 kinds of soy sauce alone on the shelves He says that in a community store, human touch is the most important The 24-hour unmanned supermarket Xiao Huang is responsible for is in Building 52 of Cuiyuan Yiqu. The small storefront looks ordinary, but it attracts a decent number of customers. There are fathers buying drinks after picking up their children from school, and elderly fathers buying cigarettes while their sons scan the QR code to pay. If there is anything "genius" about the supermarket, it is the rich variety of daily necessities. For example, for cooking seasonings, just soy sauce alone—the reporter from Hour News counted 20 different brands, types, and specifications on the shelves. "I did market research, but it wasn't this many at first. It was residents who kept making requests, and it gradually became this rich," Xiao Huang said. He cited examples like the bagged soy sauce favored by old-school Hangzhou people, old-brand MSG, and small jars of rose tofu, all of which were added as popular items based on residents' preferences. In this small store, he heard a mother's anxiety: "I can't buy cardstock for my child's handmade homework at the last minute." Another sister complained, "Why isn't there any hand-grabbed pancake?" Huang Chenbin always arranges things quickly. He believes that in a community store, the most important thing is human touch. "Thanks to the community for reducing part of the rent, many items in the store are cheaper than market prices. A can of Red Bull costs 6.5 yuan outside, but only 5.5 yuan here." To accommodate elderly people who are not familiar with mobile payments, the supermarket has hired a sister to help with shopping guidance and cash payments before 8 p.m. This small supermarket, which just opened on July 10, now has a daily customer flow of over a hundred people. During the interview, a customer came in by facial recognition, and Huang Chenbin smiled and said, "This is Lao Li, who comes to chat with me every day." This obviously makes him happy. "When they buy things they like here, I'm very happy." Late-night shoppers are mostly exhausted young people At two or three in the morning, these three items sell best "At midnight, there aren't many people," Xiao Huang said. These days, he often sees a man who walks into the store at exactly 12 a.m. every night. He usually buys something to eat, like peanuts or beer. The man says lightly that he just got off work at this hour. Several cameras are installed in the 24-hour supermarket. Through the lens, you can see that most people who enter the store late at night are young people. Most of them have been working hard all day and come home exhausted. Hungry, they buy a little food as comfort, and the next day they might be full of energy again. There's also a heartwarming story. One day, very late, around 11 p.m. to 12 a.m. An old grandfather didn't know he needed to use facial recognition to enter, and he couldn't open the door no matter what. Two young women passing by saw this and helped him open the door. After the grandfather finished shopping, they escorted him out. What the grandfather bought was a pack of salt. In the dead of night, what sells best? The Hour News reporter looked at the payment records from two or three in the morning over the past few days. They found that three items were very popular: drinks, instant noodles, and ice cream. A Sweet Elderly Couple Slowly Choosing Ice Cream Xiao Huang is still single. During his time in the community, enthusiastic aunts have already wanted to introduce girlfriends to him. He told the reporter about an elderly couple. "They came to the supermarket together, and it made people sigh and believe in love again." That day was nearly 5 p.m., and the heat was gradually fading. Two white-haired elderly people, about eighty or ninety years old, came over with canes. The grandfather's legs were a bit more agile, so he walked in front, opened the door with facial recognition, and held the door open for the grandmother. Once inside, the two were so affectionate. They walked very, very slowly. First, they went to the daily necessities shelf and bought a roll of tissue, then moved to the ice cream counter. They discussed with each other. The grandfather pointed and asked the grandmother if she wanted this or that. Seeing the grandmother finally nod, the grandfather happily grabbed two glutinous rice durian-flavored ice creams, and finally bought a pork floss bread. When they were leaving, Xiao Huang ran out to hold the door and wanted to help the grandmother, but she waved her hand, indicating that she wanted the grandfather to come and hold her hand. "It was really sweet." Once Unable to Sleep for Three Days and Nights Believing More and More People Need the Warmth of 24-Hour Stores The 24-hour unmanned supermarket is not a first. Previously, many people had tried 24-hour unmanned supermarkets, but none succeeded. Huang Chenbin thinks the technology might have been too advanced. "From a profit perspective, going down to the community is not a high-profit choice. The number of people shopping at night is not large, and the turnover is only a fraction of the daytime. But my team and I believe that 24-hour supermarkets are the trend of the future. The shelves are not cold machines, because more and more people need its warmth." Huang Chenbin said that he studied art education in college and hasn't asked his family for money since graduation. "When I first came to Hangzhou as a training class teacher, I earned only 2,000 yuan a month, which wasn't enough for rent and food. Later, I worked in e-commerce operations and could earn 20,000 yuan a month. I quit to start a business and lost a lot of money." Now doing this project is not all smooth sailing. At the beginning, Huang Chenbin didn't sleep for three days and nights and many times thought about giving up. But after having a meal and a drink with his partners, they encouraged each other and kept going. His team hopes to settle in the community and open more supermarkets, even if "we are breaking even or making a small profit, or even a small loss, it doesn't matter." PS: The 2021 (4th) China FMCG Conference, hosted by New Distribution, is about to open in Shanghai. Focusing on industry trends + practical cases + growth through connection, 3,000 FMCG practitioners will gather for the event. 10 themed forums cover new retail O2O, community group buying, short video and live e-commerce, distributor transformation, rise of new consumer brands, new alcoholic beverage interpretation, distribution B2B supply chain, omnichannel marketing, B2B2C new technology applications, etc., with operators from various segments bringing the latest case studies. Some of the confirmed heavyweight guests so far include: 1. Tao Shiquan, founder of Jiangxiaobai; 2. Yao Xuhong, general manager of Meiyijia Holdings Co., Ltd.; 3. Lu Xiuqiong, global expert partner at Bain & Company and former vice president of marketing for Coca-Cola China; 4. Chen Xiaodong, senior vice president of Nestlé Greater China; 5. Zhang Fujun, president of Lee Kum Kee Sauce Group China; 6. Bi Chaojiao, general manager of China Resources Snow Breweries (China) Marketing Center; 7. Yang Hongbin, vice president of Junlebao Dairy Group; 8. Yang Shun, COO of Lipton Greater China; 9. Zhang Yipeng, general manager of Kuaishou E-commerce SKA Brand Operations Center; 10. Li De, e-commerce general manager of Gold Hong Ye Paper Group... A grand gathering for FMCG professionals—you must be there! Are you "watching" me?