For Bulk Food Distributors, the Step Most Likely to Lose Money Is Choosing the Wrong Store
📈 In the past two years, many people doing bulk food store contracts have focused on one metric first: whether the store is big enough.
2000 square meters, 3000 square meters, good location, heavy foot traffic—securing such a store seems to mean scale.
❗️ But once they actually start operating, distributors quickly find that big stores don't necessarily make money.
- Some stores look good in sales, but after calculating fixed costs, labor, shelves, and shrinkage, profits are thin;
- Some stores are large, but the bulk food section is in a dead corner;
- Some stores have several snack discount chain stores nearby, and price competition is impossible.
📍 What kind of store is worth doing is becoming an increasingly important lesson for bulk food distributors.
Baiyuanbao has a distinctive aspect. Their bulk food business did not start from large supermarkets.
After entering the bulk food sector in 2019, Baiyuanbao initially targeted fresh food stores, fruit stores, and community stores.
Many of these stores are only a few hundred square meters, or even around 100 square meters. Since these stores had no established bulk food section, Baiyuanbao invested in display cabinets themselves.
If the space was a bit larger, they would set up more than 100 bins;
If the space was small, they would switch to vertical display racks;
If the surrounding purchasing power was weak, they focused on the 9.9 yuan and around 10-plus yuan price points;
If the old city area had more elderly customers, they added traditional pastries;
For young communities, they added jelly, spicy instant food, konjac, and other items.
📝 They gradually built up more than 3,000 fresh food stores, community stores, and fruit stores.
In total, their bulk food business covers more than 4,000 retail outlets, with about 85% of sales coming from directly operated outlets.
This small-store experience was later applied to large stores.
Before entering a store, Baiyuanbao first studies the population structure and purchasing power within 1-2 kilometers, then determines the price range and product assortment.
Supervisors also draw display plans directly based on the store's situation, specifying which shelves carry which price range and which products.
Each store gets its own tailored plan.
📍 “One store, one plan” means the core is not to replicate all stores with a single product assortment.
So on August 25, when we visit Baiyuanbao, we want to focus on a key question:
✅ How should bulk food distributors judge whether a store is worth doing?
✅ How to do a 100-square-meter small store? How to do a 500-square-meter fresh food store?
✅ What about large stores of 1,000-4,000 square meters?
✅ How exactly should the product assortment be adjusted for different trade areas, customer groups, and store sizes?
⭕️ In bulk food distribution today, securing the store is only the first step.
What truly affects profit is whether the store you secure can actually be operated successfully.
⏳ On August 25, “New Distribution” (Xin Jing Xiao) will organize an in-depth study tour of benchmark bulk food distributors, visiting Xi'an Baiyuanbao.
If you are currently doing shelf contracts, store contracts, or planning to expand your bulk food business, you are welcome to pre-register for the “Bulk Food Distributor Contract Model Discussion Community.”
📈 In the past two years, many people doing bulk food store contracts have focused on one metric first: whether the store is big enough.
2000 square meters, 3000 square meters, good location, heavy foot traffic—securing such a store seems to mean scale.
❗️ But once they actually start operating, distributors quickly find that big stores don't necessarily make money.
Some stores look good in sales, but after calculating fixed costs, labor, shelves, and shrinkage, profits are thin;
Some stores are large, but the bulk food section is in a dead corner;
Some stores have several snack discount chain stores nearby, and price competition is impossible.
📍 What kind of store is worth doing is becoming an increasingly important lesson for bulk food distributors.
Baiyuanbao has a distinctive aspect. Their bulk food business did not start from large supermarkets.
After entering the bulk food sector in 2019, Baiyuanbao initially targeted fresh food stores, fruit stores, and community stores.
Many of these stores are only a few hundred square meters, or even around 100 square meters. Since these stores had no established bulk food section, Baiyuanbao invested in display cabinets themselves.
If the space was a bit larger, they would set up more than 100 bins;
If the space was small, they would switch to vertical display racks;
If the surrounding purchasing power was weak, they focused on the 9.9 yuan and around 10-plus yuan price points;
If the old city area had more elderly customers, they added traditional pastries;
For young communities, they added jelly, spicy instant food, konjac, and other items.
📝 They gradually built up more than 3,000 fresh food stores, community stores, and fruit stores.
In total, their bulk food business covers more than 4,000 retail outlets, with about 85% of sales coming from directly operated outlets.
This small-store experience was later applied to large stores.
Before entering a store, Baiyuanbao first studies the population structure and purchasing power within 1-2 kilometers, then determines the price range and product assortment.
Supervisors also draw display plans directly based on the store's situation, specifying which shelves carry which price range and which products.
Each store gets its own tailored plan.
📍 “One store, one plan” means the core is not to replicate all stores with a single product assortment.
So on August 25, when we visit Baiyuanbao, we want to focus on a key question:
✅ How should bulk food distributors judge whether a store is worth doing?
✅ How to do a 100-square-meter small store? How to do a 500-square-meter fresh food store?
✅ What about large stores of 1,000-4,000 square meters?
✅ How exactly should the product assortment be adjusted for different trade areas, customer groups, and store sizes?
⭕️ In bulk food distribution today, securing the store is only the first step.
What truly affects profit is whether the store you secure can actually be operated successfully.
⏳ On August 25, “New Distribution” (Xin Jing Xiao) will organize an in-depth study tour of benchmark bulk food distributors, visiting Xi'an Baiyuanbao.
If you are currently doing shelf contracts, store contracts, or planning to expand your bulk food business, you are welcome to pre-register for the “Bulk Food Distributor Contract Model Discussion Community.”
