Introduction: In March, Uni-President Group released its 2018 annual report, showing full-year revenue of RMB 21.772 billion, with instant noodles and beverage businesses growing 5.7% and 3.6% respectively. The report explained that this was mainly due to price adjustments on some products such as instant noodles and beverages, as well as optimization of product mix. For example, in January 2018, the company raised prices by RMB 1-2 per unit for bagged and cup instant noodles, and by RMB 1-3 per unit for tea and juice products in the beverage segment. Uni-President delivered a satisfactory performance. Recently, Chairman Lo Chih-hsien further elaborated on the company's future planning in product, market, retail, and organization at the joint institutional investor briefing. Uni-President will focus more on its own growth independence and long-term interest-oriented tendencies. In March, Uni-President disclosed its 2018 annual report, showing full-year revenue of RMB 21.772 billion, and profit attributable to equity holders of RMB 1.030 billion, up 4.6% and 17.2% year-on-year respectively. Among them, the two major business segments, instant noodles and beverages, grew 5.7% and 3.6% year-on-year respectively. The company explained that this was mainly due to price adjustments on some products such as instant noodles and beverages, as well as optimization of product mix. In January 2018, the company raised prices by RMB 1-2 per unit for bagged and cup instant noodles, and by RMB 1-3 per unit for tea and juice products in the beverage segment. Benefiting from this, in 2018, the company's instant noodle business revenue grew 5.7%, and beverage business grew 3.6%, achieving revenue of RMB 8.425 billion and RMB 12.619 billion respectively, accounting for 38.7% and 58% of the company's revenue. The company's gross margin also increased from 31.6% in 2017 to 33.5%. Recently, at the joint institutional investor briefing, Uni-President Chairman Lo Chih-hsien revealed the company's future thinking and planning on products, markets, retail, and personnel. After 25 years of experience in the huge mainland market, Uni-President has shown a tendency to focus more on its own growth independence and long-term interests. About Products— "If we want to see a tree in the future, we'd better plant it now." In 2018, Uni-President launched many new products, attracting widespread attention from investors, who speculated on how much growth the company would achieve this year. But Lo Chih-hsien believes that these products are not yet ready to become blockbusters immediately, but they may "explode" at any point in the next 10 years. For now, the company just needs to make products to the extreme, and the market will naturally come to its side. Therefore, Uni-President's new products are not included in KPI assessment, do not pursue speed, and do not want to pile up false performance with new products. It can be seen that over the past two years, Uni-President has been persistently adjusting sales channels and increasing R&D to have more towering trees in the future. The current "Tang Daren" (Soup Master) with sales exceeding RMB 2 billion is a typical case of successful layout under this thinking. According to data, Tang Daren was born at the end of 2008, climbed to RMB 100 million in 2013, reached RMB 500 million in 2015, surged to RMB 1.5 billion in 2017, and grew another 30% to about RMB 2 billion in 2018. In addition, Uni-President expressed restraint in launching new products, avoiding blindly catering to the diverse and hard-to-please market demands. About Market— "Price war is the industry's nightmare; Uni-President chooses not to follow." When it comes to Uni-President's market issues, the old rival "Master Kong" cannot be avoided, and the competition between the two has always been a topic of high concern for investors. At the meeting, an investor asked whether Uni-President would follow competitors' price cuts. Lo Chih-hsien clearly stated that it would not: "We will pay attention to what industry competitors are doing, but that does not mean we will change our existing steps and rhythm." However, since instant noodles and beverages overlap with Master Kong by more than 70%, investors pressed further, asking whether Uni-President would still have the determination to go its own way if competitors increased price promotions. Lo Chih-hsien replied, "Uni-President's biggest problem in the past was that it never did itself, which is a very bad thing for the development of an organization." If you don't know how to be yourself, then there will be no place to stand in the mainland market in the future. He further explained: Not seeking sales volume does not mean no growth. If the product structure is continuously adjusted, even if the quantity does not change, the turnover will still be different. Comparing the previous "Laotan Sauerkraut" flavor ham sausage battle, Uni-President and Master Kong consumed a total of 4 billion ham sausages as free gifts for instant noodles, but still did not determine a winner. Perhaps this classic confrontation brought Uni-President more thinking about its own positioning. On March 25, Uni-President officially took over Woongjin Foods Co., Ltd., which it acquired at the end of 2018. Uni-President strives to build an "Asian platform." This move not only allows it to try its hand in the Korean market but also to acquire diversified product development and marketing techniques, access supply chain resources never obtained before, improve existing product lines, and thus accelerate expansion into the Asian market. About Retail—"New retail is just a tool, not an end." Uni-President began laying out its channel industry in 1979, making it one of the earliest brands to engage in retail. According to the "2018 China Convenience Store Development Report" released by the China Chain Store & Franchise Association, Uni-President's "7-Eleven" convenience stores have entered the national top ten list. According to statistics from YI OU, as of August 2018, 7-Eleven had 251 stores in the Beijing area; according to the Shanghai Chain Operation Association, as of June 2018, there were 123 stores in the Shanghai area. In convenience store retail, Uni-President's achievements are also commendable. However, at the meeting, Lo Chih-hsien mentioned the failed attempt of 7-Eleven in Zhejiang to use "Taiwan experience" (intending to increase store foot traffic by selling cigarettes). Therefore, Uni-President will continue to explore its unique convenience store operating model in the mainland market. Mobile internet, e-commerce/digital payments, and social media have driven tremendous changes in the retail industry. Lo Chih-hsien believes that in the future, only two types of manufacturers can survive: those with channels and those with brands. Products without brands will find it increasingly difficult to find living space. The author predicts that Uni-President's cooperation with Carrefour, Starbucks, and MUJI may become closer in the future. In addition, Lo Chih-hsien emphasized that new retail is just a tool, not an end. It not only lacks the magic to change the fate of "unbeautiful products" but will also accelerate their elimination. Compiled and edited by -END-