Introduction: A Deep Dive into Man Xiaobao's Omnichannel Growth Story. Author | Feng Yao Reviewer | Gou Gou Layout | He Wen
Recently, New Distribution has been in communication with some new consumer brands and found a common consensus: offline channels are a marketing battleground that enterprises must enter. Currently, after a period of explosive growth, new consumer brands have entered a cooling-off phase. Many have been eliminated, and those that survive have at least achieved success in a specific niche to persist. Especially for categories like beverages and convenience foods—"fast-moving products within FMCG"—brands are unanimously starting to improve supply chains and expand offline channels.
However, going offline is not easy. On this path, one new consumer brand, Man Xiaobao, has caught New Distribution's attention. It pioneered the subcategory of "fat broth rice noodles," selling nearly 1 billion yuan last year, and quickly expanded offline after gaining traction online. Starting in the second half of last year, it grew its offline business to 150 million yuan in just six months. What is Man Xiaobao's magic that allowed it to rapidly become the category leader and successfully enter offline channels, earning the nickname "Man Magic" among distributors? New Distribution will decode Man Xiaobao's omnichannel growth story in this article.
Entering the "Fat Broth" Niche and Deepening "Product Strength" In June this year, Man Xiaobao successfully entered Costco and achieved a remarkable month-over-month sales increase of 1661% in the following month. On August 26, the Hangzhou Costco opened, and Man Xiaobao, as a star product, garnered attention and sold well. This is undoubtedly another milestone in its offline expansion journey. Man Xiaobao, which aspires to "sell to the end of the universe," has already entered major chain supermarkets such as Walmart, Metro, RT-Mart, and Costco, covering the top 100 supermarket channels nationwide in just six months.
As is well known, the better the channel, the stricter the product selection and review. How can a product stand out among the many and secure entry into such high-quality channels in an era of oversupply? This is inseparable from Man Xiaobao's unique insights into demand and products. In May 2020, at its inception, Man Xiaobao chose to focus on the scenario of home dining for one. The underlying logic was the discovery of a demand scenario far from being met: the light cooking needs of urban young people aged 18-35 who are "lazy and homebound" when eating at home. Urban youth cook infrequently, preferring to eat out or order takeout, but when at home, they want to make something simple and delicious but don't know how. Thus, Man Xiaobao focuses on providing young people with a "satisfying meal" that is more convenient and enjoyable in home settings.
Having identified the scenario, how to bring the product to young people's tables? Man Xiaobao conducted multiple product validations. In fact, "fat broth rice noodles" is not a flavor that appeared out of thin air; it has stronger regional characteristics compared to flavors like tomato beef or pickled cabbage beef, and it wasn't widely known. Man Xiaobao saw the transformation potential of "fat broth rice noodles" and the market potential of an unfamiliar category without a national taste memory. Through continuous improvement, it developed the "intensely sour and spicy" flavor profile, and with an innovative ingredient approach, created the unique "Man Xiaobao Fat Broth Rice Noodles."
However, a novel flavor alone isn't enough to secure a place on young people's tables; a broader product and market positioning is needed: First, it must have sufficient capacity and price to replace a regular meal—tasty, affordable, and filling—which is the basic condition for repeat purchases. Second, the flavor must be memorable. Man Xiaobao believes that a potential hit product should be perfected from the start, leaving a memory and habit in consumers' minds, and then not change frequently; repeated messaging is what gets remembered. Additionally, while familiar, it should occasionally surprise users. Building on the classic hit product, Man Xiaobao iterates based on customer needs, such as "noodle lovers"—fat broth ramen, "topping lovers"—extra-topping fat broth rice noodles, and "instant lovers"—new instant fat broth series. It is reported that after the launch of "Man Xiaobao Fat Broth Rice Noodles," user feedback mentioned "delicious" at a rate of 54%, 90-day repurchase rate exceeded 30%, and the rate of viral posts by ordinary users on Xiaohongshu was over 70%—far exceeding industry standards. Since then, Man Xiaobao has locked onto "fat broth," started its journey, and within a year secured the top position in national sales of fat broth rice noodles.
Omnichannel Marketing Around the Core Audience In 2022, Man Xiaobao's omnichannel GMV reached 1 billion yuan. In the current FMCG industry, few new products achieve this. We've discussed the product strategy; now let's look at the marketing approach that enabled a brand only three years old to achieve such impressive results. Man Xiaobao's marketing formula can be summarized as: Sales = Broadcast + Penetration + Conversion + Repurchase.
How to break down this formula? Man Xiaobao starts online. Early-stage startups have limited budgets and cannot invest heavily in advertising. Man Xiaobao's communication and penetration began with seeding on Xiaohongshu, then converting to Tmall. How to achieve over 70% viral post rate through ordinary user seeding on Xiaohongshu? The answer is dedication. Internally, all communication content is called "broadcast," meaning good content that spreads is effective, so every piece of content is fully invested in, and every influencer is carefully selected. After that, Man Xiaobao entered Li Jiaqi's live stream, where the highest single-session GMV for fat broth rice noodles reached nearly 20 million yuan, making Man Xiaobao popular again. Currently, Man Xiaobao has also developed its own mature Douyin live stream room.
After going viral online, Man Xiaobao quickly moved offline, collaborating with offline distributors to actively expand into large KA channels, supermarket convenience stores, new snack stores, and O2O platforms. But operating omnichannel is not simple; Man Xiaobao needed to expand its voice. During this period, Man Xiaobao invested in two great IPs: the hit animation "Yao-Chinese Folktales" and the popular drama "Meet Yourself." The buzz from these two hits helped Man Xiaobao complete efficient broadcast + penetration + conversion, elevating it to the next level. Some might think Man Xiaobao was lucky, but behind these IP bets is more than luck. Man Xiaobao's investment logic is simple: wherever the "core audience" is, that's where efficient seeding is placed. First, the core audience is Gen Z, new white-collar workers, and refined moms; Man Xiaobao goes where they are, reflecting its brand philosophy of being with users. Second, watching dramas and eating rice noodles are strongly associated scenarios, like eating barbecue and instinctively wanting soda. It builds a scene association of eating fat broth rice noodles while watching dramas, using audiovisual language to evoke sensory memory and create a stronger brand impression.
This approach is also applied offline. When selecting channels, Man Xiaobao doesn't enter every channel; it first finds where its core audience is. So, when entering offline channels, the primary consideration is whether the channel is effective. It doesn't blindly pursue scale but first analyzes cities, regions, and demographics, then selects terminals and distributors. Whoever is eating Man Xiaobao, it gets closer to them; whoever might eat Man Xiaobao, it appears before them. From e-commerce self-operated, to O2O platforms, to NKA and LKA, to membership warehouse clubs, to snack discount stores, Man Xiaobao steadily advances its channel layout around its core audience.
Through solid user insights and channel strategies, Man Xiaobao has accumulated many "firsts" in new users and new channels. But how to maintain repurchase? The answer lies in accumulation. At a certain stage, a brand relies not on random events but on accumulated events. Man Xiaobao doesn't suppress marketing investment just because it hit a viral trend with high conversion. It also believes that brands have barriers and cannot take shortcuts. Brand is accumulation—continuous word-of-mouth accumulation of products, silent accumulation of channels reaching users, and accumulation of advertising forms and content.
Recently, leveraging the 618 promotion, Man Xiaobao initiated a topic discussion on Weibo: #不知吃啥好就吃满小饱# (Don't know what to eat? Eat Man Xiaobao). On June 5, the topic hit the 6th national hot search. At the same time, it invested in two hit dramas, "Till the End of the Moon" and "The Longest Promise," further enhancing national brand recognition. Online seeding and offline tasting are things Man Xiaobao consistently does, which is also the process of broadcast + penetration + conversion + repurchase. According to statistics, Man Xiaobao's fat broth rice noodles have a 3-month repurchase rate of 32.8% offline, far higher than the industry average of 12% for instant food.
Partnering with Distributors and Persisting in Doing Difficult but Right Things To date, Man Xiaobao has been offline for a year. Taking the key product, fat broth rice noodles, as an example, its offline sales performance is commendable. For instance, Man Xiaobao empowers channels with products, resources, and innovative knowledge, achieving a maximum monthly average PSD of 383 at Ito Yokado (PSD means bags sold per store per day); a maximum daily PSD of 385 at AEON in East China; POS amount of over 500,000 yuan during a 14-day poster campaign at RT-Mart; becoming the No.1 instant food brand within 100 days at Metro; and ranking first on Hema APP's recent hot list for convenient noodles, with the new instant fat broth rice noodles also entering the top six... Man Xiaobao actively embraces channel changes, ranking first in product visits in Youke's Douyin live stream, with sales far ahead of other brands. Hence, distributors nicknamed it "Man Magic."
For both Man Xiaobao and its distributors, such achievements are undoubtedly outstanding. What's rare is that Man Xiaobao knows price is the lifeline of a brand and has zero tolerance for low-price or price chaos; it also doesn't blindly pursue the number of channels or outlets but, based on solid existing benchmark cities and channels, further enters the consumption channels of core users in third- and fourth-tier cities to expand the number of effective terminals. This is certainly good for distributors. However, a pain point for distributors considering cooperation with new consumer brands like Man Xiaobao is how the brand balances online and offline sales conflicts, especially price control. In response, Man Xiaobao has different strategies for different consumption scenarios. On one hand, online focuses on "stock-up logic" with bulk packs, while offline focuses on "experience logic" with special tastings and gifts; on the other hand, it provides customized product solutions for large, stable, and high-quality channels, working with retailers for win-win outcomes.
For Man Xiaobao, its relationship with distributors is one of mutual empowerment and common growth. Distributors are business partners, equal and strong allies, not just buyers and sellers. They come together for win-win purposes, requiring trust and joint effort. It's important to note that offline operations are far more complex than online, which is a huge challenge for any new brand accustomed to online tactics. Fortunately, the Man Xiaobao team is steady, adhering to "distribution after sales," moving both steadily and solidly.
"Build high walls, stock up widely, and delay claiming kingship." Going offline is difficult, but Man Xiaobao insists on doing the right thing!