On the afternoon of April 2, Beijing Youxuan Qiantong Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Youxuan Qiantong"), the former exclusive WeChat channel distributor of Mengniu's Manran fiber milkshake milk (hereinafter referred to as "Manran"), issued a statement saying that it had recently received phone calls from some Manran agents complaining that contracted distributors and their team leaders had spread rumors through the original Mengniu Manran sales management group, published false cooperative agency information, deceived agents' trust, and even used threats and coercion to transfer and register Manran agent data under the Youxuan Qiantong Youxuan Qingxiang (formerly known as Qingxiang Manran) official account.

Youxuan Qiantong believes that the Manran agent data and system were established with its own human and financial resources and are its legitimate property. Without Youxuan Qiantong's consent, any third party's unauthorized use of the data and system constitutes infringement.

It is worth mentioning that earlier, on March 21, Mengniu's subsidiary Shanghai Xianyu Ranch Dairy Sales Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Shanghai Xianyu") issued an announcement stating that the Manran product would change distributors.

The announcement stated that the business term between Shanghai Xianyu and Youxuan Qiantong had expired and would not be renewed, and Youxuan Qiantong no longer had the right to continue soliciting agents. Shanghai Xianyu would sign a cooperation agreement with Qingxiang Manran (Hangzhou) Network Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Qingxiang Company"), authorizing the latter to distribute Manran series products and designating it as the sole legal distributor of Manran. At the same time, Shanghai Xianyu would assist Qingxiang Company in properly handling the market transition.

However, in Youxuan Qiantong's statement, it said that after the sales authorization from Shanghai Xianyu expired, Shanghai Xianyu had sent a letter to Youxuan Qiantong regarding the data and system, stating that it would coordinate the transfer of data and system between Youxuan Qiantong and Hangzhou Qingxiang Manran Co., Ltd., but Youxuan Qiantong had not received any notice.

In addition, Youxuan Qiantong also stated that it had not received any disposal plan from Shanghai Xianyu after the expiration of the sales authorization, which prevented Youxuan Qiantong from shipping goods normally. Moreover, because its bank accounts were frozen, it could not handle refund and return requests.

Blue Whale Industry and Economics reporters sent an interview outline to Youxuan Qiantong, but had not received a response by the time of publication.

Earlier, Youxuan Qiantong was investigated by the industry and commerce department for suspected pyramid scheme activities. Subsequently, to prevent Youxuan Qiantong from transferring or concealing illegal funds, the industry and commerce department applied to the People's Court of Jingshan County, Hubei Province, to freeze the bank accounts used by Youxuan Qiantong in financial institutions. The court ruled to freeze 100 million yuan in Youxuan Qiantong's ICBC account for a period of one year.

A senior partner of Manran told reporters, "The suspected pyramid scheme was the previous operator Youxuan Qiantong, not Mengniu. The change of operator was not only due to the pyramid scheme suspicion, but also because the other party privately used the name of Manran to hype other projects, and there were major operational problems."

"The current agency product is the new Manran Plus, which will be launched in April. This product will only be sold on WeChat, and it will not appear on Taobao or Tmall. What is sold on Taobao and Tmall is only the old Manran, which has now been discontinued, and they are selling old-date products," the person said.

Furthermore, the person introduced the profit model after becoming an agent: "For example, the current level is quarterly card VIP, with a purchase price of 178 yuan per box. If a consumer buys only one box, you can earn a price difference of 60 yuan; buying two boxes earns 100 yuan; buying a monthly card package, which is six boxes, earns 240 yuan. When a consumer buys 18 boxes, there is no price difference to earn, and you can recommend them to become an agent, earning a referral reward. A quarterly card VIP recommending another quarterly card VIP earns 270 yuan, and recommending a city partner earns 2,250 yuan. When performance reaches 25,000 yuan, the purchase price drops to 148 yuan, and you gain the rights of a city partner, earning price differences and referral rewards."

In this regard, Zhu Danpeng of the China Food Brand Research Institute previously told Blue Whale Industry and Economics reporters that although this model avoids some issues, from the industry and policy perspective, it is suspected of pyramid scheme. A person engaged in legal work also said bluntly that without a direct sales license, such behavior is pyramid scheme.

Source: Blue Whale Industry and Economics, Yang Zeshi

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