Article by Weijiu Team | Edited by Gude Bai Recently, during market research, reporters from Weijiu accidentally discovered that Laocunzhang, a low-key representative of bottled liquor (guangping jiu), which is rumored to have annual sales exceeding 5 billion yuan, launched a new product called "Lechun" at the end of last year and the beginning of this year. The product, in a one-jin (500ml) bottle with white porcelain and blue floral patterns, has a terminal retail price of 30 yuan per bottle. It's worth noting that Laocunzhang's main products are Xiangmantang and Jiajiawang, with retail prices of 12 yuan and 15 yuan in circulation and catering channels respectively (these are mainstream prices nationwide; some regions may differ). Another representative bottled liquor brand, Longjiang Jiayuan, also launched "Super Chunrou" priced at 20-25 yuan per bottle. The reason we noticed Laocunzhang's change is also because this year, Laocunzhang became the laughter partner for the third season of Dragon TV's top variety show "Xiao Ao Jiang Hu" (The Smiling Proud Wanderer). At the same time, it became the exclusive title sponsor for the TV drama adaptation of "To Our Youth," and also exclusively sponsored TV dramas like "The Investigation of Love" and "The Legend of the Five Rats in Tokyo." It's clear that Laocunzhang is making efforts in brand reshaping, determined to take a path beyond rural markets. Even Laocunzhang's distributors admit, "Previously, we did product placement or sponsorship in TV dramas like 'Country Love Story,' but this year the style has clearly shifted. Laocunzhang is starting to seek new markets." ▲ Laocunzhang's best-selling product is Xiangmantang (left), and around the beginning of this year, it launched Lechun at 30 yuan per bottle (right) So, after stabilizing in the 10-yuan market for many years, why are Laocunzhang and Longjiang Jiayuan now advancing into the 20-30 yuan market? This inevitably reminds people of the event emphasized by the China Alcoholic Drinks Association this year: the clarification of solid-liquid standards. The association stated that this year, it will accelerate the revision of product labeling standards, clearly mark product types, label ingredients according to raw materials, add content that is easier for consumers to identify, and even require consumer participation in standard revision. In a nutshell, future baijiu must ensure consumers understand what they are buying. What it's made of must be clearly stated, and the price should reflect that. Many experts believe that once the standards are officially introduced, it will undoubtedly cause a major reshuffle in the bottled liquor market, which is mainly based on liquid fermentation. Bottled liquor priced around 10 yuan will face a huge impact. Therefore, transformation has become a necessary option for strong bottled liquor enterprises. However, some people in the bottled liquor industry believe that the launch of higher-priced new products this time is due to consumption upgrading. "Consumers who used to drink 10-yuan bottled liquor are now drinking 20-30 yuan products, so enterprises naturally should follow the consumption trend." "In recent years, the rapid development of brands like Xiaolangjiu at around 20 yuan has shown bottled liquor companies the possibility of raising prices," a distributor interpreted the excitement of Laocunzhang and others. However, some industry insiders have expressed a different view: currently, in the Chinese baijiu market, there are significant opportunities in the market below 50 yuan. The rise of bottled liquor is accompanied by seizing the market of low-priced boxed liquor. "Now consumers have gradually higher requirements for taste and quality, and many low-priced boxed liquors have withdrawn from the market. Bottled liquor, which emphasizes value enhancement, is rising against the trend." ▲ Bottled liquor is beginning to seize the market of low-priced boxed liquor However, this person does not consider this wave of new products as product upgrades. He believes that bottled liquor is beginning to show some new characteristics, one of which is: starting to take the path of consumer segmentation. "In recent years, the concept that bottled liquor does not necessarily mean low-end liquor has gradually formed in consumers' minds. Under this trend, bottled liquor companies are starting to take the path of segmentation. For example, Jiangxiaobai directly targets young people, using systematic operations to win over the youth. For example, Yidanliang targets the blue-collar class around 35 years old, focusing on this group's income characteristics, living areas, and hobbies. They use this to carry out promotion and sales work." In this person's view, today's bottled liquor is increasingly emphasizing segmentation and refinement. However, during interviews, Weijiu reporters also learned that, taking Laocunzhang's Lechun as an example, although there is heavy investment in promotion on variety shows, offline terminal actions are not so attractive. According to distributors, currently, they only feel a difference in promotional items. "In the past, Laocunzhang's promotional items were mainly towels, tissues, etc. Now, for Lechun, which is in the launch phase, promotional items are mostly US dollars, cash, etc. In other aspects, there isn't much difference." Some industry insiders believe that although bottled liquor companies have recently started to take the path of consumer segmentation, often they only make packaging more fashionable. "Segmenting the consumer base is definitely a systematic project, and most companies only reflect it on the surface without truly implementing it. However, this path must be taken." Additionally, some industry insiders have summarized four major trends in the current development of bottled liquor, for reference only:

  1. Old famous brands and new fashionable strong brands will be the main force of bottled liquor;
  2. The value of bottled liquor will increase, gradually replacing the market of boxed liquor below 50 yuan;
  3. The process of leading brands becoming national and regional will accelerate;
  4. Bottled liquor marketing will gradually abandon the methods of relying on box-top prizes, low prices, mass manpower, terminal battles, and circulation battles for single-store breakthroughs, and will establish a refined, systematic marketing management system and a replicable market operation model. In response to the requests of many distributor friends, the fourth B-end e-commerce inspection class of this public platform will visit Nanjing and Hangzhou from August 15-18 to inspect two platforms: Qianmi.com and Alibaba Retail Link. Distributor friends interested in transformation can join us for on-site inspections: Activity process: Time: August 15-18

August 15-18

Nanjing · Hangzhou 15th: Check in at designated hotel in Nanjing; 16th: On-site inspection of Qianmi.com, then high-speed rail to Hangzhou in the afternoon; 17th: Participate in the "FMCG Distributor B2B Transformation Exchange Summit"; 18th: On-site inspection of Alibaba Retail Link in Hangzhou; Distributor friends interested in transformation are welcome to join us to learn and inspect on-site: Organization format

  1. Company visit
  2. Actual market case visit
  3. On-site explanation
  4. One-on-one communication Participating distributor friends only need to pay a registration fee of 200 yuan Other expenses are self-covered Note: This inspection is limited to distributors only Interested distributor friends can register by scanning the QR code below. When adding, please note: "Fourth Class Registration". Non-participants, please do not disturb Group photos from previous inspections: Group photo of the 3rd B-end e-commerce inspection, from top to bottom: Yunbao Shangmeng, Weijie City Distribution, Wanshang Yizhan. Group photo of the 2nd B-end e-commerce inspection, from top to bottom: Jinhuobao, Caiba, Yishang. Group photo of the 1st B-end e-commerce inspection, from top to bottom: Piduoduo, Beiquan, Yishang. -END- The best domestic learning platform for FMCG distributors Focusing on providing professional, practical, and applicable tutorials for enterprises and distributors Committed to helping Chinese FMCG distributors grow rapidly The most professional and practical knowledge base in the FMCG industry Reply with the red number below to get the corresponding content Reply with number 1 to view the complete knowledge base | 001 Excellent article selection | 002 Distributor market operation | 003 Terminal visit management | 004 Sales supervisor skills | 005 Sales improvement techniques | 006 Channel expansion | 007 Managing distributors | 008 Distributor development | 009 Distributor internal operations management | 010 Team management | 011 Efficient distribution techniques | 012 Sales manager's eighteen skills | 013 KA operation methods and strategies | 014 First lesson for new salespeople | 015 Internet, brand | 016 Distributor B2B transformation | [Long press QR code to follow]