---
title: "Who Leads the 20 Billion Yuan Jelly Market?"
description: "According to statistics, the domestic jelly market has reached a scale of 20 billion yuan, making it a category that cannot be ignored in the snack food industry. From its origins as a children's snack, it has transformed into a leisure dessert loved by children and consumers of all ages. Due to significant changes in the jelly market in recent years and the low entry barriers for production, the landscape of jelly manufacturers has shifted considerably, leading to a mix of brands rising and falling. However, the author still believes that 2016-2018 will be a period of major development for jelly, with equal opportunities for all. Which companies will ultimately dominate depends on who truly takes jelly seriously. This judgment is based on four reasons."
author: "丁忠卫"
publisher: "New Distribution"
email: "zhaobo258@gmail.com"
telephone: "+8615854817671"
published: "2016-01-13"
language: "en"
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# Who Leads the 20 Billion Yuan Jelly Market?

> According to statistics, the domestic jelly market has reached a scale of 20 billion yuan, making it a category that cannot be ignored in the snack food industry. From its origins as a children's snack, it has transformed into a leisure dessert loved by children and consumers of all ages. Due to significant changes in the jelly market in recent years and the low entry barriers for production, the landscape of jelly manufacturers has shifted considerably, leading to a mix of brands rising and falling. However, the author still believes that 2016-2018 will be a period of major development for jelly, with equal opportunities for all. Which companies will ultimately dominate depends on who truly takes jelly seriously. This judgment is based on four reasons.

According to statistics, the domestic jelly market has reached a scale of 20 billion yuan, making it a category that cannot be ignored in the snack food industry. From its origins as a children's snack, it has transformed into a leisure dessert loved by children and consumers of all ages. Due to significant changes in the jelly market in recent years and the low entry barriers for production, the landscape of jelly manufacturers has shifted considerably, leading to a mix of brands rising and falling. However, the author still believes that 2016-2018 will be a period of major development for jelly, with equal opportunities for all. Which companies will ultimately dominate depends on who truly takes jelly seriously. This judgment is based on the following four reasons.

**The industry leader is 'sleeping'**
Why do I say this? The undisputed leader in the jelly industry is Strong (Xizhilang), which has held the top position for many years. Before around 2011, Strong was thriving in the market, setting an example for all jelly manufacturers in terms of packaging, flavor, and in-store displays. However, after Strong 'crossed over' into seaweed snacks and cup tea (U-love-it), the company's focus seems to have shifted. Looking at Strong's market actions over the years, they have been monotonous, mainly advertising on CCTV and other TV media, with few ground-level promotional activities. These actions seem routine and lack innovation. Apart from Crystal Love (Shuijing Zhilian), there is little new product development, indicating either issues with the owners or a shift in company focus away from jelly. Whatever the reason, this gives other jelly companies an opportunity, or even a reason to 'usurp' the throne. With the 'sleeping rabbit' ahead, the 'tortoises' have plenty of chances.

**Major players in the jelly industry face collective problems**
Jinwa jelly, once popular nationwide, rivaled Strong in momentum and market performance with impressive growth. However, after shareholder disputes, Jinwa virtually disappeared from the public eye overnight, which is regrettable. Then Qinqin jelly, after being acquired by Hengan, became like a 'stepchild.' It never accounted for a significant share of Hengan's overall business, so despite some advantages in product development and a relatively strong team, it remained neglected and is now up for sale again. As for Crayon Shin-chan (Labixiaoxin), after jelly sales took off, the company shifted focus to real estate and other areas. In recent years, they brought in the former Want Want team, but it didn't adapt well to the private enterprise environment, and they failed in the transition to casual jelly. In 2015, the company underwent a full adjustment, bringing in marketing personnel from Golden Monkey. Due to significant differences in models and outdated marketing concepts, it remains to be seen whether they can get Crayon Shin-chan back on track. Laiyikou jelly, which targeted the low-end market, also had a place in the market, but conflicts between the owner and professional managers left the company severely weakened, and recovery will take time.

**Candy and snack companies that treat jelly as a seasonal complement do not focus on jelly**
Among candy companies, those doing relatively well in jelly include Hsu Fu Chi, Golden Monkey, Ma Dajie, Yake, and Jinguan. Since these companies only use jelly as a supplement during the candy off-season, they invest little in product development and innovation, often following trends, and do not have high hopes for the jelly category. This is not a concern unless they truly prioritize jelly. Only Want Want, though not a candy company but a diversified food company, especially one that transitioned from packaged products to bulk leisure snacks, has successfully entered the bulk snack market and secured a certain industry position. Due to its divisional structure, with teams operating by category, Want Want places more emphasis on jelly compared to those candy companies. In the past two years, Want Want has successively launched products like sip-and-suck jelly, popsicle sticks, and crushed ice, almost dominating the direction of the entire jelly market, with almost all jelly companies following suit. However, because Want Want holds a leading position in some products, its market tactics are known for being aggressive, consistently pushing inventory onto distributors, which has caused much distress among distributors nationwide. This also presents opportunities for other jelly companies.

The first three points describe the current state of the jelly market in recent years. Regardless of which company makes jelly, the packaging, quality, and content are basically similar, as are the price ranges, all targeting the low-to-mid end. Few manufacturers actively challenge the high-end jelly market. Occasionally, high-end jelly products from Malaysia, Taiwan, and other places appear, but they quickly disappear, further causing jelly companies to stagnate. At the end of 2013, a former stationery business owner suddenly entered the food circle to make jelly—Qiao Mama. This brand subverted traditional jelly in packaging design and adopted a high-end pricing strategy, boldly promoting itself. Amid skepticism from industry insiders, it managed to navigate through 2014 and 2015 relatively smoothly. The author believes Qiao Mama's success lies in taking a path that all jelly companies wanted but dared not take, breaking free from the shackles of experience. However, its lack of outstanding success is due to its lack of foundation in jelly production, particularly in product development and flavor blending. Novel packaging and high prices can attract consumers initially, but the taste and quality of the product itself are fundamental for long-term consumer retention. Additionally, team building takes time.

**Imported jellies and rising star Qiao Mama disrupt the jelly market, opening a new chapter for its development**
Due to food safety concerns in recent years, imported foods surged in the domestic market in 2014 and 2015, boosting sales of imported jellies like Kekang, Yami Panda, and Kachino. In particular, Qiao Mama, a rising domestic jelly brand, directly entered the high-end jelly market, causing a stir. However, due to shelf-life issues with imported foods and the taste and quality issues of domestic Qiao Mama (here referring to the mismatch with price, not quality issues), these brands' final sales were affected, and none achieved market dominance. Nevertheless, these actions have opened the curtain for the jelly market's development in the coming years. In 2015, many jelly companies followed suit. Crayon Shin-chan launched Chunchun 100 lactic acid bacteria jelly, but due to team and marketing issues, it only made a brief splash. Leke Leke jelly also showed off in the high-end segment, but this company likely faced the same issues as Qiao Mama.

From the above analysis, the author believes another spring for the jelly industry has arrived. For all jelly manufacturers, there is no ranking now, no 'ceiling'; everyone is basically on the same starting line. Focus on four aspects: innovative products with matching quality, a team ready to charge, sufficient distributor profits, and good marketing strategies. It's still the 4Ps. If you focus and execute the 4Ps well, with such large market demand, why worry about sales growth? A surge in growth is not uncommon.

Looking ahead to 2016, the peak season for jelly is approaching. Jelly companies should already be developing and selecting new products to launch in the market, especially targeting high-end jelly. Of course, it must be high-end jelly where consumers can perceive that quality matches price. Since the high-end jelly market has huge potential, jelly companies—especially emerging ones with some market foundation in recent years, like Cherry Maruko, Dinis, and Zuozuo—if they choose the right products, execute well with their teams, and promote appropriately, who can say they won't be the next Strong? And for those leisure food companies that truly focus and specialize in jelly, who can say they won't lead the 20 billion yuan jelly market forward? Who will lead the jelly market? In 2016, we look forward to an answer.

Senior food marketing expert with 20 years of experience in food marketing and training, having served at Hsu Fu Chi, Golden Monkey, Yake, Jinguan, and other well-known food companies. Currently General Manager of Marketing Center at Shanghai Zeyun Biotechnology Co., Ltd. Email: devy66663@163.com

**-END-**

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