Retail Insight: 9.9 yuan has once again made waves in the retail industry. In 2024, ALDI, the German discount supermarket pioneer, created a sensation online with its 9.9-yuan series of low-priced products. Miniso, which invested in Yonghui, also became a global sensation in its specialty retail niche with this price point. Pinduoduo, whose market value once surpassed Alibaba's, offers countless 9.9-yuan items. What exactly is the charm of 9.9?

9.9 is an ordinary non-integer in Arabic numerals, a decimal between 1 and 10, often used for more precise expression in quantity and measurement. But in the retail world, it is the most attention-grabbing and frequently appearing number. Decades ago, salespeople from manufacturers and distributors would negotiate with buyers at a supply price of 9.8 yuan and sell at 9.9 yuan, saying, "No one makes money; we're just moving volume." E-commerce platforms frequently feature 9.9-yuan products on their homepages to attract eyeballs. Community group buying uses 9.9-yuan product combos as a breakthrough tool. Even today, with content e-commerce dominated by platforms like Douyin, 9.9-yuan products remain the preferred price point for many livestream hosts. Even logistics companies adjust delivery fees to support customers' ability to complete transactions at 9.9 yuan. Why does this ordinary price point wield such magic in retail, enduring for decades through changing retail formats, and working across both online and offline channels? It is not only the preferred pricing for new product launches but also a strong guarantee for maintaining sales and an essential part of various promotions. Let's analyze the reasons together.

The main logic behind pricing retail products at 9.9 yuan is a combination of the psychological "left-digit effect" and the marketing strategy of "odd-even pricing." The left-digit effect refers to shoppers' tendency to focus first on the leftmost digit of a price tag. The first digit of 9.9 is 9, making customers feel the price is in the single-digit range, thus ignoring the following digits and perceiving it as much cheaper than 10 yuan, giving a psychological thrill of getting a bargain. Odd-even pricing leverages consumers' desire for low prices by setting non-integer prices, creating a psychological sense of cheapness. Although the difference from 10 yuan is only 0.1 yuan, the psychological satisfaction of being cheaper than 10 yuan far outweighs the actual 0.1 yuan difference. Modern consumers face a flood of product information and find it hard to deeply evaluate every item's price. A 9.9 yuan price is neither too cheap to raise quality concerns nor too expensive to exceed shoppers' psychological budget threshold. Therefore, 9.9 yuan becomes the optimal choice for reducing decision-making effort.

Since 9.9 yuan is a golden price point, how can we leverage it effectively to not only make customers feel they are getting quality at a low price but also bring profits and competitive advantages to our retail business? Here are a few suggestions for your reference.

Choose second-tier products in best-selling categories, or big single items that customers have a price memory for, and initiate cash purchases or cross-region collective procurement (since retailers have comprehensive sales data for these products, quantity control is relatively objective). At the same time, appropriately reduce retail gross margins to bring the selling price to 9.9 yuan, creating a hit product. Display it prominently in a large display to significantly boost sales while establishing an image of the best value-for-money in the competitive area.

If a retail enterprise defines private-label products as traffic generators to enhance differentiation and customer recognition, it can fully leverage the advantage of direct cooperation with contract manufacturers, while slightly reducing the net content of the product, to price a higher-tier product at 9.9 yuan. This can shock customers and create an advantage that competitors cannot easily replicate in the short term. For example, "Xianfeng Life" has adopted this approach for its private-label shampoo, conditioner, and facial cleanser.

Research categories where customers have a high price perception and make breakthroughs. For instance, in 2024, ALDI shocked the retail industry with a single product: 9.9 yuan solid-state brewed liquor. This not only significantly enhanced its brand effect but also overturned almost everyone's perception. Similar products exist in our normal categories. Thanks to our country's strong manufacturing capabilities, many things are not impossible but rather not dared to be done.

What we have discussed above is the application of "value for money" (性价比) in terms of price-performance ratio. This can reduce customers' decision-making costs and gain favor among products with similar functions. Meanwhile, in the realm of "quality-price ratio" (质价比), 9.9 yuan still has ample room to shine. As a long-term enterprise, "sustainable orders" and "repeat purchases" are key to growth and customer recognition. With the widespread use of 9.9 yuan pricing in retail today, if we offer products with better origins, cleaner ingredients, and more refined packaging at the same price, we can effectively mitigate destructive competition in the same price band and help customers make better choices, because our customers are the smartest people. "Value for money" can guide customers' initial experience, but "quality-price ratio" is what ensures long-term customer loyalty.

Everyone knows that 9.9 yuan products can fully stimulate customers' purchase desire. So how can we use 9.9 yuan products to maximize our output ratio? Let's take a physical retail store as an example. Initially, we don't need to introduce a large number of 9.9 yuan products, because most of these impactful products require us to digest inventory ourselves. When our operational foundation is weak, we can try a few big single items, increase promotion and prominent display, and give customers a reason to enter the store. Then, we can find 9.9 yuan products in multiple small categories (avoid having multiple items in one small category), display them together to form a 9.9 yuan zone, creating a collective impact to expand influence and increase average transaction value. After achieving initial results, we can return the 9.9 yuan products to their respective small category display areas, using stack bases or end caps, or expanding the display in the middle of shelves to encourage customers to enter the shelf area and stay longer. The longer customers stay in the store, the more opportunities for purchases. If we can achieve the transformation from "value for money" to "quality-price ratio" at the 9.9 yuan price point, then we can also develop price points like 19.9 yuan, 29.9 yuan, and even 99.9 yuan, gradually improving our operational quality. Systematically applying the right methods will yield longer-term returns than a piecemeal approach, but with a stable foundation and better long-term rewards.

The principles of the world can be divided into "the Way" (道) and "techniques" (术). Integrity in business and quality first are always the "ultimate simple Way" in retail. The 9.9 yuan pricing method is just a "technical application" supporting the Way. Through reasonable technical means, we can offer better products and services, allowing customers to enjoy shopping while bringing a better life to thousands of households.

【New Order · Symbiosis】 The 10th China FMCG Innovation Conference Date: March 17-19, 2025 Location: Chengdu, China