In my private circle, someone raised this question, and I happened to visit a supermarket over the weekend, so I posted the question with images. I received over 500 comments, and due to limited time, I couldn't reply to each one. Thank you for your attention and thoughts. Today, I don't have a definitive answer, but I'll share some possible reasons.

  1. First, let me explain the premise of the question. I asked why there are big brands in instant noodles but not in dried noodles. Many friends commented that dried noodles do have brands, such as Chen Keming, which is even a listed company. That's true; as long as there's a name, there's a brand. Our family actually prefers Saibei Xue, so it's not that dried noodles lack brands, but that their brands are not as well-known as instant noodle brands. Even the top dried noodle brand like Chen Keming can't compare in scale to Master Kong. (Above: Baidu Index comparison between Chen Keming and Master Kong)
  2. Some suggested that the reason might be demographic: dried noodle brands are mostly known among middle-aged and elderly women, while younger people are less familiar. I think that's partly true, but the opposite is also the case: even if I don't use cosmetics, I still know brands like Estée Lauder, Whoo, and SK-II. For example, Victoria's Secret is highly recognized among male audiences. So I still believe the brand awareness of dried noodle brands is relatively weak.
  3. The first reason we might think of is: Instant noodles themselves constitute a complete solution; with just hot water, you can solve a meal. Dried noodles are not a complete solution; they need additional ingredients or dishes to become a meal. They are more like raw materials, making it harder to form a brand. By the same logic, we can see that coffee bean brands are weaker than coffee brands, fruit brands are weaker than juice brands, and fabric brands are weaker than garment brands. If we focus on the staple food category, dumplings and tangyuan are complete solutions, so brands like Sanquan and Wan Chai Ferry exist, while flour brands are weaker. This seems reasonable. But there are exceptions, like Chu Cheng orange in fruits, which has a brand, though not yet very large.
  4. Another possible reason: The processing technology for dried noodles is relatively simple, while instant noodles are more complex. The more processing steps, the more differentiation points a brand can create, making it easier to form a distinction. That seems plausible, but there's a question: Why do water brands exist but not dried noodle brands? Water processing is not that complex, and the taste differences are not huge, yet there are many water brands.
  5. Following the previous point, another view emerges: Because water is used more frequently, while dried noodles are used less often, and instant noodles have more usage scenarios and higher frequency, they are more likely to form brands. Although I think there's some truth to that, Band-Aid bandages are not used frequently either. How do you explain that? Moreover, in many northern families, the frequency of dried noodle consumption is similar to or even higher than instant noodles.
  6. Let's look from another angle: Because consumers of dried noodles are more price-sensitive, it's hard to sell them at high prices, leading to low gross margins, so manufacturers are unwilling to advertise. That's one angle, but it doesn't fully explain it. Observing people in large supermarkets, I see many housewives around 30 who are quite accepting of prices. Perhaps it's because they don't advertise, which leads to no brand premium, resulting in low prices for dried noodles. Whether low price and low margin are the cause or the result is still unknown. Maybe that was the case a decade ago, but things have changed in recent years.
  7. To sum up, other mentioned and unmentioned views include that dried noodles are raw materials, have simple processes, low margins, older consumers, hard-to-distinguish tastes, and are not widely eaten in the south. But for almost all these reasons, you can find counterexamples of brands: for instance, mineral water tastes are hard to distinguish, and ketchup and soy sauce are also raw materials. Each factor may not be the sole reason. Perhaps it's the combination of adverse factors—semi-finished raw material, simple process with low barriers, low margins, low consumption frequency, hard-to-differentiate taste, limited usage scenarios, and not being a complete solution—that leads to this situation.
  8. From a direct perspective, the absence of big brands in an industry means manufacturers are unwilling to spend money on advertising to build brands. This is two sides of the same coin: if manufacturers don't spend, it's hard to build brand awareness; without brand awareness, it's hard to gain a brand premium and high returns. It's a chicken-and-egg problem.
  9. However, things may not stay the same. For example, in the nuts industry, only sunflower seeds had brands before; most other nuts had no brand influence, but Three Squirrels became a well-known nut brand. Similarly, in the tea sector, there were no particularly strong domestic brands, but in recent years, Xiaoguan Tea has been doing very well. Perhaps dried noodle brands like Chen Keming and Saibei Xue could become household names in the future, depending on how the brand owners operate and their strategic direction.
  10. Many friends have observed and thought about many phenomena, such as dried noodles being inconvenient to use, while instant noodles are more convenient. But phenomena are not necessarily causes. In practice and learning, correct attribution is crucial. Among the factors that influence brand influence, the first-level reason is whether the brand owner is willing to invest in branding; the second-level reason might be factors that make manufacturers unwilling to invest, such as low margins, consumers not caring about brands, and hard-to-distinguish tastes. So second-hand cars didn't have brands before, but platforms like Guazi used heavy advertising to build a brand. Second-hand car transactions are more complex, have lower consumption frequency, and longer decision cycles, but as long as someone is willing to spend on advertising, a brand can emerge, even if the future of these brands is uncertain.
  11. Based on point 10, I see a possible correct reason in the discussion. This question is not about whether dried noodles are suitable for branding; clearly, the industry has well-known brands like Chen Keming. But our perception is that dried noodle brands are not as famous as instant noodle brands. I attribute this feeling to several reasons: 1) The amount of advertising expenditure, which is the main factor. 2) Exposure in consumption scenarios: when eating dried noodles, others don't see it; when eating instant noodles, others do, so the product has self-propagation capability. 3) Packaging recognition: instant noodles are higher. Generally, instant noodles pay more attention to outer packaging, and the brand name is more visible, while dried noodle packaging mainly shows white noodles, and the brand logo is not prominent. 4) The degree of discussion: instant noodles are discussed more than dried noodles. So, the key is the difference in advertising volume. What causes the difference in advertising volume? Is it really the various characteristics of dried noodles mentioned earlier? I don't think that's the main reason. The main reason might be the awareness of industry players. Instant noodles are an imported product; Taiwanese brands that entered the mainland had brand-building awareness from the start, so they were willing to spend on advertising, which in turn brought a premium and created a virtuous cycle. Dried noodles, on the other hand, come from traditional manufacturers with weak brand awareness, unwilling to invest in advertising, mainly focusing on expanding retail channels. That's why this situation has arisen. As mentioned in point 9, perhaps in the future, big brands will emerge in the dried noodle industry.
  12. I'm sorry, but all answers are only possibly correct. This is not a college entrance exam paper; it's for reference only. Source: Xiao Ma Song -END-