Yanjing Beer Sells Soda, Even More Aggressive Than Dayao

Source | Finance World WEEKLY Backed by a beer giant with a market value of 35 billion yuan, Yanjing Beer's Beiste soda is making a strong push. This soda, which resembles Dayao, has been rapidly expanding in foodservice channels recently, with even deeper discounts, offering a supply price 10 yuan lower per case than Dayao. It can be said that Yanjing Beer's cross-industry move into beverages is serious, and its willingness to give up profits to channels is also aimed at turning Beiste into a national bestseller like Dayao.

Supply Price 10 Yuan Lower per Case

Yanjing Beer has started selling beverages, even cheaper than Dayao soda. In mid-June, Wang Yang, a distributor in Beijing for Yanjing Beer, revealed that he had pulled 100 cases of Beiste soda and sold them all in less than two hours, mainly because it was cheap, with a price lower than Dayao. Invoicing terminal channels at 33 yuan per case, with a promotion of 2 free cases for every 10 cases, each case containing 12 bottles of 500ml, the final price to terminal channels was 27.5 yuan per case. As a Chinese beer giant, Yanjing Beer launched its new product, Beiste soda, in March 2025. Based on this, at the investor communication meeting in June, Yanjing Beer announced the official implementation of a "beer + beverage" combined marketing strategy. China's carbonated beverage (soda) market has long been firmly occupied by Coca-Cola and Pepsi, making it difficult for domestic brands to grow. Brands like Beibingyang, Bingfeng, Huayang, and Tianfu Cola can only survive in their local markets, with almost none successfully expanding beyond their home bases. In recent years, Dayao has carved out a niche in the foodservice market with its large volume, low price, and high channel profits. As for Beiste soda, Wang Yang said its "supply price is cheaper than Dayao, about 10 yuan cheaper per case." Based on the above channel prices, Yanjing Beer's Beiste soda is priced at about 2.3 yuan per bottle to terminal channels. Its retail price is similar to Dayao. According to Wang Yang, "Retail sells for 5-6 yuan, same as Dayao." This indicates that Beiste offers higher channel profits than Dayao. ▲ Image source/ Yanjing Beer official subscription account Wang Yang said that this soda from Yanjing Beer is glass-bottled, mainly for the foodservice market, and some supermarkets also stock it. She has mainly been distributing to restaurants recently, with 10 cases per store. It seems that Beiste soda not only looks like Dayao but also follows a similar "playbook" to open the market. However, in terms of profit concessions, Beiste, backed by a giant with over 35 billion yuan, is even more "ruthless." The foodservice industry has thin profit margins, and selling beverages and alcohol is a major way for restaurants to increase profits. To enter the foodservice channel, Dayao has given channels sufficient profit space while being "cheap and large." In Beijing's domestic soda market, Beibingyang is the local powerhouse. Dayao's ability to grab market share from Beibingyang in just a few years is inseparable from these two weapons. Also in mid-June, a person in charge of Beibingyang's Beijing market revealed that Beibingyang's supply price to terminal supermarkets and foodservice channels is 60 yuan per case for 24 bottles of 248ml glass bottles, with a promotion of one free 48-yuan large bottle for every 10 cases. The retail price is generally 5-6 yuan, but can range from 5 to 7 yuan. "It depends on the consumer group; in commercial streets, it sells for at least 6 yuan." Calculated this way, the channel gross profit per bottle of Beibingyang is about 3 yuan. Dayao's development follows the route of foodservice + high cost-performance. A person in charge of Dayao's Beijing market revealed in mid-June that in the Beijing market, Dayao's supply price to terminal channels is 38 yuan per case, with 12 bottles of 520ml, no freebies; or 45 yuan per case, with 2 free cases for every 10 cases. The final unit price is similar for both methods. Dayao focuses on foodservice channels. In Beijing restaurants, the retail price is generally between 5-7 yuan, with some selling at 8 yuan. A simple calculation shows that the channel gross profit per bottle of Dayao is about 4 yuan, with higher ones around 4.8 yuan. Thus, compared with Beibingyang, Dayao indeed offers larger volume, lower price, and higher channel profits. For example, in a restaurant in Chaoyang District, Beijing, a 248ml bottle of Beibingyang costs 6 yuan, while a 520ml bottle of Dayao (Nuo Orange/Guest) costs 8 yuan. Based on the aforementioned supply prices, at this store, the channel gross profit per bottle of Dayao is about 4.8 yuan, while for Beibingyang it is about 3.7 yuan. Now, Yanjing Beer's Beiste soda is following a similar route, but it is now walking the path Dayao once took, while also competing with Dayao for market share. Not only is Beiste soda's terminal purchase cost 10 yuan less than Dayao, but it also outperforms Dayao in empty bottle rebates. The aforementioned distributor revealed that a case of Dayao empty bottles can be returned for 2 yuan, while Beiste returns 3 yuan per case of empty bottles. Dayao offers higher channel profits than Beibingyang, and Beiste offers even higher channel profits than Dayao. With sufficient channel profits, restaurants are naturally more willing to order and promote. Wang Yang said that because Beiste's purchase price is cheaper than Dayao, restaurants order it faster.

Immediate Concerns and Long-term Considerations

Why is Yanjing Beer selling beverages? At the 2024 annual performance briefing held in May, Yanjing Beer's chairman, Geng Chao, stated that the launch of Beiste soda was mainly based on three considerations: market trends and consumer demand; industry competition needs; and the high synergy between beer and soda. Consumer demand is becoming increasingly diversified, which is a consumption trend, especially for non-alcoholic beverages. Compared with the beer industry, which is in stock competition with negative production growth, the 100-billion-yuan carbonated beverage market is still in positive growth, and there are giants like Dayao rising. Yanjing Beer launched Beiste soda amid competition, and it also achieves synergies in production and channels. "Beer and soda have high synergy in production equipment, supply chain, and terminal channels (foodservice, supermarkets)," Geng Chao said. At the investor communication meeting held in June, Yanjing Beer stated that the company officially implemented the "beer + beverage" combined marketing strategy this year. Leveraging the high synergy advantages, Beiste soda focuses on foodservice consumption scenarios, prioritizing entry into foodservice terminals (hotpot restaurants, barbecue shops, night markets, etc.), forming a "beer + soda" product combination to continuously enhance brand influence and market share. Currently, as a new product, Beiste soda's channels are not fully expanded. Especially online, there is no trace of Beiste soda yet. In offline channels, compared with Dayao, Beiste soda's advantage is the secondary utilization of Yanjing Beer's existing channels. Yanjing U8 has become Yanjing Beer's core bestseller, holding a certain market share in the foodservice market. The overlap in channels can also reduce the distribution cost of Beiste soda. In addition, the consumption scenarios of the two are compatible. Beiste soda's goal is to become a national bestseller. However, whether it can replicate the success of Yanjing U8 remains to be seen. In May 2022, Geng Chao, born in 1975, took over as chairman of Yanjing Beer. He proposed the slogan "Second Entrepreneurship, Revive Yanjing" and stated that Yanjing Beer should complete its transformation by 2025. Reform has been the theme for Yanjing Beer in recent years. "Geng Chao is a reformer with keen determination. He came to Yanjing alone, moved forward amid doubts, and gained recognition and following with results," said a Xueqiu netizen who attended the aforementioned Yanjing Beer investor communication meeting. From January 2024 to June 16, 2025, Yanjing Beer's stock price rose about 50%, which is quite impressive among domestic beer stocks. In terms of performance, Yanjing Beer's performance is equally remarkable. Since 2022, Yanjing Beer's net profit has started high-speed growth, with annual growth exceeding 50%. In 2024, Yanjing Beer achieved operating revenue of 14.667 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 3.20%; net profit attributable to the parent company was 1.056 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 63.74%; non-GAAP net profit attributable to the parent company was 1.041 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of about 108%. Among them, the main growth driver was Yanjing U8. In 2024, Yanjing Beer achieved beer sales of 4.0044 million kiloliters, a year-on-year increase of 1.57%, of which Yanjing U8 sales were 696,000 kiloliters, a year-on-year increase of 31.4%. In comparison, Tsingtao Beer's sales in 2024 were 7.538 million kiloliters, a year-on-year decrease of about 5.9%. As its core brand, Tsingtao Beer's main brand sales were 4.34 million kiloliters, also declining, with mid-to-high-end product sales also declining. Expense management, marketing, product structure optimization, big single product strategy... Under various reform measures, Yanjing Beer's profits have grown at a high rate for three consecutive years, but revenue growth is only single-digit, with only 3.2% in 2024, and beer business growth of only 1%. In the fully competitive beer business, achieving sustained and stable growth is unrealistic. Whether due to immediate concerns or long-term considerations, Yanjing Beer's diversification is imperative.

Beer Giants Cross Over

Yanjing Beer's cross-industry move into beverages is essentially exploring new increments within the existing stock. Yanjing Beer stated that the company has been operating beverage business for many years and has accumulated certain market operation experience. The launch of Beiste soda can not only meet the diverse needs of consumers but also expand the business scope of distributors, improve channel profitability, reduce dependence on a single beer category, and thus steadily advance the company's diversification strategy. Yanjing Beer has indeed been operating beverage business for many years. The beverage brand Jiulongzhai Sour Plum Drink is affiliated with Beijing Yanjing Beverage Co., Ltd., which is controlled by Yanjing Beer with a shareholding ratio of 53%. In addition, Yanjing Beer's products also include water, Yanjing natto, etc. However, the revenue scale of these non-beer businesses is not large, and their proportions are also very small. By product, in 2024, Yanjing Beer's beer business achieved revenue of 13.23 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of about 1%, accounting for 90.2% of revenue; tea beverage business achieved revenue of 106 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 48.43%, accounting for about 0.7% of revenue; drinking water business achieved revenue of 15 million yuan, a year-on-year decrease of about 15%, accounting for 0.1% of revenue; feed business accounted for about 1% of revenue. Over the years, non-beer businesses have not played a significant role in driving performance growth. In the beer industry, since the decline in sales in 2014, it has long been a market of stock competition, and in recent years, competition has been intensifying. Giants are trying every means to seek growth, especially in endorsements. At the end of 2024, Yanjing Beer announced Guan Xiaotong as its brand ambassador, with the official page promoting Yanjing U8. Before that, Yanjing Beer's ambassadors included Wang Yibo, Cai Xukun, etc. Currently, Tsingtao Beer's brand ambassador is Xiao Zhan; China Resources Beer has multiple product ambassadors, including Wang Yibo for Snow Beer Brave the World superX; Budweiser Asia Pacific's ambassador is Jackson Wang; Zhujiang Beer's brand ambassador is Wang Sulong... Even though everyone is trying hard to find growth, it is still difficult to resist the industry trend. In 2024, the performance of most listed beer companies experienced significant fluctuations. Among them, Tsingtao Beer, Budweiser Asia Pacific, and China Resources Beer, all in the first tier, saw varying degrees of decline in performance. With few opportunities for sustained growth within the industry, giants of all sizes are turning outward to find new increments. In May, Tsingtao Beer announced plans to acquire 100% equity of Shandong Jimo Yellow Wine Factory Co., Ltd. for 665 million yuan. This means Tsingtao Beer is diversifying into selling yellow wine. The scale of Jimo Yellow Wine Factory is actually not large. In 2024, it achieved main business revenue of 166 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 13.5%; net profit of 30.47 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 38%. As of the end of 2024, Jimo Yellow Wine had total assets of 908 million yuan and net assets of 203 million yuan. Tsingtao Beer stated that this move will bring new development opportunities to the company, further enrich its product line, broaden market channels, and promote the diversified development of the company's business. Earlier, in August 2021, China Resources Beer acquired 40% equity of Shandong Jingzhi Baijiu Co., Ltd. through China Resources Wine. In October 2022, China Resources Beer announced plans to invest 12.3 billion yuan to take control of Jinsha Wine through capital increase and share purchase. In January 2023, the equity transfer was completed, with China Resources Wine holding 55.19% of Jinsha Wine. There are also several other beer companies seeking diversified development. For example, Chongqing Beer also launched soda products this year - Dali Canger Soda and Tianshan Fresh Fruit Manor Soda; Wusu Beer launched an energy drink called Diante in the Xinjiang market in May, accelerating its "beer + beverage" diversification strategy. However, the beverage industry is now highly competitive, and the carbonated beverage market is mature. Whether it is Dali Canger Soda or Beiste soda, the competitive pressure will not be small. It will not be easy for Yanjing Beer and others to achieve success in the beverage market. (Distributor in the article is a pseudonym) 🔺 Details of the 7th China FMCG Conference Scan code for ticket consultation