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Browse 1976 New Distribution articles about Retail Formats.
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1976 articles · Page 12 of 83
Small Formats Making a Comeback?
After a period of silence, the community store track is heating up again. Walmart has opened two community stores in Shenzhen, featuring refined store designs and integrated online-offline operations, while ALDI, Hema, and Meituan are also expanding their small-format stores. This resurgence is driven by changing consumer habits and a focus on supply chain efficiency and cost control, marking a shift from the previous 'traffic-first' approach to a more sustainable, profit-oriented model.
十里Why Are Convenience Stores in Zhengzhou Numerous but Not Strong?
Since the 1990s, Zhengzhou, as a commercial hub in the Central Plains, has seen the emergence of convenience store brands such as Silin Supermarket and Apollo Convenience Store. After more than 30 years of development, the chain convenience store sector in Zhengzhou now features a tripartite competition among local chains (e.g., Yuelai Yuexi, Fulu Jia), leading domestic chains (e.g., Meiyijia, Tangjiu Convenience), and foreign chains (e.g., 7-ELEVEn Henan). The store density exceeds the national average, but the sector faces deep challenges in regional competition and growth momentum.
RBF团队JD.com Joins Forces with Pangdonglai: Liu Qiangdong's Physical Retail Ambition and Yu Donglai's Online Needs
Liu Qiangdong and Yu Donglai, two entrepreneurs recently in the public spotlight, have officially joined forces. In June, the first Henan supply chain industrial base jointly built by Pangdonglai and JD Logistics will begin operations, with an annual output value of about 2.5 billion yuan and taxes and profits of 50 million yuan.
RBF团队No One Eating Instant Rice Anymore? Sam's Club Supplier Creates Hezhenran Brand, Selling 18 Million Boxes in One Year!
New-style instant food is struggling: Kantar data shows that in 2024, sales of China's new-style instant food market, with penetration nearing 60%, fell 9% year-on-year. A key reason is that consumers are no longer willing to pay high prices. Data indicates that across categories like instant noodles, instant hotpot, and instant rice, mid- and low-priced products are gaining share while high-priced products are declining sharply. In the new consumption era, new-style instant food, which grew rapidly during the pandemic, now faces real challenges: on one hand, consumers want healthier, better-tasting products at lower prices; on the other, the expansion of food delivery and innovation in traditional instant noodles are accelerating competition for existing market demand.
任文青AndyBig KAs Fall, LKAs Stand Firm
The rise of new retail in China, whether warehouse clubs, hard discount, or instant retail, is diverting business from traditional retail and forcing supermarkets to reform. However, a fact often overlooked is that Pangdonglai, the most cited model for supermarket reform, is an LKA that opened in 1997. Moreover, Pangdonglai is not unique; many LKAs like Hebei Xinyu Lou, Northeast Beiyoute, and Xiamen Yuanchu have remained resilient by leveraging regional advantages.
张振宇Supermarkets in County Towns Are Increasingly Struggling
Once indispensable in county towns and townships, small and medium supermarkets are now facing an unprecedented survival crisis. With daily revenue as low as 1,000 yuan and weekly sales of a single bottle of shampoo, the decline is stark. The article analyzes the causes, including the shift to online shopping and the rise of community group buying, and suggests strategies for survival, such as supply chain reform and exploring larger supermarket formats in lower-tier markets.
程信A Decade of Co-opetition in China's Convenience Store Industry: Lessons Learned
The annual China Convenience Store Conference, organized by the China Chain Store & Franchise Association, has evolved over the past decade, reflecting the industry's journey from market exploration to standardization and digitalization. As convenience stores face increasing competition from cross-sector players like snack stores, discounters, and delivery platforms, they must redefine their value proposition and innovate to thrive.
RBF团队“Eliminating Middlemen” Is Impossible!
The retail industry's narrative of 'de-intermediation' reached a climax on March 29 when Ye Guofu declared at Yonghui's 2025 supplier conference, 'Implement naked-price direct sourcing and eliminate all middlemen!' While change is certain and de-intermediation is a trend, completely removing middlemen is a false proposition. In many cases, middlemen perform indispensable functions, and it's impossible for all retailers to deal directly with manufacturers. The real shift is not eliminating middlemen but replacing traditional distributors with more efficient new forms, such as category operators.
任文青AndyRT-Mart, Which Didn't Join 'Pang Reform', Achieves Turnaround to Profit
In recent years, low prices have swept through China's retail industry, and hypermarket businesses have been retreating under pressure from membership stores, snack stores, community group buying, and other retail formats. According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics, the number of chain supermarket closures in China reached 12,000 in 2024, with the closure rate up 2.3 percentage points from 2023, and regional supermarkets accounting for 68% of closures, further compressing the survival space of traditional hypermarkets. To survive, many leading supermarket chains last year embarked on adjustment reforms, including Better Life, Jiabaili, Yonghui Superstores, Wumart, Heli, and others. In contrast, RT-Mart, the 'king of supermarkets,' when mentioned externally, often quotes its founder's words: 'We defeated all competitors but lost to the era; when the era abandons you, it doesn't even say goodbye.' Last year, aside from news of being sold, Gaoxin Retail seemed quiet in its operational measures. But it was this quiet RT-Mart that achieved a turnaround to profit in fiscal year 2025, delivering a commendable report card.
New DistributionThe Rise and Fall of Supermarkets in Shenzhen: Making Sam's Club a Global Bestseller, Yet Failing to Create a 'Pang Donglai'
In early May, the old Shenzhen supermarket chain Renrenle was delisted after four consecutive years of losses, closing 45 stores and transferring 15 in the past year, while opening only one new store. In contrast, Sam's Club is opening its fifth store in Shenzhen this year, making the city second only to Shanghai in the number of Sam's Club locations, and the Futian store has been the global sales champion for 15 consecutive years since 2008. Despite once being a cradle of Chinese supermarket giants, Shenzhen's retail sector has failed to produce a homegrown 'Pang Donglai'.
小圳子From BiuTe to ZhenShiMei: A Retail-Savvy Distributor Representing 460+ Brands and Serving 1,000+ Supermarket Stores
In 2023, when we first approached brands under the name ZhenShiMei, some thought we were frauds. Today, when we meet those brands in various settings, they say, 'We didn't expect you to still be here; let's find an opportunity to cooperate well.' After initial difficulties, this company, founded less than two years ago, has entered a fast-growth track: its represented brands have grown from 80 to over 460, and it serves 51 chain supermarket systems with over 1,000 stores in total.
任文青AndyAldi's First Kunshan Store Exceeds 1.1 Million Yuan in Single-Day Sales, Signaling the 'Community Supermarket Battle'?
On May 10, Aldi's first store in Kunshan saw over 100,000 visitors and single-day sales of 1.1 million yuan, setting a new record and highlighting its strategic entry into China's lower-tier markets. This success underscores Aldi's precise positioning in counties like Kunshan, which boasts a GDP of 538 billion yuan and per capita disposable income exceeding 70,000 yuan, fueling a retail revolution in community supermarkets.
零售商业评论After 8 Years in Distribution, Annual Sales of 1.2 Billion, Covering 23,000 Local Small Stores: The Growth Story of Jiapin Yunshi
One distributor achieved annual sales of 1.2 billion yuan just 8 years after starting, a rarity in China's FMCG distribution sector. Founded in March 2017, it broke 1 million in its first month, 10 million monthly by December 2017, 20 million monthly by December 2018 with annual sales exceeding 100 million, and 30 million monthly by August 2019. From 2017 to 2024, the company maintained rapid growth with a 25% year-on-year increase, and to date, Jiapin Yunshi covers 23,000+ mom-and-pop stores in Xi'an with 7000+ SKUs and annual sales of 1.2 billion yuan.
袁来Professor Chen Liping: From Retail Revolution to Circulation Revolution, How Can China's Supermarket Industry Cross the Cycle?
China's supermarket industry has shown clear phased development over the past 30 years, with major changes every decade. Currently, the industry is undergoing a new round of transformation, which can be called the second revolution in the circulation field. To achieve cross-cycle development, enterprises must adapt to environmental changes and survive by being fit. The article discusses the current changes, the shift from retail to circulation revolution, and predictions for the next decade.
CCFATesting Small Stores: Walmart 'Learns from' ALDI
Walmart is testing 500-square-meter community stores in China, a move netizens have dubbed as 'learning from' discount retail pioneer ALDI. Both retail giants are targeting small-format supermarkets in China, with Walmart exploring a third growth curve beyond hypermarkets and Sam's Club.
祖龙Is Wumart Beijing's 'Pang-Donglai-Style' Store Adjustment Going Smoothly?
During the May Day holiday, Wumart's first self-adjusted store in Beijing, modeled after Pang Donglai, performed steadily. Since its reopening on March 21, 2025, after over a month of operational磨合, the adjusted operations have smoothly transitioned and met expected goals. Holiday data shows sales at the Xueqing Road store in Haidian District grew about 190% year-on-year, transaction count rose about 95%, and average ticket price increased about 50%.
潘玉明First Step of Supermarket Reform: 'Squeeze' Distributors, Second Step: 'Drive Crazy' Brand Owners?
At Yonghui Superstores' 2025 Global Supplier Conference, Ye Guofu proposed supply chain reform, explicitly eliminating intermediaries, which caused an uproar in the industry. Intermediaries are essentially distributors in the traditional distribution chain who handle logistics and advance funds. On the surface, only distributors seem affected, but historically, distributors have often acted as 'workers' for brand owners. As supermarket reforms proceed, upstream brand owners will inevitably face a new set of game rules.
汪海Supermarket 2024 Financial Reports: Store Closures and Adjustments Cannot Mask Industry Pain
A review of 2024 financial reports from 11 listed supermarket chains shows that revenue and profit declines have become the industry norm, with 8 companies reporting lower revenue. While some firms like Better Life and Hongqi Chain showed resilience, the overall picture is one of shrinking profitability, prompting widespread store closures and operational adjustments.
十里After the Hype: Snacks Face a New Round of Reshuffling and Breakout
Over the past two years, Chinese consumers have achieved 'snack freedom.' From first- and second-tier cities to county towns and even rural streets, snack stores are everywhere, with prices getting cheaper. Even premium brands like Bestore and Three Squirrels have cut prices. But while the front end is bustling, the back end is struggling: price wars have squeezed profits, and the industry is facing a reshuffle.
侯恬Why Is Alibaba Reducing Its Stake in This Ningbo Supermarket Leader for the First Time?
Following the divestiture of Intime and Sun Art Retail, Alibaba has made a new move in exiting traditional physical retail. On April 21, Sanjiang Shopping Club Co., Ltd. (601116.SH) announced that Alibaba Zetai plans to reduce its shareholding by no more than 16.43 million shares, or 3% of total capital, marking the first such reduction in nine years.
联商网编辑部10,000+ SKUs, Covering 4,000+ Outlets: Turning a Traditional Trading Company into a 'One-Stop Supply Platform' for Local Retail Stores!
In recent years, New Distribution has visited many distributor bosses who report that business is tough and revenue growth without profit growth is the norm. Many distributors are struggling to survive, being eliminated by the market, or acquired by competitors. The main difficulty for distributors today is the increased uncertainty in the downstream retail market. On one hand, the wave of traditional supermarket closures leads to customer loss, and mid-sized stores have weaker risk resistance. On the other hand, snack stores are expanding aggressively with low prices, followed by discount stores, and supermarket renovations require distributors to supply at bare prices. These channel changes have a huge impact on today's distributors.
汪海Convenience Store Giants' Hidden Battle: 7-Eleven's "Zero" Growth, FamilyMart and Lawson "Close In"
According to Lianshang.com statistics, globally as of the end of February 2025, 7-Eleven had 85,816 stores, significantly more than FamilyMart (24,620) and Lawson (22,098). Its overall sales were about four times that of FamilyMart and more than four times that of Lawson. In terms of market scale, 7-Eleven's position remains unshakable. However, beneath the calm surface, undercurrents are stirring. In the just-concluded fiscal year 2024, in stark contrast to the continuous profit growth of FamilyMart and Lawson, 7-Eleven's profits declined significantly. More critically...
联商网编辑部Another 'Poor Man's Supermarket' Comes to China
Despite tariff turmoil, UK-based frozen food supermarket Iceland has returned to China, opening its first physical store in Beijing. The 6,800 sqm store, named Iceland Lab, offers 3,200 SKUs of packaged frozen foods and aims to maintain its value-for-money positioning while adapting to local tastes and supply chains.
彭倩Bare Procurement ≠ Saving Money: The Pitfalls of Supermarket Direct Sourcing
During a recent market visit to Tibet, I observed that local supermarkets in Lhasa and Nyingchi are emulating Pangdonglai with improved fresh, bakery, and deli sections and lower shelving. However, many are falling into the trap of direct sourcing without considering operational capabilities, leading to hidden costs and inefficiencies. This article explores the complexities of direct sourcing versus distributor supply, offering guidance on product selection, new product introduction, KPI setting, and the importance of a professional procurement team.
王正齐