NEW DISTRIBUTION RESEARCH TOPIC
How can brands grow beyond price competition?
Evidence and cases on product strategy, category innovation, marketing, and channel coordination in China’s consumer market.
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4701 articles · Page 4 of 196
Zhao Bo of New Distribution: 36 Years of FMCG Marketing in China—How Marketing Power Shifted from Channels to Consumers, and Now to Algorithms
In March 2026, while working late, the author asked an AI assistant for a drink recommendation, which led to a realization that marketing power has shifted again. Over 36 years, it moved from channels (1990-2010) to consumers (2011-2023) and now to algorithms and AI (2024-present), fundamentally changing how brands must operate.
赵波Low Prices Alone Cannot Sustain Private Labels
China's private labels are entering a new development phase. With intensifying retail competition and shifting consumer demands, retailers and manufacturers are rethinking product development, supply chain collaboration, and value creation. Private labels are no longer just a tool for price competition but are becoming a key driver for rebuilding product strength, organizational capability, and differentiation. At the 11th China FMCG Conference on March 17, 2026, Fang Xianli, initiator of the Private Label Production-Research Collaboration Platform and executive director of Hangzhou Bimaide Brand, shared insights on the development stages, consumer demand changes, and collaborative creation between retailers and manufacturers.
方献礼From Channel Distribution to User Symbiosis: Reconstructing the Growth Logic of Personal Care Brands
The personal care industry has seen a significant shift in its growth logic. In the past, brands relied on channel distribution, terminal coverage, and regional penetration for steady growth; however, with rising traffic costs, channel fragmentation, and rapidly changing consumer demands, relying solely on shipments and distribution can no longer explain today's growth. For personal care brands, the new question is not just how to distribute products, but whether products can truly meet user needs, whether brands can build sustained choice, and whether channels can become interfaces for user connection. On March 17...
曹业林Big Single Products Are Trapping a Group of Brands
Recently, the innovation head of a leading FMCG brand mentioned that despite huge investments in new products, they have failed to launch a truly scalable big single product. The real issue lies not in innovation or investment but in the obsession with creating a big single product, which is increasingly difficult in today's fragmented market.
葛畅New Technology + New Consumption Era: The Underlying Logic of Marketing and the Path to Breakthrough!
Facing today's rapidly evolving technology and unpredictable consumer demands, where should brand marketing go? Old marketing tactics are becoming less effective, so how should the growth flywheel of the new consumption era spin? At the main forum of the 11th China FMCG Conference (CFC) held from March 16 to 18, Wu Dinan, founding partner of Mingdi Investment/Mingdi Empowerment, delivered a keynote speech titled 'Marketing Breakthrough in the New Technology + New Consumption Era.' He pointed out that to find a breakthrough in the current market environment, one must first clarify what is changing and what remains constant.
吴迪年90% of Brands Are Getting Lightning Warehouses Wrong!
A leading FMCG brand has developed a detailed internal playbook for lightning warehouses, treating it as a standalone business. However, most brands are approaching it with outdated mindsets, structures, and methods, leading to wasted investment and missed opportunities. The article outlines five key misalignments and argues that 2026 is the last low-cost window for brands to establish a controllable supply chain and scalable growth model in this channel.
周群Don't Just 'Copy Homework' When Building Private Brands!
In the past year, traditional retail has faced immense pressure, with the industry undergoing a brutal supply-side clearance and model iteration. Against this backdrop, private brands have become a must for many retailers seeking growth and differentiation. However, is it really that easy? At the CFC 11th China FMCG Conference held in Chengdu from March 16-18, 2026, Xue Wenfa, Deputy General Manager of Guangdong Yinxue Group and a veteran private brand expert, delivered a keynote speech on 'Insight, Breakthrough, and Reconstructing the Growth Path of Private Brands'.
薛文发Exclusive Global Selection! 4000+ Curated New Products Debut, the Next Hit in Food & Beverage Innovation Is Here!
Stop searching for top products and hits in Japan, South Korea, Southeast Asia, Europe, and the US. For channel distributors, the essence of product selection is not about gambling on luck but finding certainty. How can you efficiently and precisely find high-quality, scarce global new product hits? From April 15-17 in Wuxi, the 2026 Foodaily Innovation Expo will bring together 4000+ global new product hits in one place. They come from two curated paths: the deep mining and selection by the Daily Innovation Research Institute (Foodaily Thinking) across 70+ global markets over the past year, and the Chinese innovation benchmarks selected by the iSEE Global Awards with world-class standards.
FoodailyHow FMCG Brands Can Regain Command with bC Integration
As the FMCG industry enters an era of oversupply, brands face the challenge of shifting from distribution-oriented to sell-through-oriented strategies to regain control over channels and terminals. At the CFC Forum held in Chengdu on March 17, Dong Wenbo, founder of Ronghui Data, delivered a keynote on how FMCG brands can use bC integration to reclaim command, sharing insights from his experience building Dongpeng Beverage's digital marketing system.
董文波Hou Xiaohai: My View on the C-End, the Core Logic of the New Consumer World
At the CFC 2026 11th China FMCG Conference, Hou Xiaohai, COO of CP Group China and founding president of the China International Liquor Promotion Association, delivered a keynote speech on the core logic of the C-end in the new consumer world. He proposed the '4P+C = Scenario King' model, emphasizing that in the era of consumer sovereignty, companies must fully commit to the C-end to survive and thrive.
侯孝海Hangzhou Debut! 2026 CHINASHOP Reshapes Retail Innovation with 'Service Quality Enhancement'
2026 marks the start of China's 15th Five-Year Plan, signaling the end of the era where distributors and retailers could rely on scale expansion for easy wins, making deep competition in the existing market a required course. The core contradiction is that consumer demands have changed—have our services kept up? From April 15-17, 2026, the 26th China Retail Industry Expo (2026 CHINASHOP) will debut in Hangzhou, themed 'Service Quality Enhancement,' responding to the industry's shift from 'transaction-driven' to 'experience-driven'.
New DistributionGenki Forest's Young Product Innovation Laboratory
Genki Forest gives young product managers a public testing stage, a pilot factory, and an agile R&D system so that more small ideas can become testable products before the market decides their future.
New DistributionThree Key Points for Implementing Scenario Marketing
At the CFC Conference in Chengdu on March 17, 2026, Professor Liu Chunxiong of Zhengzhou University and Deputy Director of the Scenario Marketing Research Institute delivered a keynote speech on the three key points for implementing scenario marketing, addressing the industry's pain point of 'much talk, little implementation' and providing practical guidance for growth in an era of oversupply.
刘春雄The Underestimated County-Level Market Is Starting to Boom!
“Our business was exceptionally booming this Spring Festival, open even during the day on New Year's Eve, and we couldn't keep up with stocking the shelves...” Returning to the county town for the New Year, the author not only noticed many new snack stores but also received similar responses when visiting several. Rather than returning young people driving snack store business, it's more accurate to say that snack stores are well-suited to the soil of lower-tier markets. Of course, it's not just snack stores—Mixue Ice City, Luckin Coffee, KFC, and even Starbucks are blossoming across county-level markets, showing that brand supply is rapidly converging between lower-tier and first- and second-tier cities, reflecting the vigorous consumption power of county markets and the new reality of Chinese consumption: the democratization of mass consumption.
张振宇Are Chinese Brands Going All Out in the Five Central Asian Countries?
If the past decade was about Chinese brands feeling their way overseas, today in Central Asia, we are not just touching the stones but seeing the direction of the water and even starting to build bridges. In recent months, I've spoken with several brand operators exploring the Central Asian market, and a common feeling is becoming clearer: Chinese brands are beginning to see opportunities emerge in Central Asia. Of course, at the same time, from last year to this year, more Chinese people are coming to Central Asia to seek opportunities. In Almaty, Chinese freshly made tea beverage stores are becoming a new consumption scene where local young consumers are willing to queue up and check in; in Tashkent, Chinese snacks and beverages are increasingly entering traditional markets and retail shelves.
戚特China Resources Beer 2025 Annual Report: Beer Profit Surges 17.4%, Baijiu Pain Does Not Alter Long-Term Course
On March 23, China Resources Beer (00291.HK) held its 2025 annual results conference in Hong Kong. On the surface, due to a 2.877 billion yuan impairment of baijiu goodwill, the company's profit attributable to shareholders was 3.371 billion yuan. However, excluding special items such as goodwill impairment, relocation gains, and capacity optimization, profit attributable to shareholders reached 5.724 billion yuan, up 19.6% year-on-year. Beer business EBITDA increased 17.4% year-on-year to 9.611 billion yuan. Consolidated turnover was 37.985 billion yuan, with cumulative growth of 6.537 billion yuan during the 14th Five-Year Plan period.
New DistributionMore Beverages Sold, Less Money Earned: Some Distributors Begin to Recalculate a 'Non-Mainstream Category'
A beverage distributor with ten years of experience described this year's business as 'selling more goods but earning less money.' As promotions pile up, profits thin out, prompting more distributors to reconsider their product mix. In this context, some are turning to non-mainstream categories like areca nut, with new-style products such as Bingqi gaining attention for their longer shelf life and higher margins.
AmyFrom Pioneer to Leader: Damowang Opens a New Track of Rich-Flavor Snacks with Sesame Sauce Konjac Tripe
At the 2026 Chengdu Sugar Fair, a stark contrast was observed: industry-wide anxiety over slow sales, high inventory, and price chaos versus the bustling booth of Yanjin Shop's Damowang, where distributors crowded to inquire and order. Frost & Sullivan's latest certification shows Damowang's Sesame Sauce Konjac Tripe has been the national sales leader for three consecutive years, proving it as a truly reliable product in a market flooded with options.
任文青AndyALDI Surpasses 100 Stores in China, Marking a Key Milestone
After seven years of deep cultivation and expansion, ALDI has finally reached the milestone of 100 stores in China. On March 21, two new stores opened in Zhenjiang, Jiangsu, and one in Shanghai, bringing the total to over 100 and signaling accelerated expansion in the Yangtze River Delta region.
联商网编辑部When Sparkling Juice Becomes a New Staple in Foodservice, How Does Jiuri Validate Category Value with 'Four-Exhibition Linkage'?
In March, the 2026 Spring Sugar Fair arrived as scheduled. This year, Jiuri, a brand deeply rooted in the imported food sector for 18 years, made a decision that drew industry attention—breaking the conventional single-hall model to debut at the fair with a 'four-exhibition linkage' across Western Expo City 10F, Century City S8F, Tibet Hotel 218, and Crowne Plaza Zongfu 2F. This is not merely an expansion of booth space but a deep confidence in the commercial value of the 'sparkling juice' niche and a strategic declaration to find incremental growth in an era of stock competition.
New DistributionDirect Hit at the Spring Sugar Fair! Dali Strongly Leads, Full-Category Upgrade Anchors New Industry Direction
In the channel, a change in 'product selection' is underway. Distributors are shifting from 'stocking more' to 'selecting better products'; consumers in stores repeatedly check ingredient lists, making more rational decisions; in special channels like schools, 'high-oil, high-salt, high-fat' products are explicitly restricted. These dual changes in channels and consumption are reshaping product entry barriers. Clearly, products with health attributes, clear selling points, and defined consumption scenarios are becoming the new 'passport.' As the Chengdu Spring Sugar Fair approaches, a new product cycle is unfolding. As a leading domestic food company, Dali Foods is participating in this spring fair, launching over 60 new products across core categories.
田静After 3·15, Which Chicken Feet Snack Brand Can Distributors Still Choose? This Brand Has Laid All Its Cards on the Table
Following the 3·15 Gala's exposure of illegal hydrogen peroxide use in the chicken feet industry, market sentiment has quickly spread to distributors—consumers are asking questions, procurement is demanding qualifications, and some stores have begun proactively removing problematic brands. The industry is undergoing accelerated reshuffling. In this context, distributors urgently need a verifiable set of product selection criteria. The following is a statement from Yijiaxin Foods for distributors' reference.
品牌发声Sunshine Supermarket GM: Adjustments Without Category Management Are All in Vain
As we enter 2026, supermarket adjustments are no longer a new concept. Many companies try to copy benchmarks to find a cure, but few achieve a closed-loop business logic. In a recent interview, Si Kai, GM of Handan Sunshine Supermarket, shares his 30 years of frontline experience, emphasizing that retail has no mysticism; all growth must be built on a scientific framework. He argues that adjustments without target customers, category logic, and efficiency models are all in vain.
赵胜男Mengniu Enters the Sports Drink Arena: How Big a New Battlefield Can a 'Hydrating Plus Calcium' Electrolyte Drink Open?
China's sports drink market is undergoing profound structural change. Over the past decade, electrolyte drinks have grown from a niche sports supplement into one of the fastest-growing beverage segments. Now, a new wave of entrants is trying to open a third layer of competition—not just 'hydration,' but 'what to replenish and how.' Mengniu, one of China's largest dairy companies, is a notable player in this shift, launching a 'milk calcium electrolyte drink' in 2026 that introduces natural milk-derived calcium to the category, selling over 100,000 bottles in online trials within a month.
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