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 63 of 196
New Brands: Born Online, Built by Capital, Stuck Offline, at Risk in Street Fights
New consumer brands often start online, grow with capital, but face challenges offline where street-level competition determines success. The article discusses the lifecycle of these brands, the importance of distribution channels, and the need to master offline tactics to become giants.
方刚Replacing MSG and Salt: Songxianxian, the Pioneer of Matsutake Seasoning
Seasoning is a high-frequency and essential track that has attracted much attention, drawing in new players and leading brands from other sectors. In early August, four brands entered the seasoning industry within just five days, including meat product giants like Shuanghui and Longda. As the economy develops, consumers' living standards improve, and basic seasonings like soy sauce, salt, and vinegar no longer meet their needs. The sudden outbreak of the pandemic in 2020 has also heightened consumers' health awareness, making product healthification a major trend for new consumer brands.
吴珊珊How Can New Consumer Brands Survive the Winter?
In August, the number of consumer investment projects began to decline, down 17% month-on-month from July, as institutions became more cautious. With traffic peaking and customer acquisition costs rising, the online environment is no longer fertile ground for new consumer brands that have grown wildly. Winter is coming, and more brands are becoming "traffic workers." For example, Perfect Diary once listed its core competitiveness in its prospectus as leveraging public-domain influencer content marketing to acquire users, then funneling them into WeChat private traffic pools, and using high-frequency community maintenance to boost repurchase rates. However, this traffic playbook has quickly become a required course in the FMCG industry, with tactics being copied rapidly and KOL and traffic prices soaring. High traffic costs mean that while influencers and platforms profit, brands lose money just to gain attention—a dilemma not unique to Perfect Diary.
New DistributionSishijiu Fang: A New Species in the Liquor Industry Making Baijiu Full of Imagination
A group of outsiders crossed over to stir up Chinese baijiu. Is it really a foregone conclusion that traditional famous liquors dominate the mid-to-high-end market? Perhaps it was, but a special liquor company has suddenly made the answer uncertain. What makes this company special? First, it was founded in 2015 when others avoided baijiu, a typical contrarian investment. Second, its shareholders are all natural persons, numbering 49, hence the name 'Sishijiu Fang'.
陈思廷Why Can't Wahaha's New Products Win Over Young Consumers?
Wahaha, once a dominant player in China's beverage market, has struggled to replicate its past successes with new products, as younger consumers gravitate toward trendier brands like Genki Forest. Despite attempts at innovation and brand rejuvenation, the company remains reliant on legacy products and faces significant challenges in finding a new growth curve.
韩滢The Battle for the New King of China's Soft Drink Market | 2021 Annual Review
Driven by Genki Forest, China's soft drink industry is undergoing a revolutionary shift in competitive dynamics. In 2021, the main battleground was the sugar-free sparkling water segment, with traditional giants like Coca-Cola and Nongfu Spring facing off against new entrants like Genki Forest and Heytea.
赵虹宇How Was a Super Distributor Selling 18 Million Cases of Beer Annually Built?
In the world's most dynamic Chinese FMCG market, distributors are the most dynamic group. According to industrial and commercial statistics, there are over 700,000 FMCG distributors active today, but most are scattered, chaotic, and small. There are not many billion-yuan distributors, and super distributors with a scale of one billion yuan are even rarer. The ceiling for traditional distributors is obvious. On one hand, distributors' own capabilities are limited, with bottlenecks in market and team management; on the other hand, brand owners have long been dominated by flattening thinking. These are the limitations and obstacles to distributors growing bigger and stronger...
陈思廷A 10,000-Word Review: How Wang Xiaolu Became the No.1 Brand of Tiger-Skin Chicken Feet with Positioning Theory, Achieving Over 10x Annual Growth
Wang Xiaolu's founder, Wang Xiong, attributes the brand's rapid growth to the strategy of 'focusing on key matters with 10x resources' based on positioning theory. He emphasizes that the ultimate goal of branding is to achieve mental pre-sale, and shares insights on how to apply positioning theory correctly in the new consumer context.
王雄Can Stealing Coca-Cola's Recipe Defeat Coca-Cola?
This article discusses the value of brands, using Coca-Cola as an example. It argues that brand value exceeds recipe value, as a strong brand can enable a company to recover even after losing its physical assets. The article identifies three types of brand value: pre-sale, premium, and extension.
刘润The Private Domain Dilemma of FMCG Brands in New Retail
Why should water sellers and tissue paper sellers engage in private domain operations? Many FMCG brands have such doubts, as they traditionally provide products and services through channels or supermarkets. However, with the rise of the new retail concept, many FMCG brands have entered new retail and private domain operations. This article discusses whether it is valuable for FMCG brands to do private domain, and if so, how to proceed. On November 27, Youzan held an event themed 'Meet the Leaders', pushing the topic of new retail to a new climax.
秦淮How FMCG Brands Can Run Valuable and Effective Marketing Campaigns in CVS Channels
After a product passes its trial period, a brand manager invests in a marketing campaign in convenience stores, only to see poor results. This article addresses the common problem of ineffective marketing in convenience store channels and provides a 12-point framework for designing campaigns that truly engage consumers, emphasizing user-centric thinking over channel-centric thinking.
刘芳Dialogue with Tang Binsen of Genki Forest: Tycoon, Pirate, and Product Manager
Tang Binsen, a serial entrepreneur who made his fortune in internet gaming, entered the beverage industry in 2016 and found his place as an internet tycoon. His company, Genki Forest, sold 100 million boxes of sugar-free sparkling water this year, with 80% from offline sales, and is projected to generate 8.3 billion yuan in revenue, catching up to one-third of Nongfu Spring, a 25-year-old company.
晚点团队The Era of Goat Milk Formula Breakthrough: How Can Distributors Achieve Synergistic Growth in B&C?
Recently, the State Administration for Market Regulation issued new regulations for infant goat milk formula, stipulating that products using bovine whey powder (commonly known as 'mixed goat' or 'half goat' milk powder) can no longer be labeled as 'goat milk powder'. This has prompted many 'half goat' companies to consider transitioning to 'full goat' or exploring other niche categories. The new regulations accelerate the standardization and upgrade of the goat milk powder market, benefiting brands focused on pure goat milk protein formulas.
AmyAfter Seven Years, 'Da Nai Cha' Sets a New Standard for Bottled Milk Tea
Nongfu Spring's new bottled milk tea, 'Da Nai Cha', has become a top seller within a month of launch, thanks to its premium ingredients, advanced homogenization process, and elegant packaging inspired by Song Dynasty tea culture. The product's success reflects Nongfu Spring's patient, innovation-driven approach and its commitment to setting new industry standards.
高级研究员 海游New Brands Going Offline: It's a Street Fight!
As new consumer brands face a turning point, many are moving offline, but the offline market operates on a different logic. This article shares insights from two industry veterans on how to succeed offline, emphasizing the importance of regional dominance, unified sales teams, practical tactics, and strategic pricing.
袁来China's Yogurt War
In recent years, China's yogurt market has been witnessing a battle for the high-end segment. Consumers see not only traditional brands like Mengniu, Yili, Sanyuan, and Guangming but also new forces such as Jane, Le Pur, Classy Kiss, Beihai Pasture, and Oatly, all emphasizing simpler ingredients yet commanding higher prices. This article explores whether high-end low-temperature yogurt is a 'tax on intelligence,' the challenges of cold-chain logistics, and the future of small, beautiful brands in this niche market.
商隐社Leading Soft Drinks but "Lukewarm": How Should the 45 Billion Energy Drink Market Story Be Told?
Undoubtedly, energy drinks will become the next industry hotspot. But where is the next "Red Bull"? On November 1, Coca-Cola announced it had acquired full ownership of sports drink maker BodyArmor. This follows Coca-Cola's 2018 acquisition of 15% of BodyArmor at a discount. The $5.6 billion cash deal for the remaining shares may aim to strengthen competition with PepsiCo in the sports drink sector.
FoodailyWhere to Start with Channel Digitalization?
Many business owners ask me, 'Teacher Zhu, is it too early for our company to start digital transformation?' I express my view in three sentences: digital transformation must be early, must be difficult, and must be done. There is much discussion about digitalization from various angles and positions. Here, I mainly stand from the perspective of brand owners, discussing how enterprises can achieve digitalization through channels. The main problems faced by traditional channels are profit distribution and sell-through at all levels. Simply put, someone is willing to sell, and someone is willing to buy. One is the physical space grab for shelf space, and the other is the occupation of mind space.
朱朝阳Has Wahaha's Third Venture Failed?
Recently, Wahaha milk tea franchisees have been protesting online and offline, accusing the brand of false investment promotion, irregular franchising, and failure to fulfill promises, leading to widespread store closures and losses. This has cast doubt on the success of Wahaha's third venture into the milk tea market.
商隐社Is the Vinegar Business Really That Hard? Hengshun Vinegar Industry Plans Private Placement to Expand into Compound Seasonings
Hengshun Vinegar Industry, facing sluggish vinegar sales, announced a private placement to raise up to 2 billion yuan for expanding production of vinegar, cooking wine, soy sauce, and compound seasonings, aiming to transform from a vinegar leader to a seasoning leader.
New DistributionWho Killed Double 11?
This year's Double 11 saw the slowest growth in transaction value in 12 years, with a year-on-year increase of only 12.2%. The article analyzes the underlying causes, including platform strategy shifts favoring brands over consumers, the rise of livestream e-commerce, and changing consumer behavior among younger generations.
苗正卿Where Is the Spring for Small and Medium-Sized Liquor Enterprises?
A distinguished guest from afar traveled a long distance to Boss Zhang's hometown. At the welcome dinner, although the guest, who frequently flew around the country and held status and prestige, usually drank famous liquors, Boss Zhang did not entertain him with a nationally renowned top-tier baijiu brand but instead chose his hometown's local liquor brand. After the banquet, the guest not only expressed no dissatisfaction but, upon leaving, took the initiative to buy several cases to take back. Boss Zhang, embarrassed to let him pay, gave them free of charge. Later, the guest kept asking Boss Zhang for more, and Boss Zhang kept giving them for free...
朱朝阳How China Can Build World-Class New Consumer Groups: A Deep Dive into Zihaiguo's Business Model
This article explores how Chinese FMCG companies can build world-class consumer brands, using Zihaiguo as a case study. It argues that brands are born from category differentiation and scene evolution, managed through a multi-brand system, and sustained by cultural expression and emotional connection.
空手Why Does the New Consumer Industry Like to Study Jiangxiaobai?
Jiangxiaobai serves as a good example for escaping the involution of the old industry. From the transformation of 'non-mainstream' to 'mainstream', to the construction of the industrial chain and moat, a higher perspective reveals new paths.
雨晴