NEW DISTRIBUTION RESEARCH TOPIC
How can distributors keep growing across fragmented channels?
Front-line analysis of product selection, organization, channel strategy, profit models, and business transformation for FMCG distributors.
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4620 articles · Page 14 of 193
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Andy“Lost Over 700,000 in a Year, Yet I Still Want to Keep Selling Ice Cream”
Li Zhiguo, an ice cream and frozen food distributor from Hebei, has been in the industry for 34 years, losing over 700,000 yuan last year. Despite setbacks, he remains determined to continue, reflecting the resilience of many in the cold beverage industry.
不旧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.
CCFA2025 Ice Cream Selection Guide: How Andros Becomes the Growth Code for Distributors
As summer approaches, competition in the ice cream market is heating up. With the wave of consumption upgrades, consumer demand for ice cream has evolved from simple refreshment to a pursuit of quality, taste, and social attributes. In this trend, GELATO is rapidly becoming the focus of foodservice ice cream selection. How to find high-repurchase, high-premium, and highly adaptable bestsellers in fierce market competition? Andros, a French fruit expert with a century-long history, provides full-chain growth solutions for B-end groups such as distributors.
New DistributionFirst 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The Era of Integrated Production-Supply-Marketing: 80% of Distributors Will Be Eliminated!
China's FMCG distribution industry is undergoing a historic transformation. In an economic downturn, the positions of producers, distributors, and retailers are weakening, with distributors being the most vulnerable. However, distributors will not be completely eliminated. Long-term trends include retailers directly connecting with brands, discount stores and supermarkets building their own logistics, accelerated industry consolidation, and data capabilities replacing traditional relationship-based intermediation. Japan's experience shows that surviving distributors are either large, comprehensive players or small specialized ones, offering a model for Chinese distributors to adapt.
New DistributionMajor Price Cuts in the Beverage Industry!
Amid the wave of consumption stratification, China's beverage industry is undergoing a notable price 'earthquake.' Distributors in South and North China report that consumer spending has become more cautious, high-priced beverage sales have shrunk, and the overall price band has shifted downward, with mainstream products dropping from the 6-8 yuan range to 3-5 yuan or even lower.
田静Distributors Who Don't Understand Retail Are Out!
At the beginning of this year, I shared a viewpoint at various brand owners' annual distributor conferences that, based on our observations, there are three major themes in the retail market changes in 2025: first, the trend of supermarket remodeling is stronger; second, instant retail O2O is intensifying; third, discount retail is expanding. This article focuses on discount retail, explaining its underlying logic and how distributors should respond by actively researching and cooperating with advanced retail formats, such as the 'Save Money Supermarket' study tour organized by New Distribution.
袁来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For Distributors Starting B2b, the Simpler the Warehousing and Distribution, the Better
In recent years, the topic of distributors entering B2b has been hot, but during exchanges, it's clear that many distributors focus only on the sales side—building teams, assembling product portfolios, opening stores—while neglecting the construction of warehousing and distribution. This often results in increased front-end orders, but the back-end warehousing, picking, and distribution cannot effectively meet order demands, forcing them to spend time optimizing warehouse operations. This wastes time and leads to poor customer experience. Distributors entering B2b must examine whether their existing warehousing and distribution can support their B2b operations. This article will discuss the changes and considerations in warehousing and distribution when transforming from traditional trading to B2b.
徐桢Frozen Food Distributors Are Abandoning Frozen Dumplings, Turning to These Three Categories!
Source: Whole Food Online. A question for those in the frozen food business: do you think frozen dumplings still sell well? Recently, Sanquan Foods released its 2024 financial report, showing declines in both revenue and net profit. The company attributed this to a slowing industry and intense competition. Meanwhile, data from Mayingying shows that in Q1 2025, the market share of frozen dumplings, buns, and wontons all declined, while categories like hand-grabbed pancakes, sausages, and frozen pizza are growing rapidly.
百万食饮人都在看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"Li Gui" Exposed: Longjiao San Wins Another Case—What Signal Does This Trademark Lawsuit Send?
As the 25th World Intellectual Property Day approaches, the century-old throat care brand Longjiao San (Ryukakusan) has won two trademark enforcement lawsuits in China. The Jinjiang City People's Court in Fujian ruled that Fujian Jiujiuwang Food Industry Co., Ltd. infringed on Longjiao San's registered trademark by using a highly similar mark, ordering it to stop infringement and pay compensation; the Zhuji City People's Court in Zhejiang ruled that Chao'an Buer Chen Food Technology Co., Ltd. and former store operator Ying Huahong committed trademark infringement and unfair competition, ordering them to cease infringement and pay damages.
AmyShould Distributors Make Short Videos? In 2 Years, She Attracted 2,000+ New Customers Proactively! Sales Doubled
As short videos become part of daily life, more distributors are tapping into their traffic potential. A post-95s distributor in Hebei Langfang used 536 short videos over two years to attract over 2,000 new customers, reactivate 42% of old customers, and double annual sales.
葛畅Sales Break 1 Billion in First Year on Market: Distributors Say Yuanqi Forest's Hao Zizai's Biggest Challenge Isn't Sell-Through, It's Stockouts
Distributors repeatedly cite the difficulty of finding products with long-term potential as a key pain point, with only 12% of new beverage products surviving. However, Yuanqi Forest's Hao Zizai brand, launched in 2023, has achieved national sales leadership in the 2024 Chinese-style health beverage category, according to Euromonitor International, and distributors highlight its stable sell-through, multi-scenario appeal, and clear growth trajectory as reasons for their confidence.
何雯Industry reshuffle accelerates: Why are distributors willing to bet on Oreo? What changes is the gameplay, what remains is the playful spirit!
In the past two years, the FMCG market landscape has changed rapidly and dramatically, especially in the snack category. Small brands and white-label products have risen quickly with the trend of discount snack stores, leaving many leading brands struggling with slow sales and cautious inventory. However, Oreo stands out as an exception, consistently occupying prime shelf space and maintaining steady growth even in discount stores. This article explores how Oreo, a classic brand with over a century of history, continues to thrive through innovative marketing and product strategies that resonate with consumers' emotions and cultural identity.
张雨薇The 6th Stop of the 'National Benchmark Distributor Deep Study Tour' in Hefei · Baili Foods Concluded Successfully!
From April 25 to 26, the 6th stop of the 'National Benchmark Distributor Deep Study Tour' in Hefei · Baili Foods concluded successfully. The tour focused on topics such as business development guidelines for urban snack food distributors, analysis of snack food category operation models, self-upgrading and breakthrough for distributors, and warehouse management that improved order picking fulfillment rate to 99.95%. Over 120 distributor owners from across the country gathered to engage in in-depth discussions with Yuan Lai, Chief Content Officer of New Distribution; Liu Lina, Chairman of Hefei Baili Foods; Yang Jinhu, General Manager of Hefei Baili Foods; and Kong Ming, Chief Product Operations Expert of Zhoupu Data.
New DistributionUpstream Pressure, Dealers Lying Flat? How the FMCG Industry Can Escape the Vicious Cycle of 'Manufacturer-Dealer Conflict and Mutual Exhaustion'
With economic downturn, channel fragmentation, and shrinking profits, the battle between brands and dealers in 2025 has entered the 'deep water zone.' Manufacturers complain about dealers' 'lying flat to earn' mentality, while dealers accuse manufacturers of 'pressuring inventory and bleeding them dry.' Both sides know that only by restructuring cooperation models can they break the zero-sum game and find new growth opportunities.
邢仁宝80% of Distributors Will Be Eliminated! Where Is the Way Out for Distributors in the Era of Integrated Production, Supply, and Sales?
The whole society is facing insufficient effective demand, which will intensify in the context of East-West confrontation. With the increasing risk of a US economic recession, the current economy is at a historic turning point. Many people around us are still in a state of confusion. For the sake of business, most of us maintain meager profits, hoping that the market will reverse after a few years. If you think this way, it shows you are still living in the old mindset. It is difficult for people to break free from our fixed thinking patterns, as this is determined by our natural physiological structure; we are inherently prone to laziness in thinking.
戚特A Single Product Sold 100,000 Units, Breaking 10 Million in 3 Months: The New Opportunity for FMCG Distributors
Distributors' businesses are increasingly difficult, as traditional retail accelerates disintermediation and new retail formats expand offline. However, platforms like Dewu offer a new growth opportunity with high natural traffic, low costs, and high profits, enabling even inexperienced distributors to succeed online.
AsherNo Burning Money, No Rash Moves: How Can Distributors Build a B2b Business from Scratch?
During recent visits to distributors to help them implement B2b transformations, the author observed a clear divide in understanding: while most agree B2b can solve traditional trade pain points, many are stuck at the implementation stage. This article outlines which types of distributors are best suited for B2b, common pitfalls to avoid, and a phased approach to building a B2b platform from zero to one.
云川The Second Half of the FMCG Industry: Retailers Lead a New Circulation Revolution, Entering the Era of 'Integrated Production, Supply, and Sales'
From last year to the first half of this year, several major events have occurred: 1. Retail enterprises have begun to build their own supply chain companies. On March 31, Jiangsu regional retailer Hongxin Supermarket listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. According to its prospectus, wholesale business accounted for about 56% of revenue in the first nine months of 2024, and its wholesale business grew much faster than retail. Traditional retailers are no longer limited to a single retail business; the model of wholesale + retail + regional deep cultivation has begun to enter the public eye. In addition, since the second half of last year, Metro...
戚特60-Day Payment Terms Should Not Be a Noose Strangling SMEs
Chinese businesses have long valued the principle of 'money in hand,' and timely payment is crucial for cash flow. However, excessively long payment terms imposed by large retailers and e-commerce platforms have become a hidden operational cost, threatening the survival of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). This article examines the issue and calls for shorter payment cycles to foster a healthier business ecosystem.
瀚星"Where There Are Scenes, There Is Sales": Brands Need a Scene 'Roadmap' for Sustained Growth
Coca-Cola's sustained growth is attributed to its consistent practice of scene marketing, which involves discovering new consumption scenes. The article introduces a scene marketing roadmap for new brands, comprising four types of scenes: source scenes, lead scenes, mainline scenes, and branch scenes, guiding brands from initial user education to sales expansion.
刘春雄