There is a very popular joke on the Internet:
A Jew opened a gas station, and business went viral; Immediately another Jew opened a restaurant nearby, and then a third opened a supermarket; Fourth, fifth...... More and more people are coming from outside, gas stations, restaurants, supermarkets are interlocking, and business is getting hotter and hotter.
Chinese do business, you open a gas station on fire, immediately someone next to it also opened a gas station, the third person looked at the eyes, also opened a (gas station), not only open, I want to sell cheaper. Then after a while, there were gas stations in front of and on the left and right! …… In the end, no one can make money from vicious competition......
It's said to be an old-fashioned joke, but such a story is being played out on the Chinese craft brewing track.
Craft beer involution is very serious, what is the roll? Most of them are in volume prices.
Especially in the sinking market, in order to grab consumers, everyone stares at each other closely. Today you buy two get one free, tomorrow I will have a 50% discount on a single product, you dare to sell 200, I dare to sell 100, for fear that the other party's price is lower than your own and rob the customer. As a result, the price war is fighting, and everyone has no profits.
The price war is a low-level competition of "hurting the enemy by a thousand and losing by eight hundred", and the price war without a bottom line will only bring consumers a worse consumption experience, and as a result, bad money drives out good money, so that the entire industry is caught in a vicious circle.
Photo source: unsplash
When everyone only focuses on the price and only pays attention to the opponent's movements, the vision naturally becomes narrow. If you roll in the wrong direction, it is easy to walk into a dead end, and the more you roll, the more uncomfortable you will be. In this process, many merchants either actively or passively participate in the price war, and the result is a complete defeat.
Let's take a look at Japan's "lost 30 years", after the bursting of the economic bubble in the 90s, the Japanese economy suffered a severe blow, consumer confidence weakened significantly, and the economic development trend has many similarities with China's current development.
In the face of the problem of involution, Japan is still out of Uniqlo, Don Quixote, Nintendo, Lawson, 7-11 and other giants, what can we learn from this?
When I traveled to Tokyo in 2012, I walked into a pub in order to experience the local tavern culture.
The izakaya store is not large, and most of the dishes on the menu are oden, and the rest is alcohol. There were a lot of customers sitting in the shop, but what was confusing was that we all drank heavily and toasted from time to time. But the people next to him basically took a sip of it, as if they were reluctant to drink.
At first, we thought it was some special custom, but then we asked the part-time Chinese students to find out that it turned out that this was a special shop where apprentices invited their masters to drink, and they were reluctant to drink because of their respective AA payments.
I was struck by this experience, how far the tavern subdivision in Japan has become. People of different genders, ages, identities, and even preferences can find a izakaya that suits them.
Source: Little Red Book
In Hokkaido, I came across an izakaya that caters to single diners, with a dedicated drinking stall for single people, a power outlet for charging devices such as mobile phones, and a sterilized tablet for ordering food. This arrangement is to provide a safe and comfortable drinking place for consumers who are somewhat socially fearful and tired of trouble.
Not only accurately segmenting the population, but also customizing products for different consumer groups is also the strength of Japanese brands.
Suntory has launched a pre-mixed drink with Leyi for women, focusing on a relaxing and solitary drinking scene; For male customers, Golden Wheat was launched, emphasizing the attributes of food accompaniment.
Noticing that consumer preferences change with the seasons, Kirin Beer has been offering seasonal packages since 2014: Sakura from March to May and Maple Leaf from September to November.
In addition to market segments, Japanese brands are also good at innovation.
In the 80s, almost all beer brands in Japan were producing traditional beers with a slightly bitter taste.
Asahi Brewery's research found that with the younger consumer group and the change of consumption habits, users will expect more refreshing beer.
As a result, Super Dry was boldly launched, with "freshness" as the goal of customer satisfaction, and this single product increased the market share of Asahi Beer from 10% to about 25% in one fell swoop, setting off a revolution in the taste of beer in Japan.
Image source network
In the face of severe market challenges, Kirin then made a strong attack, and the beer was squeezed to extract the first wort to brew beer, pursuing the authentic pure taste and achieving a refreshing beer taste, from which the name "Ichiban Press" was derived.
Not to be outdone, Sapporo Beer has been able to cater to consumers' aesthetics and stimulate sales by producing and updating its product "Sapporo Beer Black Label".
In addition, beer is a very experience-oriented and service-oriented category, and good service creates a good consumer experience.
The standard of Japan's overall service industry is worth learning from, whether it is an izakaya or any small shop, the service level will not be very sluggish, and it has formed their industry standard.
China has a broader market and a larger consumer base. According to the division of the Miura Exhibition, the second and fourth consumer societies exist in the Chinese market almost at the same time, which also means that a variety of different consumer needs are constantly occurring, and no matter how small the group of people is, it will be a huge incremental market.
In terms of industry development, Japan has set an example and provided us with a path to learn from. For Chinese beer, in the face of the crowded market, it is necessary to roll up quality, roll service, roll tavern segmentation, roll scene building, roll product innovation, roll out of new heights, roll out of new profits, roll out of the new world of the industry.
Resources:
1. DIGITALING, Edith, Suntory, play "breaking homogenization" clearly