To fully embrace C, you must first "become C." Yanghe, Shede, Meituan, 1919... This industry dialogue provides the answer.

The baijiu industry is now saying goodbye to extensive channel expansion and entering a deep restructuring period centered on consumer demand.

Behind the rational return is a true awakening of marketization—the era of consumer sovereignty.

How to “return” to the consumer’s side is no longer a rhetorical device in marketing discourse, but a touchstone to test the sincerity of corporate strategy. Fully engaging with C and facing the C end is evolving from a path choice to an industry consensus.

On March 27, 2023, the “Daily Economic News” held the 2026 Liquor Industry Innovation Think Tank in Chengdu, themed “Gathering Strength towards C to Restructure the Future,” bringing together liquor companies, industry associations, e-commerce platforms, capital institutions, and industry experts to explore ways to break the bottleneck in the liquor industry.

During the roundtable dialogue hosted by independent liquor commentator Xiao Zhuqing, Du Liangliang, Deputy General Manager of the Sichuan-Chongqing Division of Yanghe Co., Ltd., Zhu Yingcai, General Manager of Marketing Operations Management Center and International Division of Shede Liquor, Li Yuxin, Assistant to the Chairman of 1919 Group, and Wang Wei, Head of Alcoholic Beverages and Tea at Meituan Flash Purchase, discussed the topic of “Market Shift towards C” from the perspective of new consumption, exploring how to reach consumers more accurately and deeply.

From controlling the terminal to activating consumers, it requires the entire supply chain to achieve this together.

At this year’s “New Spring First Meeting,” major liquor companies once again highlighted a crucial shift in thinking: focusing on consumers.

In this roundtable session, the dialogue matrix of liquor companies and channels provided a more comprehensive reference for this consensus.

“In the era of consumer sovereignty, marketing should shift its focus to consumers, responding to their genuine demands.” Zhu Yingcai made his point clear at the beginning of the roundtable dialogue. In his view, the core of this shift lies in re-examining the relationship between the market and channels.

Yanghe Co., Ltd. also provided a similar judgment. Du Liangliang stated that in the past, deeper distribution relied more on controlling the terminal, but now it must transition from deep distribution to deep sales, with everything guided by sales. He revealed that Yanghe established a new “Consumer Operations Department” last year and plans to launch more innovative initiatives targeting the C end in the future.

The shift from “controlling the terminal” to “activating consumers” represents a fundamental reconstruction of marketing logic by liquor companies. In the distribution sector, leading company 1919 feels this particularly acutely.

Li Yuxin candidly admitted that the company started as a traditional liquor retailer 20 years ago, then shifted to new retail driven by Alibaba’s investment, truly embracing online consumption. “Although terms like O2O still exist, they may have slowly become outdated.”

He revealed that the company started a new round of transformation last year, and in his opinion, the first step in facing C is to “first become C”—only by thinking from the consumer’s perspective can they truly reach consumers.

If the transformation of liquor companies and distributors is an inward exploration, the platform’s observations provide external validation for this transformation.

Wang Wei noted that every participant in the liquor industry is actively building To C links. “We have seen significant changes recently.” He stated that as a natural To C platform, Meituan Flash Purchase is also actively empowering industry changes by building brand flagship stores, helping distributors and retailers connect with consumers.

He emphasized that facing the C end is not just the responsibility of a specific link, brand, or individual participant; it requires the entire supply chain to achieve this together.

The shift from stockpiling consumption to immediate purchasing raises the question of how to achieve transactions through trust.

Xiao Zhuqing pointed out during the hosting that efforts must be made to reach consumers in more scenarios and establish trust to facilitate transactions.

In the past year, instant retail of alcoholic beverages has surged, with major internet platforms such as JD.com, Meituan, and Taobao becoming the core battlegrounds for online liquor sales.

Multiple industry reports and brokerage research indicate that by 2025, the scale of China’s instant retail market for alcoholic beverages will have strongly surpassed 50 billion yuan, achieving several-fold growth compared to 2020, and is expected to continue expanding at a compound growth rate of around 50% in the coming years.

Behind this change is a fundamental migration of consumer demographics and habits. Wang Wei believes that the supply-demand adaptation brought about by demographic shifts is one of the key reasons for the rise of instant retail. “The main consumer demographic for us currently is aged 25 to 45, and their purchasing methods have changed significantly, shifting from planned stockpiling to immediate purchasing.”

For Meituan Flash Purchase, organizing products and services to meet changing demands under such trends is the company’s industry challenge. He stated that the company helps stores acquire customers and select products through digital means across both time and space dimensions, gaining insights into local demands and optimizing inventory services, enabling individual stores to achieve a transformation towards comprehensive operations.

While the platform side is accelerating its layout, distribution companies are also keeping pace. Li Yuxin revealed that 1919’s retail revenue on the Meituan platform will increase by over 30% by 2025. In his view, “speed” is a significant characteristic of instant retail, but it is not enough.

Li Yuxin pointed out that one of the current key directions for the company is not just “speed,” but also to keep up with the fact that instant retail platforms have entry points, but ultimately rely on the closest front warehouses to deliver to consumers. The company will continue to provide consumers with quality, cost-effective products and services through a “front warehouse system closest to consumers,” a strong supply chain, and an intelligent digital system.

While instant retail solves the “speed” issue, the question of why consumers buy points to another core variable—scenarios. Currently, liquor consumption is gradually penetrating from past business consumption to mass consumption, with mass consumption driving the emergence of diverse scenarios such as late-night snacks, gatherings with friends, and camping. This has become a key focus for liquor companies and distribution enterprises to compete for.

Wuliangye is creating the “Wuliang·ZhiZao” trendy restaurant, Zhenjiu has launched the “1912 Zhenjiu Culinary Institute,” and Chongqing Beer is establishing the Urumqi Barbecue City… all these initiatives are from the perspective of creating consumption scenarios to capture the consumer mindset.

In exploring the scenario aspect, 1919 is also at the forefront. The company launched a new strategy of “meal + liquor” last year. 1919 will implement a strong binding of “meal” and “liquor” consumption scenarios through upgrading stores and deep cooperation with nearby dining businesses, using the concept of “instant retail + scenario experience.” “Emotional demand is something everyone desires, so our offline scenarios are also changing. When you come here to drink, it’s not just about going to a tavern, but hoping to join us for a drinking gathering, which is a key point for retaining the C end in the future.”

How to win over unfamiliar “C” requires more patience and respect for consumers.

As instant retail and scenario marketing continually shorten the distance between enterprises and consumers in a saturated market, another challenge emerges: how should liquor companies “face C” in new markets that have not yet been fully penetrated or truly reached new demographics?

Du Liangliang and Zhu Yingcai offered their solutions from the perspectives of regional deepening and international breakthroughs during their dialogue.

Du Liangliang shared a thought-provoking phrase regarding Yanghe’s layout in the Sichuan-Chongqing market: “Build strong fortifications, fight steady battles, take the slow road, and work with honest people.”

In his view, the current market environment does not require too many flashy innovations; being practical and getting things done is more crucial. He frankly stated that Sichuan-Chongqing is not a traditional advantageous area for Yanghe, making large-scale expansion impossible, so it is necessary to respect market development rules, focus on identifying genuine opportunities, and prioritize deep-rooting and laying out strategies for target demographics. “Guided by long-termism and healthy development, we aim to make our brand resonate in Sichuan-Chongqing.” This reflects respect for consumers’ patience; in unfamiliar markets, winning over a single consumer is more important than covering a large area.

If regional deepening is a geographically “facing C,” then expanding into overseas markets represents a culturally “facing C.” Zhu Yingcai has a deeper understanding of this. He has been in charge of international business for five years and visited over twenty countries and regions last year.

He divides the overseas expansion of baijiu into two stages: the first stage is to get Chinese liquor into the hands of overseas Chinese, and the second stage is to get local consumers to drink Chinese liquor. Currently, the consumption rate of baijiu among local communities overseas is only 1%.

“This is a huge challenge,” he said. Shede has established a new product laboratory for this purpose, as the company understands that the deep waters of internationalization lie in getting genuine foreign consumers to drink authentic Chinese liquor.

How to achieve this leap? Zhu Yingcai provided paths from three levels.

First, quality expression must align with international standards, which is precisely what Shede’s exploration of old liquor standards is about.

Second, it is essential to teach foreigners how to drink Chinese liquor. For example, in Malaysia, locals do not have a custom of toasting; if we can convey China’s social customs, sales could significantly increase. Drinking methods and choices of drinking vessels may seem trivial, yet they are critical points for cultural integration.

Third, taste differences need to be communicated in a language that consumers can understand. He emphasized that the fusel oil content of Chinese liquor is among the lowest in the global spirits market, making it less likely to cause a “hangover.” This quality advantage needs to be explained in a way that resonates with foreigners.

From Sichuan-Chongqing to overseas, from regional deepening to cultural breakthroughs, the statements of Du Liangliang and Zhu Yingcai point to the same proposition: facing the C end is not simply about placing products in front of consumers, but learning to understand, respect, and integrate with consumers in every unfamiliar market. This requires both the patience of “building strong fortifications” and the wisdom of “navigating deep waters.”

Daily Economic News