/ Daily News/July 29, 2022 Guangzhou -- The news that Uni-President is selling cold boiled water at the Cooked Water racetrack has attracted wide attention. Not long ago, Nongfu Spring also introduced bottled boiled water. Heavyweight players continue to increase the size, so that cooked water track once again become the focus of the industry.
In fact, since 2016 Jinmerang Liangbaikai showed the banner of cooked water, the development of cooked water category has been accelerating, gradually becoming an important branch of bottled water. Now that new players are arriving, how will the competitive landscape evolve? It is possible to make some guesses about the future development of cooked water by analyzing three problems that are concerned by the industry.
Question 1: Can the newcomer stir up the cooked water?
Unified launch of cold water, cooked water circuit ushered in giant enterprises. At present, the cooked water circuit has today Melang Liangbaikai, Wangwang Liangbaikai, Master Kong drinking water, Nongfu Spring water, behind each brand standing a food giant.
According to the statistics of fiscal year 2021, the revenue of today's Maiang is about 26 billion yuan, Want Want is 23.985 billion yuan, Master Kong beverage business is 44.802 billion yuan, Nongfu Spring is 29.696 billion yuan, and Uni-President is 25.231 billion yuan. The revenue of 5 enterprises is more than 20 billion yuan, it can be said that the cooked water circuit giant forest. However, the specific analysis of the five companies in the Shushui circuit layout has different meanings.
2016 Jinmailang Liangbaikai market, for Jinmailang, Liangbaikai is the strategic stronghold it will not give up, there are three reasons: first, the bottled water Liangbaikai by the independent innovation of Jinmailang research and development, for it carries the significance of transformation from follower to maker; Secondly, in recent years, Liangbaikai's growth potential is stable and its sales volume keeps rising, which has become an important part of Jinmailang beverage revenue. Third, Mai Lang has said to "with the aid of Liangbaikai, hit the Yangtze River to", Liangbaikai is the key layout of its radiation of the national market.
Want Want launched Want Want Liangbai Kai in 2019, which was released in the Want Want vending machine channel. From the point of view of positioning, Want Want Liangbaikai is more inclined to improve the vending machine category and item supplement products. In 2020, Master Kong announced to enter the cooked water market, launched to drink boiled water. It is not difficult to see from the marketing offensive of Master Kong, Master Kong drinking water is also a core product of strategic significance.
This year, Nongfu Spring, Uni-president and one after another into the bureau cooked water circuit, the new product after the market has not matched large-scale marketing action. At present, Nongfu Spring plain water, uniform cold water positioning is more inclined to respond to market competition tactical products.
There is no doubt that Wangwang, Nongfu Spring, unified into the bureau, is conducive to the category education of cooked water, further open the consumer's cognition of cooked water. However, from the perspective of product strategic positioning, the cooked water circuit is likely to return to the dual competition pattern of today's Melang Liangbaikai and Master Kong drinking boiled water.
Question 2: Will the legacy of Michael Lang be shaken?
Over the past few years, Jinmailang Liangbaikai has constantly defended its position as the "category pioneer" in the Shuishui Circuit. Reviewing the development history of cooked water category, today's Mailang has indeed led several key nodes.
In 2016, Mai Lang launched Liangbaikai, held high the banner of cooked water, and made the category separation between cooked water and raw water with the technological innovation of physical sterilization. Since then, Immailang Liangbaikai has been conducting the cooked water category education, refining the cooked water is more suitable for Chinese physique, do not drink raw water drink cooked water and other value anchor points. From 2016 to 2021, Melang Liangbaikai held 5 consecutive Cooked Water Forums, organized authoritative experts and professionals to jointly advocate healthy drinking water, and promoted the rapid expansion of cooked water market.
In 2017, under the push of Jinmerang, the group standard of "Cooked Water Packaging Drinking Water" prepared by China National Health Association was officially released and implemented, and cooked water has the "identity card" issued by the industry authority organization.
In 2019, the sales of Malang Liangbaikai exceeded 2 billion, and the cooked water category has since had a big single product of 2 billion. This has also established Jinmeilang's position as the "market leader". According to the research data of Euromonitor, from 2019 to 2021, Jinmeilang Liangbaikai has led the sales for three consecutive years. [1]
This year, Merang Liangbaikai takes "twelve hours" as the source of creation and launches glass bottle series products, opening up the high-end line of cooked water circuit. At the same time, Melang Liangbaikai is accelerating into the high line market, in order to promote category development and brand growth of the double leap forward.
These layouts released two signals: first, this is to achieve a strong position in the cooked water category, tamping the "category pioneer" and "market leader" of the distinct label; Second, today's Melang Liangbaikai should take the category with the brand, and plant the value association of "cooked water = Liangbaikai" in the consumer cognition. After more than 6 years of layout, this Mai Lang Liangbaikai has initially laid the ground pile. Based on this can be bold judgment, today's Mailang laid down the "Jiangshan" will not be easily shaken in the short term.
Question 3: What is the competitive focus of the cooked water circuit?
At present, the bottled water market concentration is high, the growth of natural water, mineral water and other categories is slowing down, cooked water or a good breakthrough, and in today's Merang years of market education, drinking cooked water is more in line with the Chinese people's drinking habit of cognition gradually in-depth consumer mind, healthy drinking water consumption trend is rising. It can be judged that the constant expansion of the cooked water track is moving towards the mainstream category.
Apparently, cooked water is good business. Different from mineral water and natural water, what may be the focus of competition for cooked water brands? The author believes that the brand may have three power points in the next:
First, the battle for mental position. In the past two years, the marketing war of cooked water has been increasing. To seize the consumer mind, the brand constantly links and interacts around the consumption scene and consumer group. This also means that marketing costs are high for new entrants to enter the market, and it is difficult to survive without sufficient capital and commitment.
Second, price war. It is understood that some brands entered the cooked water market at a lower price. In the short term, it may be beneficial for the brand to expand the market, but in the long run, the lower price belt is easy to cause a bad situation, and the brand does not have enough profit space to support the market layout, which may have an adverse impact on the development of the category.
Third, the terminal scramble war. Offline channels are the main battleground of the beverage category, as is cooked water. In the window period when the category preference of cooked water is greater than the brand preference, the brand that is put on the shelf first will become the first choice of consumers.
In this case, the cooked water war will be ignited immediately, and the competition will become more fierce. But in the long run, on the one hand, the bottled water market has exceeded 200 billion yuan, cooked water can continue to cut the raw water market; On the other hand, cooked water inherits the Chinese drinking culture and is the most promising representative of Chinese water culture. From these two dimensions, the wider market of cooked water is immeasurable.
Once the ceiling of category development is opened, every player on the track will benefit. In this process, it will be interesting to see whether Jinmailang Liangbaikai, which has led the sales for three consecutive years [2], can maintain its status.
