| Frontline of entrepreneurship
Author | Li Xiaobian
Edited by | Feng Yu
has a braised food with a history of more than 2,000 years, and is called "the most representative of the taste of China" by some netizens. In recent years, this ordinary category has been showing a new look.
In addition to the most common casual braised food and braised food that is positioned at home tables, many braised foods are also cleverly combined with taverns, hot pot and other forms. Some hot braised brands have also appeared in the mall, including not only snacks, but also staple foods such as noodles and noodles.
The huge shaping space of braised food has attracted many gold nuggets and capital catchers. Qichacha data shows that since the beginning of this year, at least 6 financing incidents have occurred in the braised food industry. "Chrysanthemum Blossom" and " Shengxiangting " respectively received financing of 100 million yuan, of which Shengxiangting said that the overall valuation of the brand is about 1 billion yuan.
The love of consumers and the optimistic capital also made the braised food industry "in-convert". During the visit, the "Frontline of Entrepreneurship" found that there are at least 11 braised food brands in Beijing Heshenghui Mall. There are more than 20 braised food stores within 2 kilometers around the residential area.
Is braised food still a good business when opening stores in such intensively and the market is overcrowded?
1, the new changes in "Braised Food+"
For a long time, the braised food industry has maintained the pattern of "three companies competing for the hegemony" of , Huang Shanghuang , Zhou Hei Ya, and Juewei Duck Neck. In July this year, Shanghai Ziyan Food Co., Ltd. submitted an IPO prospectus, which means that the three giants are about to usher in a strong and powerful competitor.
However, for the Big Three, there are probably more than one challenge from the braised food industry, and the large number of new players influx are also worthy of their vigilance.
Qichacha data shows that the number of registered braised food-related companies nationwide is more than 123,000. From 2011 to 2020, the number of registrations for braised food-related companies generally showed an upward trend. Among them, the number of registrations exceeded 10,000 for the first time in 2018, and the highest in previous years in 2020, reaching 17,000.
Some new players quickly received capital support.
According to Qichacha statistics, since this year, there have been at least 6 financing incidents in the braised food industry. Among them, the family table braised food chain brand "Chrysanthemum Blossom" (hereinafter referred to as "Chrysanthemum Blossom") and the hot braised brand "Shengxiangting" respectively received financing of 100 million yuan. Qichacha data shows that Juhuakai and Shengxiangting have completed round B and round A financing respectively so far. Sheng Xiangting's franchise manual also states that the overall valuation of the brand is about 1 billion yuan.
In addition to the increase in players, braised food products also show a huge plastic space. The most common model in the braised food industry is casual braised food, and the representative brands are Juewei Duck Neck , Zhou Hei Ya, Huang Shanghuang, etc.
There is another category of braised food brands that are positioned in family scenes, such as Ziyan Baiwei Chicken . Its categories are more comprehensive than braised snack brands. In addition to chicken and duck, there are also pig's trotters, cold dishes and other categories. On the takeaway platform, Ziyan Baiwei Chicken’s set meal is also equipped with rice staple food.
As early as 4 years ago, when entrepreneur Cheng Xiao started the braised food business, he opened his store in the community and targeted the family scene. In his opinion, community stores are a very stable business form. "Most of old customers are the ones, and the repurchase rate can reach 80% to 90%. " Cheng Xiaoxiao, the front line of entrepreneurship, told the "Free Entrepreneurship" that the brand he created has opened more than 300 stores across the country.
In addition to these two most common forms, the braised food industry has also spawned many new business forms.
, for example, hot brine. Among the players who have received financing this year, Shengxiangting and Hot Lu Shiguang are brands that focus on Hot Lu. During a visit, "The Frontline of Entrepreneurship" found that there is a hot braised brand called "Zhaimen Xian Zhushi" on the B2nd floor of the 21st block of Beijing Heshenghui Mall. In addition to snacks such as wing tips and pig trotters, it also has staple foods such as powdered and noodles. Most of the people consumed in the store are young people.
A staff member in charge of franchise business in Shengxiangting Liu Ran (pseudonym), said that in addition to braised snacks, his category also includes staple foods such as noodles and noodles. Therefore, the store requires a large area and a guest area should be left in the store. "We mainly open local shopping centers, or places with large traffic, and our customers are mainly young people." The franchise staff who are hot and braised foods also said that this model of snacks and staple food is conducive to the store's operation for multiple periods. "You can sell staple foods at noon and dinner, and you can also sell snacks during other periods."
In addition, there are also practitioners who combine braised food with other catering formats, such as braised food + taverns, where consumers can drink while eating braised food; for example braised food + hot pot. According to public information, the main business of "Jingpai Fresh Braised" that received financing this year is braised hot pot takeaway.
The ordinary braised food industry is bursting with strong vitality.
2, fall into intra-roll
With many new players influx, the braised food industry is also gradually moving towards intra-roll.
In Beijing, Heshenghui, which attracts many young people to check in, is a weather vane for new consumption. Here, the "incoil" of the braised food industry is fully displayed.
Enter the B2 floor of Heshenghui 21 block, and you can see a braised brand called "Ru Xixi", next door to it is Juewei Duck Neck.
Go to the back of the store, and " Zhou Hei Ya " and " Liao Ji Bangbang Chicken " come into view. Going further in, there are several brands such as "Little Hoof Making" and " Boneless Chicken Claws ". During the visit, "The Frontline of Entrepreneurship" saw that the two periods of dinner were peak at 6:30 and 7:30 pm, but there were very few customers in these shops.
Take the escalator to the B1 floor. When you get out of the escalator, you will see the above-mentioned "Zhaimen Xianlushi" shop. There are 6 customers eating in the dine-in area.
According to rough statistics, there are at least 11 braised brands in Heshenghui B1 and B2 alone.
Not only in the shopping mall, but near residential areas, the density of braised food brands opening stores is also very high.
"The Frontline of Entrepreneurship" Search for braised food delivery near Jingtai, Dongcheng District, Beijing on Meituan . A rough statistics show that there are more than 20 stores within 2 kilometers.
Although braised food stores are everywhere, new brands are still busy expanding the market, and opening up franchise is the universal and fastest way. Zhang Wei (pseudonym), a franchisee of
"Chrysanthemum Blossoms" said that chrysanthemum Blossoms is an enterprise in Henan Province. It was previously only operated in Henan Province. In mid-April this year, the operating rights of several cities in surrounding provinces were opened.
wants to join these braised food stores, and the cost is not low. The franchisee who has Chrysanthemum blossom said that the store area is about 10 to 20 square meters. The two-year cold chain delivery fee, deposit, equipment, decoration fee and other costs will add up, and the total investment amount of a single store is about 75,000 to 80,000 yuan.
Zhang Wei said that the headquarters will deliver the finished products to the store. This model not only saves the store area, but also saves costs such as labor.
. Hot-brom brands are generally open in business districts or locations with concentrated customer traffic, and food processing is required in the store and dine-in area is reserved, so the rental cost will be higher. Liu Ran, a staff member in charge of joining the franchise in Shengxiangting, said that the store needs 30-70 square meters and the door head needs at least 3.5 meters.
In addition, joining Shengxiangting also requires the franchise fee for various names. "The brand authorization fee is 60,000 yuan, the annual management fee is 15,000 yuan, the deposit of 10,000 yuan is refundable, the training fee is 5,000 yuan, and the design fee is charged according to the store's standard of 200 yuan per square meter." Liu Ran said. The investment cost is listed in the franchise manual of
. Calculated based on the store area of 40 square meters, the initial investment will be more than 300,000 yuan.
Picture / Shengxiangting’s cost investment details
Although the initial investment is not low, according to franchisees, the profits of braised food brands are considerable.
"Our return cycle is usually 9-12 months, with a gross profit of about 60%. " Liu Ran said.
"has at least 40% profit." Chrysanthemum Blossom franchisee Zhang Wei also told "the frontline of entrepreneurship". He also added, "In May this year, a customer in Jinan opened a store to open, with a turnover of 4,000 to 5,000 yuan a day, and he could make a profit in almost three months. This customer is about to open a second store." Most hot braised brands such as
hot braised food and light will open their stores in shopping malls, and their franchisees also said that the store area is recommended to be between 30 and 50 square meters. The initial investment includes franchise fees, equipment, rent, decoration and other costs, which is expected to be between 250,000 and 300,000 yuan. The return cycle of shopping malls and stores is about 4-6 months.
"The shopping mall has a large customer flow, and it can be sold at noon and at 4,000 to 6,000 yuan, and at afternoon and at several thousand yuan. In other scattered hours, the daily turnover is about ten thousand yuan." The franchisee said.
He said that Hot Lushi has a franchise store of more than 30 square meters, and its monthly turnover can reach 280,000 yuan. "Gross profit is generally around 60% to 65%. "
Although most brand manufacturers say that the store business and return cycle after joining the braised food brand are very ideal, when braised food becomes a business pursued by capital, the competition between brands is no longer just to the product taste itself, but to become a race of brand scale and operating efficiency.
There is no doubt that the market is seriously inverted, and more speculators will be ruthlessly eliminated.
3, high elimination rate braised food business
In addition to new players chased by capital, some couples also run small braised food business all year round.
Every day at around 11 am, Li Jian’s parents started making braised dishes and set up their stalls on time at 4:30 pm. Li Jian’s parents have been repeating this process for six or seven years.
Li Jian recalled that his parents started a braised food business under the leadership of their relatives. "My relative made more than 200,000 yuan in the first year of cooking braised dishes." Li Jian is a post-90s generation. After graduating from university, he first worked in Hangzhou for a year, and then joined his parents to do business in Wuhan.
Li Jian and his parents are each responsible for a stall. The stall he set up is at the entrance of a vegetable market on Tiansheng Street, Jiang'an District, Wuhan City, with a daily turnover of about 1,000 yuan. "We have no plan to open a store, because not only is the cost high, but the business may not be better than it is now," said Li Jian.
Picture / Li Jian’s mother’s stall
In the braised food industry, a considerable number of practitioners are in the couple’s stall business. It can be seen that the traditional braised food industry is fiercely competitive and the threshold is not high.
"The Frontline of Entrepreneurship" is also seen in Douyin . Whether it is an old braised food store that has been operating for decades or grassroots players who set up stalls to do business in their own business, they are all recruiting apprentices and teaching braised cuisine making techniques.
Li Jian’s parents also accepted several apprentices, “The technology is not difficult, you can learn it in about 3 days,” he said.
Not only that, even if you buy braised ingredients packages on Taobao, the store will give you detailed production tutorials.
Cheng Xiao believes that the braised food industry seems to have a low threshold, but in fact it is not the case. To run this business well, practitioners also need to put some effort into it, such as how to maintain product stability, store location selection, and later operation, etc., are all very important.
Cheng Xiao said that compared with other catering categories, braised food has higher requirements for product stability. "Because braised is made at hundreds of kilograms at a time. If the product quality is poor, it will harm a wave of customers, and these customers may never visit again."
, but many people just happen to ignore this. "They think that if they want to make money, they have to lower the cost, so as to use some bad raw materials or cut corners, and the store will go bankrupt over time," Cheng Xiao explained.
Cheng Xiao also noticed that the braised food industry has been living up to the fittest. “Some new brands appeared the year before yesterday, but a large number of them died last year."
He explained that the main reason is that they only focus on crazy expansion, seeking quantity but not quality, resulting in a series of problems. "Either the supply chain is not sound, the model is difficult to replicate, or the operation training and store management are not in place, anyway, there are various problems. "Cheng Xiao said.
The entry of capital has also disrupted the originally calm industry to a certain extent. "It has led some players to focus on expanding the market and earning franchise fees. "
However, the intensification of market competition has also made the braised food industry mature rapidly.
" Compared with the previous two years, the competitive pressure this year is lower. The survival rate of our stores has increased by 80% to 90%. "Cheng Xiao explained. Of course, this is also attributed to their main community stores, which are less affected by the epidemic, which is conducive to the growth of the brand.
Cheng Xiao saw that in recent years, practitioners have become more and more formal. Many of their franchisees are the previous braised and spouse stores. They will choose to join a chain brand for the long-term development.
This is also the way for grassroots players to survive. "It is necessary to constantly change, change with the changes in the market, and upgrade from products, image packaging and other aspects. "Cheng Xiao said. Data from
Frost&Sullivan shows that the market size of China's braised products industry has increased from 26.8 billion yuan in 2011 to 123.5 billion yuan in 2020. Under the market of
00 billion, couples are going to be regularized, new players rely on standardization to win over land, and the traditional braised food industry is also being injected with more fresh elements.
* The title picture in the article comes from Photo Network, based on VRF protocol.
