The birth and development of Chongqing hot pot brand made its reputation spread all over China and made it famous overseas.

The growing demand of consumers has also promoted the deep processing of hot pot products and the development of related industries in Chongqing. In addition to instant dining in stores, a portable form of hot pot, hot pot bottom material, has begun to appear.

From the earliest production of the first package of Chongqing hot pot bottom materials by "Chongqing Brewery" to now, as a refined product of Chongqing hot pot, the hot pot bottom materials with various brands and categories have become a kind of compensation for Chongqing people who have left their hometown, China people who love Chongqing hot pot and overseas people who can't go to Chongqing to taste hot pot in person.

Chongqing hot pot bottom material is the first of the "12 items of Bayu", which not only becomes a gift with local characteristics that foreigners have to buy, but also makes Chongqing people have to give, and also contributes to the formation of Chongqing hot pot industry chain.

There is a saying in the street that Chongqing hot pot depends on the bottom material.

it has two meanings: first, the bottom materials (pot bottoms) with different tastes and characteristics in many hot pot restaurants are the primary reason why Chongqing hot pot is sought after by diners; Secondly, the packaged hot pot bottom material is easy to penetrate the whole country or even the whole world, thus enhancing the popularity of Chongqing hot pot in geometric multiples.

If you ask a local, what are the brands of hot pot ingredients in Chongqing, he can list at least a dozen; But for outsiders, the most famous ones are "Qiaotou" and "Qiuxia".

Enterprise restructuring, "Qiaotou" breaks through

Not many people don't know the name of "Qiaotou Hotpot". This brand, which originated in the first year of Xuantong in Qing Dynasty and has experienced a hundred years of ups and downs, contains too many "spicy stories". Among many brands of Chongqing hot pot, only Qiaotou Hot Pot was awarded the honor of "China Time-honored Brand" and "Chongqing Intangible Cultural Heritage" by the Ministry of Commerce of China.

The reporter of Business learned that after liberation, Qiaotou Hotpot was a public-private partnership and later became a state-owned enterprise of Nan 'an District Catering Company. In 1997, Qiaotou Hotpot was restructured, with more than 121 private shareholders, accounting for 82% of the shares, and only 18% of the state-owned shares were retained.

Due to the incomplete restructuring, Qiaotou Hotpot was in a dilemma for a period of time: the security of retired employees increased the burden on enterprises; Hundreds of private shareholders, ranging in age from 31 to 71, make it very difficult for enterprises to make a unified decision.

At that time, many hot pot brands in Chongqing and even Sichuan achieved leap-forward development, but the stagnation of Qiaotou hot pot led to brain drain, and then it entered a vicious circle.

At the critical moment, Xia Hongliang was elected as the chairman of Chongqing Qiaotou Hotpot Catering Service Co., Ltd.. Faced with the dilemma of "Qiaotou", it is impossible to change the enterprise from the system. Xia Hongliang adjusted the marketing model from the idea-expanding the franchise and accelerating the layout of chain stores in the country.

Not every successful entrepreneur is a professional counterpart: Jobs studied in the liberal arts university and eventually founded Apple Computer Company; Ashton kutcher was born as an actor and later became a Hollywood investment expert; Giorgio armani graduated from medical school, but became a pioneer of design ... So did Xia Hongliang. No one thought that a person who graduated from photography major led a century-old gold-lettered signboard enterprise and fought a beautiful "breakthrough war".

In the actual operation, in addition to improving the early joining system, Xia Hongliang also led the team to strengthen the planning of franchisees' brands, trademarks, site selection, and other support systems such as training services, selection of chefs, and nationwide distribution of bottom materials.

In the late 1981s, Qiaotou Hot Pot set up its own hot pot bottom material factory to produce and process bagged hot pot bottom materials. Xia Hongliang's series of measures have greatly improved the popularity and reputation of Qiaotou hot pot and Qiaotou hot pot bottom materials nationwide.

Now, the frying technique of Qiaotou hotpot bottom material has been passed down to the fourth generation descendant Li Bo. In 2114, "Chongqing Qiaotou Hot Pot Seasoning Co., Ltd." was established, specializing in the production of hot pot bottom materials and series of seasonings. In 2116, in order to ensure the supply of raw materials and the authentic taste of the bottom material, Qiaotou Hot Pot built its own raw material base such as pepper and pepper.

"Qiuxia" plays a cultural card

Compared with "Qiaotou", "Qiuxia" is obviously much lower-key. After the reporter of "Business" called the contact number on the bottom material of his hot pot, the staff politely refused the interview. In the era of the Internet, it is also difficult to find relevant development stories about "Qiuxia" brand through search.

However, by chance, the reporter of Business contacted a person who once knew the founder of Qiuxia brand, and through his introduction, he was able to understand the development vein of Qiuxia brand.

In the same year as the restructuring of Qiaotou Hotpot, a hot pot restaurant named Qiuxia was opened in a business circle in Chongqing, and the name of the restaurant was derived from the names of two female bosses, Jiang Qiu and Yang Qingxia. Hot pot restaurants are famous in Fiona Fang for several miles. Some people describe the grand occasion at that time as "cars and horses are noisy in front of the door and diners are bursting at the threshold", and the business is very prosperous.

However, just as the business was booming, the bosses decided to stop operating physical hot pot restaurants and start to specialize in hot pot bottom materials business out of businessmen's shrewdness and anticipation of the market prospect. It takes courage, courage and vision to stop fighting and turn to the hot pot market segment.

At the initial stage of the launch, Qiuxia hot pot bottom material spent a lot of thought on packaging. At that time, the founder was good at business, but he knew little about product packaging and marketing, so he went to Chongqing cultural celebrities to make suggestions.

Then, drastic improvements were made:

First of all, the brand name was reorganized. Women love red makeup and have the smell of autumn, which is called Qiuxia Hotpot;

Secondly, according to the brand interpretation, autumn scenery and maple leaves are selected as the background color and background of the packaging bag;

Third, the word "Qiuxia" is enlarged and printed obliquely to highlight the brand name and distinguish it from other brand packages;

fourthly, in color, the red background with yellow characters highlights the feeling of "red with yellow, happy". The planner also designed a "hidden head" advertising slogan: it tastes like late autumn, and the color is as beautiful as the morning glow, echoing the brand name again.

The brand profile is arranged vertically in the form of antique books and printed in a grid with red lines.

The original first packaging bag of Qiuxia chafing dish bottom material was born, which was very eye-catching among many chafing dish bottom materials in the market at that time, and was immediately favored by consumers.

highlighting the cultural characteristics of products is the idea that the bottom materials of Qiuxia hot pot occupy the market.

One year, when attending the National Candy, Alcohol and Tobacco Expo, the exhibition platform of Qiuxia hot pot bottom attracted people's attention again: because the booth was at the corner, it was designed as an archway, and the other two places were wrapped with curtain walls. On the curtain wall, the hot pot bottom material pattern is taken as the background, and pictures and product introductions of the new factory building and production line are printed. A light box was arranged at the top of the booth, and the slogan was printed: Go home and "bag" Qiuxia (containing the meaning of taking "Qiuxia" home). Later, this sentence was changed to "Take Chef Qiuxia home!" And printed on the packaging bag.

At that time, there were two poems circulating:

Bohu was in a mountain city, drinking the Yangtze River alone; Think of the autumn glow, and there is no autumn fragrance in the night dream.

in autumn, the river is full of blue waves, and the glow reflects the songs of the city; Red years often get together, and the concentrate in the pot tastes a lot.

The products are homogeneous, and it's hard to tell the difference.

During the interview, the reporter of Business saw that at present, in addition to the online e-commerce platform, "Qiaotou Hotpot" has physical stores in Jie Fangbei and Ciqikou, online celebrity, Chongqing. The offline channel of Qiuxia hot pot bottom material is mainly traditional supermarket.

in addition to the traditional Chongqing butter chafing dish bottom material, both brands have developed products such as "fish seasoning" and "Chongqing noodle seasoning", which are specialized in cooking special "kitchen cooking seasoning" such as crayfish, roasted chicken, sour radish old duck soup and cooked pork. The difference is that "Qiaotou Hot Pot" introduces 5KG bottled seasoning suitable for restaurants, and covers products such as dipping sauce and sesame oil; "Qiuxia" separately launched a series of hot sauce suitable for meals, as well as a product collection package covering multiple categories.

On the whole, there is little difference between the two brands in terms of product categories, and the product specifications of similar categories are almost the same. The bottom material and seasoning of bagged hot pot are mainly packaged in 151g, and the prices are between 9 yuan and 21 yuan.

In Yonghui Supermarket, Wal-Mart, New Century and other supermarkets, hot pot bottom materials are hung on a whole shelf alone. Or unified display by category or unified display by brand.

A sales guide in the corresponding goods area of Yonghui Supermarket in Jiangbei District of Chongqing told the reporter that consumers chose "Chongqing Butter Hot Pot Bottom Material" as the main ingredient, followed by "Sour Radish and Old Duck Soup" seasoning. These two products need to be replenished every day on average.

"Buyers have their own ideas on brand selection, and they will choose which one they are used to," said the sales guide.

Besides Qiaotou and Qiuxia, brands such as Dezhuang and Qinma also occupy half of the shelves.

"Now, there is little difference between several brands in product packaging and price. The packaging of this category of' Chongqing hot pot bottom material' is basically red. Sometimes, even the sales of brands such as' Dezhuang' are better than' Qiaotou'. "

"Dezhuang Hot Pot" was once the president of Chongqing Hot Pot Association. With a bite of "the largest hot pot in the world", it has won eyeballs in various domestic hot pot festivals and gained a good brand awareness.

The reporter of Business learned from supermarkets in other areas outside Chongqing that besides Chongqing hot pot bottom brands, there are also Chengdu hot pot bottom brands such as Shu Jiuxiang, Haidilao, Spicy Space and Liupo Brocade. However, according to feedback from local supermarkets, the sales of "Qiaotou" and "Qiuxia" are still the highest.

In the online e-commerce platform, the reporter visited two brands in Taobao. "Qiaotou Flagship Store" has captured more than 91,111 fans, and the best-selling "281g Chongqing Old Hot Pot Bottom Material" sells more than 3,111 pieces per month. "Qiuxia Flagship Store" has captured more than 41,111 fans, and the best-selling "211g*3 Spicy Hot Pot Bottom Material" sells more than 3,611 pieces per month.

It can be seen that because the products tend to be homogeneous, the online and offline channels of "Qiaotou" and "Qiuxia" are indistinguishable, and other old hot pot bottom materials are waiting for opportunities to carve up the market.

A rising star

Write down the place where you want to mail the chafing dish bottom material on a piece of paper by hand, and then put it in the mailbox in front of the chafing dish hall. If you are lucky enough to be drawn, the hot pot restaurant will send you the bottom materials for free. No matter how far it is, we will find a way to send it.

This is another welfare activity for diners in Jiaochangkou Peijie Hot Pot in Yuzhong District, Chongqing, following the marketing activity of "Go home later, and Peijie will wait for you". It is said that a package of hot pot bottom materials was mailed as far as Paris, France.

It is printed with landscape paintings or famous buildings with Chongqing characteristics, beautifully packaged, and the bottom material and butter are sealed separately. The feeding bag contains dried pepper segments, prickly ash granules and special chicken essence for hot pot. What's more, it also adds long chopsticks special for hot pot, sesame oil special for hot pot, Yuanyang pot and so on. Some emerging hot pot brands, such as Pei Jie's hot pot, have gradually turned their attention to the bottom material of hot pot.

"The chafing dish bottom material has expanded the popularity of Chongqing chafing dish. Conversely, the increase of popularity will definitely increase the sales volume, further stimulate the production of chafing dish bottom material, and accelerate the pace of modernization, scale, standardization and industrialization of Chongqing chafing dish industry." A Chongqing hot pot history expert told the reporter of Business.

during the interview, the reporter found that the prices of the hot pot bottom materials of the rising stars are all between 51-111 yuan, and the specifications are mostly 511g (bottom material) +511g (butter), which is double the price of "Qiaotou" and "Qiuxia", but it is especially popular with young consumers.

this may be a concrete manifestation of the consumption upgrade of young consumers.

"In fact, most of the chafing dish bottom materials are produced in intensive workshops, and are sealed and packaged by modern automatic assembly lines. There are seven main frying processes of hot pot, and the taste will not be bad on the basis of ensuring the quality of pepper, pepper, butter and various spices. " A senior hot pot practitioner told the reporter of Business.

The two brands "Qiaotou" and "Qiuxia" have occupied a large share in the hot pot bottom material market in Chongqing for many years, and gained a good reputation among consumers in the long-term operation. However, in the sudden emergence of other established hot pot bottom materials and emerging brands in Chongqing, it is necessary to think about the way to break through from product differentiation and marketing methods that are in line with modern consumers.

in addition to the bottom material of Chongqing hot pot, another portable form of hot pot-convenient self-cooking hot pot has also appeared in the market since the year before last. It remains to be seen what kind of brand structure this hot pot deep processing industry will eventually form, and whether the two brands "Qiaotou" and "Qiuxia" will seize the dividend period of emerging industries to make a difference and firmly grasp the dominant position of Chongqing hot pot in the national market.