Since the opening of the first new element restaurant in 2002, it has once become synonymous with fashion because of its light food concept and unique style. Struggling in the epidemic for two years, finally in this year's 65438+February 18, news of bankruptcy and reorganization came from New Element, and major stores in the country closed one after another. The first generation of online celebrities will leave their jobs soon, which has triggered social thinking on the prospect of light food industry.

After the tide of internet celebrities' light food ebbed, light food such as take-away, zero sucrose, sugar substitute drinks and even processed food substitute were sought after. What is the real format of the light food industry at present? What is the logic behind it? China City News reporter visited.

The offline snack bar is cold.

On February 20, 65438, the reporter went to the new element store in Beijing Kerry Center. There are not many customers in the store, and the opposite is the decoration of Santa Claus in the mall. Under the excitement, the previous generation of "network celebrities" is particularly sparse.

New Element (Beijing Kerry Center Store).

"Some key stores, such as Chaoyang Joy City and Blue Harbor Store, are closed because of their large area, high rent and water and electricity. Our store is still operating normally, but it can't be recharged. " The clerk told the reporter that since the news of 18 and 18 came out in February, many customers have recently punched in, and there may be more people coming in the future.

When the reporter browsed the menu, he found that the unit price of the new element was not cheap. The price of a single dish is about 100 yuan, the average price of drinks is 40 yuan, and the price of dessert is 40-500 yuan. Meituan estimates that the per capita consumption is about 124 yuan. The reporter learned by asking the clerk that the new elements take the high-end light food route and the dishes are small.

During the ordering process, the reporter even pointed to several dishes, and the clerk regretted that this dish was out of stock. "Because the company has stopped importing raw materials, many guests have recently seen the news to consume. The amount of food we prepared is normal. If there are many people, some dishes will be out of stock. "

Asked about the operation of the store, the clerk revealed: "Because the location is close to the International Trade Center and there is an office area around it, the store in Kerry Center should be profitable, which may be the reason why there are no related stores for the time being."

The reporter noticed that some customers in the store were asking the clerk about returning the card. "Since the company sent a notice, it means that it is responsible for the end." The clerk said that all the stores currently open can apply for a refund.

65438+February 2 1, the operating instructions for returning stored-value cards issued by the official account of New Element WeChat confirmed this news, and said that customers can make an appointment by phone at the 15 store that is still open nationwide and apply for a refund. Among them, there are 6 base camps in Shanghai, 6 in Beijing, Nanjing 1, Guangzhou 1 and Shenzhen1-according to official website, there are 15 stores in Shanghai alone.

According to the official statement, it was the epidemic that knocked down the light food restaurant in Celebrity on the Internet.

The new element restaurant said in the announcement that due to the epidemic, the company's operation encountered unprecedented difficulties and the store operation was seriously affected. At present, there have been serious operating losses and capital chain breaks, and they have entered bankruptcy liquidation procedures in accordance with relevant national laws and regulations.

Screenshot from official website.

During the period of 20 15-20 18, light food ushered in the entrepreneurial tide. During this period, at least 10 billion yuan of capital poured into the light food market, opening the "burning money mode" and helping light food stores expand offline. Among them, sweetheart rock salad received four rounds of financing totaling nearly 100 million yuan; Mishala received 6 million yuan in financing; Lascivious salad completed 22 million yuan of A+ and10,000 rounds of financing; Gaga Xianyu received 654.38 yuan +0.8 billion yuan in Series A financing; Greater Kesha Rose Sebert won the Pre-A round of financing; Shalv light food received 30 million yuan in financing.

But in recent years, with the rise of coffee, tea, baking, pasta and other tracks, the influx of hot money in the category of light food is less than in the previous three years. Coupled with the impact of the epidemic, the business of offline stores has been generally hit, and the light food industry is no exception.

In June 5438+10, Bloomberg reported that another light food brand, Wagas, planned to sell. Delicious! China Holdings Limited, Philippine restaurant brand Jollibee and Burger King parent company RBI are considering bidding for Wagas with a valuation of 500 million to 600 million US dollars. Although Wagas officials later said that the news was untrue, the three companies interested in bidding for Wagas mentioned in the above news did not respond positively.

Sweetheart Rock Salad was founded on 20 14, and it has won four rounds of financing with its unique packaging and innovative ideas, and is known as the originator of light food among online celebrities. However, from 2065438 to March 2009, Sweetheart Rock Salad was also reported to be facing the crisis of bankruptcy, and its main business was shut down.

NCBD 2021China Light Salad Industry Investment Decision Analysis Report.

Why does capital not favor offline stores?

Mr. Wu, a financial practitioner, told reporters: "The epidemic has hit the catering industry in all directions, and products with weak investment logic have been blown up. For example, for offline stores like New Element, the industry entry threshold is not high, there are too many players, the advantages of capital, brands and technology companies cannot be formed, there is no' moat', and' light food' is not a new concept, and investment will naturally be cold. "

He took entrepreneur Buffett's "moat" theory as an example, saying that brand power, product characteristics, sales strength and franchise are the sources of "moat", and the "moat" of enterprises is the most important, stable and lasting competitive advantage of enterprises. The light food industry is characterized by low threshold, high homogeneity and difficult barriers.

Light food and takeaway business is booming.

The offline light food shop entered the winter, and the online light food business is still hot.

Around 65438+February 2 1 noon 12, the reporter walked into a shared kitchen in Beijing. There is no catering business here, and there are no traditional shops. There is only a kitchen arranged neatly like a grid, and the business license of the merchant is posted outside the store. The packaged takeout is placed on the dining rack outside the kitchen. As soon as the meal arrives, the delivery clerk picks it up and leaves, which is very convenient.

"Most of them are takeaways, not restaurants. We will manage the settled businesses and regularly check the hygiene of the stores to ensure food safety. " The shared kitchen manager told the reporter that if there is demand, after communicating with the merchants, you can place an order on the takeaway software and choose to pick it up.

The shared kitchen is similar to the open kitchen of the offline restaurant, and the dining process is transparent. The reporter asked the light food chain brand "Lizibai" merchants through the window. The other party said that the shared kitchen often makes surprise inspections and wears gloves to ensure that the ingredients are fresh and clean.

"We all cook well in advance, otherwise we are too busy for lunch." The store is outspoken. "It is cheaper to only do take-away business than to open offline stores."

With the neat takeout bags on the counter, it is not difficult to see that the business of the merchants is booming.

In the shared kitchen during the lunch rush hour, the store is preparing meals.

Compared with the high rent, water, electricity and decoration costs of offline stores in big shopping malls, the light food industry has the characteristics of low threshold, high homogeneity and easy standardization, and the entry threshold is not high. Because of the epidemic, when offline stores are cold, the take-away industry is booming, and it seems reasonable for small and medium-sized businesses to choose offline layout.

But light food takeout is also very "rolling". Fang Fang, an office worker, opened the hungry APP to search for light food around him. There are 1 0 restaurants in Fiona Fang1km.

"In order to control my weight, I ate light food for three months, but I really don't like eating grass. I can only choose one that is relatively delicious. Because the cooking method of light food is relatively simple, it is only the collocation of ingredients, and the taste has no memory, so I will choose a shop with more gifts and more affordable prices, and the price is at least from 30 yuan. " Fang Fang said.

"I am a non-sticky customer. The motivation for choosing light food is not out of love, but just need. " Fangfang admits that the reason why she chooses light food is because she needs to prepare a variety of ingredients at home, and the heat is not easy to master. Ordering takeout is faster and more worry-free.

Health is always needed. Entrepreneurs who are constantly entering the industry may be interested in this concept that will never go out of date. However, with more and more "players", the homogenization competition is becoming more and more fierce.

According to the data of Sky Eye Survey, as of June this year 13, there are more than 8,600 light food meal replacement related enterprises in China, some of which are in business, some are alive, some are moving in and some are moving out. In the past five years, more than 8,000 light food meal replacement enterprises have been established.

Where is the "moat" of light food industry?

20 14 is called the first year of light food, and countless entrepreneurs have entered the game since then. After the big waves washed sand, some brands withdrew from the market, investment tended to be rational, and brands no longer "raced around".

But this does not mean that the prospects of the light food industry are bleak. According to "202 1 China light salad industry investment decision analysis report" issued by NCBD, the light salad market in China will reach 5.56 billion yuan in 2020, up13.7% year-on-year; It is estimated that in 20021year, it will exceed 9 billion yuan, reaching 9.23 billion yuan; The scale of light salad consumers is expected to increase from110.8 million in 2020 to10.6 million in 2026.

We might as well broaden our horizons and rethink the definition of light food. Does a light diet just refer to salads?

202 1 12 10 The development guide of light food catering issued by the group standard meeting of China Cuisine Association mentioned that light food has the characteristics of "three lows and two highs" (low calorie, low fat, low salt, high protein and high dietary fiber).

According to the Report on the Development and Market Analysis of China Substitute Food Industry in the First Quarter of 2002/KLOC-0 released by Ai Media Consulting, the market of substitute food in China is constantly expanding, and the market scale will increase to 47.62 billion yuan in 2020. The market structure of meal replacement industry is mainly cereals, meal replacement powder, protein bars and meat products. The data shows that more than 70% of the interviewed users prefer cereal, followed by meal replacement powder, accounting for 45.4%, and the market segment of meal replacement ushered in development opportunities.

"In China's catering industry, it is difficult to monopolize a certain category. Different from the fast food and coffee industries, the big brands in the light food market are strong brands such as McDonald's and Starbucks, which have a serious siphon effect. There are still many consumer tracks for the concept of' health'. " Mr. Wu told reporters that the general view in the market now is to make light food meal replacement products in the future, and this business model has a brighter prospect than opening a store with assets.

■ Reporter: Fang

■ Image: Provided by the interviewee.

■ Editor: Aunt Zhang, Yue Yue