When the beverage is labeled as "natural, light and low-burden", it ushers in a flock of the entire market.
Some time ago, the battle in the new tea drinking industry killed a dark horse called "yogurt". The yogurt track, which has always been dumb, surpassed Heytea and Nai Xue for a while and became the new favorite of young people. When generations of new tea categories are introduced, the hot discussion of freshly made yogurt is not as hot as in the past, and after the bubble in the market gradually dissipates, it is also steadily advancing in the involution market.
For example, Mo Yogurt, which was founded in 2014, only announced that the number of stores exceeded 500 on March 17, and was invested by Junlebao in early November, and now the number of stores has soared to 1,625, more than three times;Founded in 2018, Blueglass received more than 200 million yuan in financing in 2021 and expanded more than 147 stores in the past two yearsK22., which was just established in 2020Strawberry yogurt with Dandong strawberries as raw materials exploded and became the "C position" in the queue of major shopping malls;The one-year-old Prince Forest has received tens of millions of strategic financing;There are also emerging brands such as yogurt jars, a yogurt cow, full rice yogurt, and Zhengbang Suka yogurt.
Smelling the future profitable, many Internet celebrity new tea drinks have also launched yogurt products in an attempt to get a piece of the cake. At present, Gu Ming, Tea Baidao, Lele Tea, Shuyi, 7 Fen Sweet, etc. have all launched yogurt products.
Labeled as healthy, the unit price of freshly made yogurt is as high as 20-40 yuan, surpassing the major Internet celebrity milk tea shops, and even trying to explore the huge amount of 108 yuan.
Yogurt, a category that is not new, has been played by brands such as blueglass, jasmine yogurt, yogurt jars, etc., relying on the signature products of the avocado series and the "healthier" label, the popularity has soared this year. But why are they able to raise the price of yogurt?How long can this gust of wind blow?Can a single drink store represented by freshly made yogurt become the next Heytea?
Below, I will answer these questions one by one in combination with category research and investigations.
Explosive genes
In the ready-made yogurt industry, there are a variety of store methods from the downstream alone. According to store positioning, location, etc., there are three main business models of mainstream yogurt on the market.
The first type: open a small store in a big city, and open a big store in a small city, jasmine yogurt is a representative of this model. For a long time, Mo Yogurt stores have mainly focused on first-tier cities, supplemented by second- and third-tier cities.
In first-tier cities, consumers have a fast pace of life and are more inclined to take out or takeaway, and the rent in shopping malls is high, so Mo Yogurt chooses to open a small store of about 30 square meters, focusing on fast and convenient services. In addition, in first-tier cities, Mo Yogurt is facing more competition and alternatives, so it needs to quickly cover more business districts and people through the small store model to increase brand awareness and awareness.
In second- and third-tier cities, where consumers have a slower pace of life and need more social space and leisure experiences, Mo Yogurt chooses to open large stores of 60-80 square meters or even 150 square meters, providing a guest area and a third space. In second- and third-tier cities, people are often reluctant to make large purchases in small stores, so Mo Yogurt needs to create a more high-end and high-quality image through the big store model, and establish brand differentiation and advantages.
The second type: quality store modelBlueglass is the best example of this model.
Different from ordinary drinks, Blueglass elevates yogurt to a quality of life, by adding collagen, anthocyanins, deep sea alcocyanin, VC, etc. on the basis of "yogurt + fruit" to deepen the healthy attributes of yogurt, and then co-branded with lululemon to create differentiated functional yogurt products.
Therefore, most of the blueglass stores are opened in first- and second-tier cities, operating in the mode of large stores, with a size of more than 100 square meters, ** tea at the same time, but also give users a third space for rest, therefore, the unit price of customers is also higher, generally 30-40 yuan a cup.
The third is the small store model, the main representative brands are a yogurt cow, prince forest, etc.
The store cost of this model is low, the replication speed is fast, and the scale effect can be realized, focusing on take-out and take-out scenarios, giving users a convenient experience.
According to the data of Guanyan Tianxia, the retail scale of China's yogurt market in 2021 will be 1564700 million yuan, of which room temperature yogurt accounts for the vast majority, and the market size is 1054300 million yuan, low-temperature yogurt is 510400 million yuan.
It can be seen from the data that the scale of China's yogurt market is huge and the growth rate is stable, with strong anti-cyclical and sustainable. However, compared with developed countries, there is still a lot of room for improvement in China's yogurt consumption level. According to the International Dairy Federation (IDF), China's per capita yogurt consumption in 2019 was only 89 kg, much lower than in Europe (24.).7 kg), the United States (138 kg) and Japan (115 kg).
The yogurt category does not need consumer education by nature, and the impression that it is rich in lactic acid bacteria and promotes intestinal digestion has given the public the mind that drinking yogurt = healthy life. But when the traditional Xi of drinking yogurt has been implanted in people's hearts, what does freshly made yogurt rely on to turn yogurt red again?
Tea involution, a diverse combination of different ways
In the past two years, many new tea drinks have come up with a variety of tricks in an attempt to get a share of the involuted tea market. Yogurt drinks take a different approach, completely replacing the base and bringing consumers a familiar and fresh feeling.
Freshly made yogurt brands use yogurt as a base and combine various fruits, grains, nuts and other accessories to create yogurt drinks with a variety of flavors and functions. These products not only enrich consumers' choices, but also enhance the added value and differentiation of products.
Among them, the avocado series is the most popular signature product of freshly made yogurt brands. Avocados are rich in nutrients such as unsaturated fatty acids, vitamin E, and potassium, which are beneficial for lowering cholesterol, antioxidants, and protecting the heart. Moreover, the avocado has a dense and smooth texture, which complements the yogurt to form a unique delicacy. According to Wang Xiaofeng, the founder of Blueglass, the avocado series accounts for more than 60% of Blueglass's total sales.
In addition to fruit series, freshly made yogurt brands also launch cereals, nuts and other series. These series are mainly based on yogurt, with a variety of grains or nuts as accessories, forming a combination of "yogurt + everything". These combinations not only increase the taste and depth of the product, but also increase the protein, carbohydrates, calcium and other nutrients of the product. At the same time,These combinations also meet consumer demand for brunch meal replacements or snacks.
Health positioning + beauty marketing
First of all, the unit price of freshly made yogurt brands is much higher than that of traditional room temperature yogurt and low temperature yogurt, generally around 20-40 yuan. Such a pricing strategy reflects not only the cost and profit margin of the product, but also the high-end positioning of the brand and the target consumer group.
Freshly made yogurt brands are mainly aimed at female consumers who are concerned about health and quality of life, and this part of consumers is less sensitive to ** and pays more attention to the quality, taste and functionality of the product. Therefore, high-end positioning can increase the added value and attractiveness of the product, and can also enhance the image and reputation of the brand.
Secondly, the appearance marketing of the freshly made yogurt brand is also an important strategy, using exquisite packaging design and product modeling to attract consumers' attention and word-of-mouth communication on social **, forming a topic effect. Freshly made yogurt brands continue to innovate in products, using yogurt as the base, with a variety of fruits, grains, nuts and other accessories to create a variety of colorful, rich, and changeable yogurt drinks. These products are not only delicious and delicious, but also very suitable for taking photos and punching cards, which has sparked a lot of sharing and discussion on platforms such as WeChat, Weibo, and Douyin. For example, Blueglass's "Blue Starry Sky" series has more than 1500 million times.
Quickly overturned, where is the road to freshly made yogurt?
The core competitiveness model proposed by Gary Hamel and Prahalad, famous American management scholars, points out that the success of a brand is not due to short-term or accidental product development or a spur of the moment of market strategy, but the external performance of the brand's core competitiveness.
The real core competitiveness of the brand is a unique skill or technology that can enable the company to bring special benefits to customers, which has four characteristics: value, scarcity, irreplaceability and difficult to imitate.
The explosion of freshly made yogurt is due to the right timing and strategy, but the real core competitiveness has not been built. The overturn after the trial of Mo Yogurt has also slightly exposed the hidden dangers of this industry. Through the phenomenon, let's take a look at the side of this industry.
The homogenization of products is serious, and it is difficult to produce explosive products
The core ingredients of freshly made yoghurt are milk and starter culture, and the quality of these two directly affects the taste and nutrition of yogurt. However, due to the concentration of milk and starter cultures, there is not much difference in the substrate of different brands of freshly made yogurt. In addition, the ingredients of freshly made yogurt are also relatively simple, mainly fruits, nuts, grains, etc., lacking innovation and personalization. Therefore, it is difficult for freshly made yogurt to form a differentiated competitive advantage in products, and it is easy to be confused and replaced by consumers.
Although freshly made yogurt has the selling points of health, freshness and deliciousness, it also has shortcomings such as short shelf life, high shelf life and strong seasonality. These factors limit the consumption frequency and consumption scenarios of freshly made yogurt, making it difficult for ready-made yogurt to form loyal user groups and stable sales. In contrast, the tea market often has explosive products, such as Heytea's cheese series, Nai Xue's tea cheese Bobo series, etc., which not only have a unique taste and appearance, but also trigger social topics and communication effects, so as to attract more consumers.
Positioning high-end sinking market is difficult to overcome
The main target users of freshly made yogurt are young female white-collar workers, who have a high demand for and willingness to pay for healthy, delicious and good-looking products. However, this part of the user is also the main force in the tea market, so there is greater competitive pressure on freshly made yogurt and tea. In the sinking market, due to consumers' low awareness of ready-made yogurt, higher sensitivity, and higher requirements for cold chain logistics, it is difficult for freshly made yogurt to enter and expand.
Rely on the upstream industrial chain and the downstream bargaining power is weak
As far as the upstream of ready-made yogurt is concerned, the first business of raw milk is more concentrated. According to statistics, more than 40% of China's annual raw milk production comes from Inner Mongolia, Heilongjiang and Hebei. Therefore, the upstream is easy to form a monopoly mechanism, and the downstream bargaining power is weak. For yogurt brands, if they want to get a lower cost of yogurt, they need to purchase on a larger scale.
The health paradox Food safety is inevitable
Due to the short shelf life, high quality and strong seasonality, freshly made yogurt needs to rely on a complete cold chain logistics system to ensure the freshness and safety of the product. However, China's cold chain logistics industry is not perfect, and there may still be insufficient capacity, high cost, and inconsistent standards.
1. Lack of supervision and other issues.
In addition, due to inadequate quality standards and regulations for milk and starter cultures, problems such as adulteration, exceedance, and expiration may also occur. Therefore, it is difficult to guarantee the quality of raw materials in freshly made yogurt.
The next "Hey Tea"?
In 2012, the first Heytea was founded, relying on innovative products, exquisite stores, strong digital capabilities and unique brand culture, it has rapidly risen and led the tea industry. Today, with the involution of new tea drinks, Heytea is still expanding its stores and standing tall as one of the three giants of tea drinks.
Heytea's attack has been the envy of many tea brands, and there is no shortage of imitators to learn from and copy, but they have never been able to get out of the second Heytea.
Nowadays, the rise of single beverage stores represented by freshly made yogurt, the emergence of new brands such as coconut water and hand-made lemon tea, and the category giants under the single track are also following the path that Heytea has taken. Next, let's take freshly made yogurt as a starting point to see if a single drink store can become the next Hey Tea
From the perspective of market size, the current ready-made tea market is much larger than the ready-made yogurt market. According to data from iiMedia Consulting, the scale of China's ready-made tea market will reach 106 billion yuan in 2021, while according to the data of China Business Industry Research Institute, the scale of China's ready-made yogurt market in 2021 will only be about 3 billion yuan, and there is still a lot of room for increment.
From the perspective of product innovation, there are more possibilities for freshly made tea。Based on tea, freshly made tea brands continue to introduce new products and new combinations to meet consumers' diverse needs for taste, nutrition and functionality. For example, Heytea has launched innovative products such as "Cheese Taro Puree Bobo" and "Cheese Grape".COCO launched the "Ice Cream" series of products, etc. Although the ready-made yogurt brand also uses yogurt as a base and combines various fruits, grains, nuts and other accessories to create a variety of flavors and functional yogurt drinks, it is still relatively conservative and lacks creativity in comparison.
From the perspective of brand competition, ready-made tea brands have formed a relatively stable and mature competition pattern and marketLayering,In the high-end market, a relatively stable double-leading pattern of "Heytea + Naixue" has been formedThe mid-end market has a large consumer demand and a large number of market playersThe sunken market is a dusty city. Ready-made yogurt brands, on the other hand, are still in a relatively early stage of scuffle, with no obvious leaders and differentiators, and are also facing attacks from traditional yogurt brands and new tea drinks.
In general, although single beverage stores similar to freshly made yogurt have the support of capital and consumers, most of them are still in the early stage of financing, and there are still many weaknesses in terms of market size, product innovation, and competitive landscape. A single drink shop still has a long way to go if it wants to become popular in one fell swoop and become the next Heytea.
Epilogue
In Europe, the first record of yogurt came from the French clinical record: when King Francis I of France suffered from severe dysentery, the medical backwardness of France made the French doctors helpless, and when his life was hanging by a thread, the doctors of the allied countries cured him with yogurt.
We always hear a lot about healthy yogurt, but nowadays, yogurt is more than just health for us. When the plain packaging is replaced by a PC plastic cup printed with colorful patterns, supplemented by a fruit-flavored yogurt shake, the freshly made yogurt is more of a high-quality, ceremonial and exquisite life.
Driven by freshness, consumers are willing to try the taste of yogurt, but when the emotional, social and other premiums have passed, how to make young people willing to buy for a long time has become the key.
In the future of freshly made yogurt, it is more important to find a strong value point and establish a category moat than to become the next Heytea. The challenges ahead may be more severe than imagined.
References: 1Red Meal Network|Freshly made yogurt is popular, can it be made and how to do it?An article explains in detail the four mainstream ways of playing in the market.
2.Drink Newspaper |This year's new tea drink was frantically grabbed by freshly made yogurt.
3.Reading Finance |Freshly made yogurt is only one high-end away from Hey Tea
4.Zinc scale|A single cup of freshly made yogurt for 30 yuan, want to be a new generation of "happy tea"?
5.Entrepreneurship New Tea Drink|Low-temperature yogurt "kicks over" the new tea drink 6Brand number reading|Interview with Gu Hao, the co-founder of Mo Yogurt: Why did the store only break out recently after 9 years of establishment?
Editor: Liu Bai.