There is a RMB 2 trillion market behind the busy morning hours and 60% spending in the hustle and bustle of evening hours. For a long time, this morning and night markets has not been paid due attention. In recent couple of years, catering brands have increased their presence in morning and late-night eateries. Is the morning-night economy booming? What characterizes consumers' behaviors and preferences? What are the new opportunities contained in condiments and 3R foods?

Regional culinary habits give rise to well-known regional condiments brands. But moving from regional to national is often challenging—lack of direction, lack of force, or lack of continued development. Can regional brands break the constraints and scale up by replicating a replicable model?

It takes decades of consistent export and popularization of foreign food culture and her ingredients to a new country. As a classic Asian condiment, soy sauce faces the challenge of winning over India, a country known for its diverse spices. Just 3 years after the launch of Kikkoman soy sauce in India, the company has achieved steady sales growth in more than 30 cities. The untold story is that its success is backed by an 18-year effort to export Japanese food culture. Give priority to cuisine culture first, then brands go global. 

Join us to find out from Harry.

Tomato flavor is a popular choice in the non-spicy world. Whether it's Chinese or Western cuisine, tomatoes are everywhere. When product innovation has to break through the shackles, how much effort does it take to make just one tomato good in the cooking?

The trend of salt reduction has been going on for years, and the solutions to reduce salt have been iterating. When consumers are convinced that a clean label is better, how do we meet consumer demands while ensuring good flavor? Perhaps yeast extracts can bring about a revolution in taste, allowing the tongue to feel "salty" and "umami" without consuming too much sodium.

In 1368 (Ming Dynasty), a small "MIOGEE" vinegar workshop revolutionized the vinegar making process, started to make vinegar for the royal family, and gradually grew into the Shanxi Mature Vinegar Group today. After 656 years, the vinegar is not old, but breaks through the shackles of vinegar as a flavoring supporting role, and creates the brand positioning of high-end light nutrition, making vinegar become the shining protagonist.

Tradition ≠? --The answer is MIOGEE itself!

In the eyes of consumers, one vinegar brand has moved to a much more premium position than others. Founded in 1605, Giuseppe Giusti is an Italian balsamic vinegar brand whose vinegar-making techniques and recipes have been used for over four centuries. As a supplier to the Italian royal family since 1929, the brand is known for its craftsmanship and innovation. Revenues for Giusti in 2023 is 130 Million RMB,  boasting a +25% increase from 2022 and an impressive +57% growth compared to 2021, and international markets contributed by 60%. Giusti trades craftsmanship and time for rarity. What exactly are the thoughts and perseverance behind a sip of vinegar? How has ordinary vinegar become extraordinary and become high-end?

When vinegar is a condiment, it may only be sold for more than ten yuan to the kitchens of thousands of households; when vinegar is a culture, its value will be infinitely enlarged, and it will be sold to more diversified applications scenarios and consumers. Vinegar, known as “black gold”, is not only the time to give high quality, creating a high value, while the plasticity of vinegar itself will also bring more innovative thinking brand. From “consumption” to “enjoyment”, how many commonalities and differences are there between Chinese and Italian high-end vinegars in brand marketing and new product development? (PS: Do you know how rare it is for the top vinegar brands of both countries to meet and exchange ideas together?)

Innovations in compound condiments seem to be drawn into a whirlpool of mutual copying. Standing in front of a shelf, one hardly sees anything else but fish with pickle cabbage, beef in sour sauce, or crayfish. Almost all Sichuan-style flavors have been turned into condiments products. China is a very big country. Are there any other flavors on the map holding high potential to win nationwide popularity?

If vinegar was not just a cooking condiment, could it be sweet, spicy, coffee-flavored, prebiotic, postbiotic, adaptogen, and Vitamin C? By adding functional ingredients and expanding the flavor boundary, overseas vinegar makers have changed the fate of vinegar, earning tens of millions of dollars in revenue.

What have they done?

The potential for spice is incredible. 74% of respondents paired chili sauce with food and half added chili sauce to food at least once a week, according to a survey of 2,000 American adults. Over 80% of respondents own two or more brands of chili sauce, and 83% are willing to try new brands. Chili sauce products are expected to reach USD 15 billion in 2031 from USD 9.3 billion in 2021. All statistics point to one thing: spiciness innovation.

When Chinese food makers are experimenting on the next product amid varieties of spiciness—savory spicy, numbing spicy, aromatic spicy, sour spicy, what creative attempts have been turned by overseas chili sauce brands into commercial success? It is time to think outside the box.

1. Inspirational share-outs

2. Novel flavors tasting

3. Brainstorming & discussion

A survey on Chinese consumers' trust in the safety of 3R food in 2023 reveals that only 22.18% of the respondents have very high trust. The "campus scandal" of 3R food in September brought 3R food again under scrutiny. Not fresh? Not safe? It has dawned on people that consumers' perception has not changed despite that 3R food has evolved for many years. Make yourself heard! How should we cope with the notorious reputation?

"I'm eating white people food, and my foreign colleagues are eating fried rice." While this punchline goes viral, we also realize that - on the other side of the world - Asian cuisine is favored by an increasing number of overseas consumers. Combining R&D techniques of Chinese cuisine and domestic supply chain advantages with overseas market opportunities, will it work for Chinese 3R food brands to make waves overseas instead of domestically?

In 2021, Ding Ding Fresh, founded less than a year ago, achieved over RMB 200 million in sales.

By December 2022, monthly sales reached RMB 220 million for Ding Ding Fresh.

In 2023, the company's annual revenue surpassed RMB 1 billion and attained a monthly repurchase rate of up to 30%.

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From product selection to channels, how many details must be done right to make a viral product?

One approach is to turn culinary masters' recipes into the 3R format, and the other is to seek inspirations from everyday cooking at households. Each has its pros and cons. What are the similarities and differences in R&D, supply chain, channels, and marketing? Let's take a deep dive.

From catering to new retail, DaDong Roast Duck has triumphed to the top of the Double 11 Roast Duck category. Flavor restoration, form innovation, channel pioneering, and overseas exploration ... 

How did the business of roasted duck-prepared dishes from 0 to 1 become more and more prosperous?

The year 2022 saw the first negative growth of Chinese population, bringing China into an accelerating aging society. Japan, the country that is aging the fastest, has started exploration into food for the elderly population 20 years ago. Statistics by the Japanese Universal Design Foods Committee show that production value and annual sales of Universal Design Foods (UDF) grew 532.75% and 276.2% respectively from 2013 to 2022. Taking reference from the 100-billion-scale UDF market in Japan, what surprises are around the corner as the gray-hair economy booms in China?

When one checks out the recipes offered by top-ranking 3R food brands in the U.S. or Europe, he or she will be amazed by the wide array of customization choices, ranging from ketogenic diet, vegan, low GI, to flavors and cooking techniques. Every gastronomic need can be met. When customization creeps into the Chinese 3R food market, what inspirations can Chinese players get from the western model?