The total retail sales stood at RMB 34.2 trillion from Q1 to Q3 2023, up by 6.8%. Resilience, recovery, and hope are on the way. However, we must not ignore the fact that only 50% of consumers are pleased with their financial status. The confidence of consumers in different income bands, according to a report by BCG, could further diverge. Affluent consumers are more willing to spend, while the middle class, as the mainstream spenders, is stressed. Against this backdrop, product-ism and cost performance are making a comeback. We are going to discuss:

—What signals are indicated by the macro economy as to consumption trends in the future?

—What are the characteristics of categories for which consumers show a stronger willingness of purchase?

—What more is expected by consumers of brands and products?

The "giant" has global ambitions, but "going global" means new challenges: dietary differences require new product development, cross-border management lengthens the decision-making chain, and consumers prefer local marketing activities. ......

None of this is difficult for Nestlé. With more than 30 years of presence in China, Nestlé has established 22 factories, three R&D centers and five innovation centers, and is moving more quickly to localize its innovations. The next step in globalisation is "multilocalisation", and this is about to be realised by Nestlé.

Enterprises need to be rooted in the whole food industry chain to keep growth, which require them to innovate breakthroughs in upstream, midstream and downstream simultaneous. It is difficult, but these new brands build their own innovation system from raw materials cultivated to brand marketing, contributing to the stable industry with a new force.

Explore the infinite possibilities of plant-based, from the warmth of oats to the richness of beans, from the diversity of grains to the purity of herbs, we invite you to an innovative journey about plant-based food and beverage.

Compared with the automobile or Internet industry, food and beverages seem less associated with technology. The truth is, however, that technologies, like digitalization, nano food, 3D printing, artificial intelligence, cell culture, precision fermentation, and synthetic biology have taken root in the food and beverages industry. The sector that answers people's desire to eat and drink is now going through tech-driven disruptions with efficiency evolutions happening along the value chain. 

In January, 4,588 new foreign-invested enterprises were set up nationwide, a year-on-year increase of 74.4 percent, according to data from the Ministry of Commerce in February. Behind the continued increase in foreign investment in "Invest in China" is the confidence in business growth. With market conditions changing rapidly and resilient growth on the horizon, what innovations are these giants in the food industry embarking on?

Freshippo kicked off a discount campaign in October 2023 with price competitiveness as the core goal. In the same month, 1688.com launched a section that was bluntly called Sam's Club Substitutes. Snacks bulk selling has become one of a few categories that have registered 10 times growth in the past couple of years. The downward trend in price without comprising quality is gaining momentum, playing right into the short-of-cash status among consumers. What does it mean to brands? How can brands achieve win-win results with channels when users are owned by platforms?