The more competitive the place, the more market there is
Behind the Shanghai internet celebrity shop
The "Bear Claw" coffee on Yongkang Road in Shanghai is on fire.
The original name of this shop is "HINICHIJOU", which means "non-daily". Its creative "Bear Claw Delivery Coffee" business model, and the deaf-mute coffee that won the first place in the national professional skills competition for the disabled Teachers, the public welfare model of providing free coffee to disabled customers, and the affordable price of 20 yuan per cup... These are all elements that promote customers from everywhere to queue up and "check in" and the media scramble to report.
Since its official opening on December 3, this "Bear Claw" coffee has maintained a long queue of customers every day.
However, Wang Haiqing, one of the founders of "Bear Claw" Coffee, told China Youth Daily·China Youth Daily that this newly opened store does not have a budget and no intention of marketing. Instead, it focuses on polishing products and optimizing processes. "Of course, we specifically chose to open on the International Day of Disabled Persons, which is also one of the reasons why one stone has stirred up waves in the market."
Why open a shop on "Coffee Street"
Looking through review apps, you can find that although the Yongkang Road where the "Bear Claw" coffee is located is only a few hundred meters away, it is densely lined with many distinctive and creative popular shops, of which there are more than 10 coffee shops. Bakery, yogurt shop, Japanese food shop, clothing shop, etc.
In the interview, a shopkeeper mentioned that before the government took the lead in the rectification at the end of 2016, Yongkang Road used to be a noisy and messy "bar street". After the rectification, it gradually became famous among coffee lovers in the country. "Coffee Street".
Similar to "Bear Claw" coffee, the coffee shop "control machine" located on No. 39 is a small shop that has been opened for less than half a year and is in the "accumulation period". The owner Xiao Zhao is a young man born in the 90s.
Why does this store choose to open in "Coffee Street" as "newborn calves are not afraid of tigers"?
Xiao Zhao said that he has been a barista for seven or eight years, and after accumulating skills and summarizing the characteristics of customer needs, he opened the first coffee shop on Xiangyang South Road last year and was very popular.
Due to accidentally being ordered by a well-known artist for takeaway and promoting it on social software, the store became a popular takeaway store in the neighborhood, and later changed to only takeaway.
In order to better serve the dinning guests, he decided to retain the original technology and develop novel elements, and opened this new store on Yongkang Road that suits the preferences of young people.
"In the coffee and even the entire catering industry, products and services are still the core of the same. In terms of service, we must communicate with customers." Speaking of coffee raw materials, production processes and taste development, Xiao Zhao Kan talked, "Dining No one in the industry can guarantee that the taste meets everyone’s needs, but active communication with customers is very effective in improving the product. For example, many young people now start to accept sour coffee, but if the sourness is too sharp, they will rush customers, and the softer The sourness of fruit will be welcome, and this can only be understood after communicating with the guests."
Xiao Zhao also believes that today, when coffee is already in demand by urban people, more and more people are pursuing more cost-effective, healthier, and more distinctive coffee products, which leaves a market for "small and sophisticated" shops. space.
"Although there are many small coffee shops in Shanghai, the competition is fierce, but the more intense the competition, the more market there is and the easier it is to spread."
"The more competitive the place, the more market there is" is also Wang Haiqing's idea.
Wang Haiqing and the other two partners are both born in the 1980s. She worked in a well-known investment bank, and later operated funds, opened bars and other restaurants, and was a serial entrepreneur.
“There are many good and well-known stores on Yongkang Road. If we can be liked and recognized by consumers on Yongkang Road, we will have the confidence to open stores in other parts of the country. This is the reason for choosing a location here.” Wang Haiqing said.
Spontaneous spread of word of mouth has vitality
Wang Haiqing said that she is very confident in the products of her coffee shop and hopes to attract customers by word of mouth: “We are greatly influenced by the concept of selected coffee in Japan, from bean selection to grinding, roasting, and the pH of the water. Pay attention to it. For example, we have a lemon fruit coffee. We chose more than 100 lemons, hoping to surprise consumers."
She believes that in order to gain a foothold on Yongkang Road, product quality is fundamental.
In the early stage of store operations, it was not cost-effective to spend money on marketing, and there is currently no budget for this part.
"In every industry, especially FMCG, publicity is a must. We have found a better entry point this time. We are very happy and proud, but do you say that it is reproducible? We have no bottom, nor I know how long it will be popular. Some stores can spend money on marketing to buy temporary popularity, but if you want to go further, it must be spread by word of mouth and with vitality."
To accumulate popularity by word of mouth rather than marketing, "Sheng Sushi" opened on Yongkang Road is a typical example.
Zhang Manchao and his wife have been running this Japanese food store for 10 years. By exploring the tastes of different customer groups, they have developed popular products such as American California rolls, Boston rolls, and Rolls Royce rolls without spending a cent on advertising.
"We are just opening a small store. I feel that there is no need to advertise. There were platforms that asked us to cooperate in promotion, but we refused." Zhang Manchao said.
Zhang Manchao is a native of Henan. After he came to Shanghai more than a decade ago, he opened four or five restaurants in partnership with his friends. Among them, this Japanese food shop has the best business and has been preserved until now.
In view of the many white-collar workers, young people, and foreigners in the neighborhood, he has created many sushi with customer names, such as "Jackson Roll" and "Helena Roll".
"Every customer's name means that there is a group behind him who likes this taste. For example, Spanish customers like salmon, tuna, eel sauce, and wasabi sauce in sushi rolls, which have a heavier taste; Chinese Americans like white tuna, Red tuna, salmon belly, beef, with sauce on the outside; the "rolls-royce rolls" that Shanghai locals like have bacon, cheese, and apple slices, which are crispy and sweet, which can cover a little bit of cheese And the smoky flavor of bacon".
Zhang Manchao said that in the past 10 years since its opening, the customers of "Sushi Sushi" have cultivated a tacit understanding with the store, "Many of them are regular customers, and the people are very good. For example, when my wife is busy at noon, they will help them to close the table; Sometimes there are no seats in the store, and customers will sit outside and wait for a while, order the dishes in advance, and then sit down and eat after entering the store."
"Changhong" shop, survival soil is very important
This year, the new crown pneumonia epidemic has had a great impact on the small-scale catering industry, and the small shops on Yongkang Road also had a difficult time.
Zhang Manchao said that during the epidemic, the municipal government has helped a lot with policies such as rent reductions and tax incentives for small and medium-sized enterprises; the company responsible for the investment promotion work on Yongkang Road has also helped to decorate the store.
Not only "Sushi", several shopkeepers on Yongkang Road mentioned that the supporting policies and the neighborhood atmosphere have played a big role in the small shop "changing red".
Guo Liang, the owner of "Licking Spoo! Spoooon Yogurt" at No.59 Yongkang Road, said that he and his partner once opened a yogurt shop in Tianzifang, where foreign tourists must "check in". Although there are many people and lively, but the business is mixed. The rent was high and the shop closed after 5 years of operation.
In order to find new growth points, they opened the store to Yongkang Road in 2017.
At that time, Yongkang Road had just undergone rectification and there were few shops and not many customers.
Opening a yogurt shop on Yongkang Road, Guo Liang asked a designer to design a seat with a step and a table. The large and small decorative spoons in the shop are full of fun; he slowly adjusted the menu according to the tastes of customers. Now the shop can add nuts and fresh cuts of his choice. Greek yogurt with fruit, waffles with yogurt, fruit and ice cream are very popular.
Guo Liang disagrees with the aggressive marketing practices of some Internet celebrity stores: "There is an old saying that'the one who is advancing, the one who retreats'. If the product is fancy but the connotation is not good, it will not be long. After a trend passes, it may be too bad. Quick. Doing business requires a mass foundation."
The "mass base" is another common point among specialty shops on Yongkang Road.
"Big Bagel" at No.27 Yongkang Road is a small bagel shop. The owner Wang Meiyan said that she came here because she loves shopping and the culture of small shops.
Over the past four years, customers have become more and more sticky. Some customers have placed more than 300 orders on the take-out software, and completed their orders tacitly without any explanation. "Baggol is a relatively niche bread, Shanghai There are also a few well-known baguette shops. One of the old shops continues to expand and finally tossed down. So I no longer have new ideas and do not do marketing. I feel that as long as I have these old customers, I will focus on doing this small shop. The shop is enough".
Wang Meiyan specifically mentioned that in the Hengfu style district of Xuhui District where Yongkang Road is located, the government is very supportive of the "small shop culture", such as convening store owners to conduct research meetings and introducing the media to interviews. This is an important reason for her peace of mind to do business here.
The reporter learned that Xuhui District proposed three years ago, “On the premise of adhering to the principle of market resource allocation as the main body and the government not intervening in the free allocation of the market, we should actively guide the health of well-known small shops with characteristics and heritage in Hengfu District. development of".
Chi Zhihui, general manager of Shanghai Paifong Yongkang Commercial Management Co., Ltd., who has been responsible for the investment promotion of Yongkang Road for more than 10 years, said that after the completion of the renovation of the "Bar Street", she intends to guide Yongkang Road to become a place where residents will not be disturbed and businesses can operate with peace of mind. “Slow Life Street”, there has been no high-profile publicity. “Our investment philosophy is to have a good brand, especially to support young people’s entrepreneurship. As long as they have ideas, creativity and dare to work hard, they are welcome to open a shop. The same is a coffee shop, as long as there is Characteristics, this street will not be the same."
China Youth Daily · China Youth Daily reporter Wei Qimeng Source: China Youth Daily