On December 10 last year, the Sichuan cuisine brand "Ma Liu Ji" founded by Wang Shaofei opened in Beijing. In one year, "Ma Liu Ji" has 8 stores in Beijing. The first store near Guomao is even more because it can see the new CCTV building become an "internet celebrity".
Recently, "Ma Liu Ji" opened in Chengdu MixC and Joy City at the same time, and Chengdu has become another city on the territory of Wang Shaofei's catering business.
Having worked for many years in the well-known catering group Pretty Jiangnan, and also invested in real estate and hotels, Wang Shaofei returned to the catering industry after 6 years. On the eve of the opening of Chengdu's "Ma Liu Ji", Wang Shaofei, who came to Chengdu in a low-key manner, accepted an exclusive interview with Red Star News.
Not from Chengdu, but like her mother Zhang Lan, she has chosen Sichuan cuisine to start a business; she has chosen Chengdu as an important stop in her career... 40-year-old Wang Shaofei admitted that with the growth of age, people's personality and mentality have undergone some changes, and now he only wants to do some things steadily, "Before, he always felt that his industry was difficult, and then he jumped out to see other industries, it turned out that everyone was not easy, it was better to do your professional things well." ”
Back to dining: 40 years old, I want to do something steadily
Red Star News: Why did you choose to re-enter the catering industry after many years?
Wang Shaofei: At the age of 40, my life has reached a new stage, and I want to do something familiar in a down-to-earth manner. Last year, about June, I was in Taipei, and I didn't go back to Beijing for about half a year, so I thought about going back to Beijing to do catering. The epidemic is a reshuffle for catering, and now entering the catering industry is actually an opportunity. At that time, I just happened to chat with my colleagues in the past, and although everyone has had a good career in recent years, they all miss the days when they were together.
I've also made a lot of investments in the last 6 years, real estate, hotels, etc., but there's no sense of gain. I still hope to start another business to do a platform, a brand. Soon there was a team of 4 people: An Yong when they started a business together, who later became the executive president of Pretty Jiangnan; Li Ping, the head chef, who was from Chengdu, who followed us to the first store at the age of 25, and Yang Yang, who was responsible for the operation.
Red Star News: How was the brand "Ma Liu Ji" born?
Wang Shaofei: Our LOGO is Qilin and Qilin is a divine beast, and the image is not very abstract and festive. The name Ma Liu Ji is the result of brainstorming, at that time we have decided to do Sichuan cuisine brand, in the past everyone always felt that Sichuan cuisine is spicy, in fact, Sichuan cuisine is a hundred dishes and a hundred flavors, it set a "seven tastes and eight flavors Ma Liu Ji" slogan (slogan).
Red Star News: How did the experience of Pretty Jiangnan help run Ma Liu Ji?
Wang Shaofei: This time, I definitely don't want to go back to the previous business model, which used to be a big store with heavy assets and a lot of private rooms... I don't think it's in line with the consumption patterns of this generation of young people, and the operators will be very tired. We must focus on the current consumer trend and attract young people. We try to make the scale of the store a little smaller, each store is about 300 square meters, as few private rooms as possible, to ensure a high turnover rate.
The design is in the national trend, the per capita consumption of Beijing stores is about 134, and Chengdu is about 1230.
I think in the past, everyone had some misunderstandings about Sichuan cuisine, thinking that it was a very large pot and very oily. I talked to many young people after 95, they don't know sugar oil fruits, and they haven't even eaten authentic sauerkraut fish. I think we must now take out the traditional Sichuan cuisine, so you see our menu is very classic, the main one is Mao Blood Wang, as well as fish fragrant meat shreds, mapo tofu, salty roast white, sweet roast white... Many of these dishes cannot be eaten in Sichuan restaurants in Beijing. We also didn't have too fancy plating, it looked very clean and comfortable, returned to the essence of food, not too much of a formal thing.
Red Star News: Now that Ma Liu Ji has 8 stores in Beijing, what do you think is the secret of Ma Liu Ji's rapid store opening?
Wang Shaofei: Our first store was selected in Beijing's Guomao, which actually laid the foundation for brand tone and passenger flow, and it was recognized by business partners; the second is the team, we have 30 years of experience in Sichuan cuisine, the detours we have taken before, the run-in of chefs, etc. can be avoided; and the other is that this positioning is very accurate, and ancient Sichuan cuisine returns to tradition. I have always felt that the most traditional things are the most fashionable, not blindly changing the dishes and blindly doing some innovation. Our innovation is mainly the dining environment, lighting, etc., the dishes themselves are still traditional, and they also cater to the psychology of young people seeking new ideas.
On December 7, 2021, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, Red Star News interviewed Wang Shaofei photography Wang Huan
Sichuan cuisine is a good thing precipitated by history
Red Star News: Neither you nor your mother are from Chengdu. Why did you choose Sichuan cuisine for both startups?
Wang Shaofei: Sichuan cuisine is actually our strength and gene, we have 30 years of experience in Sichuan cuisine, the first Alain restaurant is Sichuan cuisine, and later the pretty Jiangnan is also Sichuan cuisine. At our peak, we had nearly 3,000 chefs, all from Sichuan. Although most of the management team is from Beijing, we have been working with Sichuan culture for the past 30 years and have established trust with these chefs and chefs from Chengdu.
Sichuan cuisine is a big track. One dish and one grid, hundreds of dishes and hundreds of flavors, is a significant feature of Sichuan cuisine that is different from other cuisines. Young people like the elderly, family gatherings can be, business banquets can also be.
In addition, in the past few years, there is still a lack of competitive Sichuan cuisine brands in the market. And we have the resources of Sichuan cuisine in our hands, why do I still choose to make other cuisines? Traditional Sichuan cuisine is accepted by history, and we must pick up these traditional things and carry them forward again. (This time) we came to Chengdu to invest, but also hope to make Chengdu catering more diversified.
Red Star News: Ma Liu Ji has launched a lot of extended products, including hot pot base, will there be plans to enter the hot pot market?
Wang Shaofei: No, because Mao Blood Wang is boiled from the hot pot base, the base we sell is a very small piece, and if you buy it, you can also make it at home. We do make a lot of extensions of Sichuan cuisine, such as hand-torn beef, hot sauce, bowl chicken seasoning, etc., all in cooperation with the local factory in Chengdu. After all, we have just started a business, or we still want to be an asset-light model, these supply chains in Chengdu are particularly good and very professional, we just adjust some tastes, choose our ingredients, and then use their production lines to process and produce.
We still focus on the field of Sichuan cuisine, these research and development still hope to let more diners who do not open a store area taste our taste, we also have a flagship store on the Internet, you can buy some of our products online.
Come to Chengdu to open a shop, the feeling of coming home
Red Star News: Why did you choose Chengdu as the second city to land in Maliuji?
Wang Shaofei: We made plans to open a store in Chengdu in three days, about July, and now it will open in December. We have to open a shop in Chengdu, do Sichuan cuisine, must be traced back, our chefs are from Sichuan, if there is no shop in Chengdu, it is like there is no feeling of home. In fact, in 2004, Qi Jiangnan opened a store in Chengdu, a total of 4 stores, why we are very confident to return to Chengdu, in fact, it is based on the opening of stores at that time. Our first store was in Bauhinia and invited a Japanese designer to collaborate, the design is very modern and fashionable, and many customers feel that Sichuan cuisine can also be like this.
And now Chengdu has such a good market, and the catering service industry here is so active. Chengdu is another city with a population of more than 20 million, the whole city is very young, and people are willing to accept new things. I think in business itself, it's an opportunity for us. Of course, I especially like Chengdu, and opening a shop here gives me a reason to come to Chengdu.
Red Star News: What are the characteristics of the two Ma Liu Ji in Chengdu?
Wang Shaofei: Ma Liu Ji is more about creating a 360-degree immersive dining experience, not only with delicious food, but also with traditional Sichuan cuisine and modern design and atmosphere. We wanted this to be a scene where young people eat, gather and socialize, and of course the food had to be delicious.
Like the MixC store uses a lot of Led, we invited the team who did naked-eye 3D to create the content of the national tide, and the traditional things are reflected with some sense of technology. Joy City store is invited to a very interesting illustrator, our Kirin Logo and illustration ideas made two walls, coupled with our own research and development of chairs, so that customers feel a sense of design, but not out of the main axis of traditional Chinese culture.
Red Star News: Chengdu catering competition is fierce, will you worry that Ma Liu Ji can not meet the picky taste buds of Chengdu people?
Wang Shaofei: We try to do it, bring some different ideas, more into the big market, hoping to bring some different experiences to chengdu's catering market. In fact, we are still more confident in the taste, we are not Beijing people to do Sichuan cuisine, our chefs are Chengdu people, has decades of Sichuan cuisine experience.
We are also very confident in the Chengdu market and have plans to continue to open stores.
Loved the fireworks in Chengdu
Red Star News: I remember you once wrote that when your mother started her business, she pulled back a few wagons of bamboo from Chengdu as a decoration for the restaurant. Is bamboo your first impression of Chengdu?
Wang Shaofei: At that time, it was an Alain restaurant, and there was no design for restaurants in Beijing at that time, and my mother just went to Chengdu to get a lot of bamboo and came back, looking for someone to paint on it, which was very stylish. In fact, why did she cook Sichuan cuisine at that time? Because there used to be a Sichuan restaurant near our house, we often went to eat it, which was particularly delicious. At that time, my mother thought that Sichuan cuisine should be done well if it had to be in a good position in Beijing. Later, it was through the introduction of the boss, we met a few Sichuan chefs, and my mother began to make Sichuan cuisine restaurants.
Red Star News: What's most appealing to you in Chengdu?
Wang Shaofei: I think Chengdu is very pyrotechnic. Chengdu has characteristic shopping malls like MixC and Joy City, as well as retro ones like Taikoo Li, and there are also many characteristic small shops around the university and Chunxi Road, which make people feel very comfortable and have a lot of life.
I will observe the life of Chengdu people every time, and from their state, I can actually get a lot of inspiration and get a lot of positive energy.
Red Star News: When did you first come to Chengdu, and how often did you come to Chengdu over the years?
Wang Shaofei: I first came to Chengdu in May 2005 to climb Siguniang Mountain. Over the years, I still often come to Chengdu, and every time I go to Chengdu, I will eat on the side of the road, walk around Taikoo Li, and drink tea with friends. Every time I go to Chengdu, my mentality is very relaxed, that is, don't arrange too much for myself, just feel the fireworks of Chengdu.
Chengdu's life aesthetics, art has a huge space for development
Red Star News: Chengdu is known as the city of food, what do you think is the reason for the popularity of Chengdu food?
Wang Shaofei: There are local characteristics everywhere, but the popularity of Sichuan cuisine is relatively high, everyone thinks that spicy is delicious, and the stimulation of spicy taste may be more in line with the current rhythm of life.
Of course, Sichuan cuisine is not only spicy, but also sweet, such as Kung Pao chicken and Gong Bao shrimp balls, which are welcomed by many foreigners. Sichuan cuisine is actually very much in line with this taste of modern people. I think Chengdu is a very tolerant city, and the Cantonese cuisine business here is also very good. It is also a unique place, such as Chengdu's watercress, which cannot be brewed anywhere else, and cannot be separated from the air, humidity and soil of Chengdu.
Red Star News: Now there is a slogan in Chengdu called "there is a kind of life aesthetic called Chengdu", how do you understand the life aesthetics of Chengdu people?
Wang Shaofei: Chengdu has done a good job in cultural creation, and the future may be to do some aesthetic exploration of cultural types, such as contemporary art exhibitions, museums, aesthetic design, etc. There are many opportunities here, because there are many young people. I will also be working with my friends on a contemporary art center in Chengdu, which has now entered the design stage. So for us, Chengdu is not only as simple as catering, I think it is related to culture, related to life, and related to beauty and design, which can have a lot of room for development in Chengdu.
We hope to build a precinct like Beijing 798 in Chengdu, find some friends, do their duty, gather everyone's strength, and integrate into these platforms, which can bring very interesting development in Chengdu.
Red Star News: You said on Weibo that the genes of a person and a team are for each industry. Is your future focus on catering?
Wang Shaofei: Yes, the focus of my future career will definitely be on catering, first do a good job in ma liu ji and Yue Er tang brands. I think there were misunderstandings before, always felt that their industry is difficult, and then jumped out to see other industries, everyone is not easy, it is better to do your professional things well.
I've done real estate all these years, and I'm tired. I've also made investments, and while I've got some return on investments, it's not something I'm going to do. So I think that each person does his or her job, and so does society, and everyone plays a different role.
Red Star News reporter Qiu Junfeng Zhang Bo Photojournalist Wang Huan Editor Jiang Qing The picture was provided by the interviewee in addition to the signature
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