The main "high-end snacks" BESTORE lowers its figure, and the maximum drop of 40% can save the hearts of consumers?

Since its launch 17 years ago, BESTORE has been focusing on the slogan of "high-end snacks", but now, it has finally begun to learn to "put down its body". A few days ago, BESTORE announced the implementation of the largest price reduction for the first time in 17 years, with an average price reduction of 22% and a maximum price reduction of 45% for 300 products. On December 3, a reporter from Modern Express visited a BESTORE store in the Nanjing market.

△ Ryohin 铺子门店

Field visits

BESTORE has reduced the price of many products, and consumers are holding a wait-and-see attitude

On November 27, 2023, BESTORE held the second extraordinary general meeting of shareholders in 2023 to complete the general election of the third board of directors and board of supervisors of the company. Yang Yinfen was elected as the new chairman of BESTORE and once again assumed the position of general manager. After the change of coach, Yang Yinfen's "first knife" was to cut the price. On the second day after taking office, Yang Yinfen announced in an open letter to all internal employees that the largest price reduction in 17 years would be implemented, and the average membership price of more than 300 products sold in the store would be reduced by 22%, and the maximum price would be reduced by 45%.

On December 3, a reporter from Modern Express came to a BESTORE store located in a large commercial body in Yuhuatai District. The reporter observed that the prices of some commodities have been lowered compared with the prices at the beginning of the year. Taking BESTORE's finger cake and Hong Kong-style egg waffle cake as an example, the price at the beginning of the year was 29.9 yuan/500g, and the current price, the price of finger cake has dropped to 26.9 yuan/500g, and the price of Hong Kong-style egg waffle cake is 21.9 yuan/500g.

However, there are also BESTORE private brands whose prices have not yet been adjusted, taking the 1kg of shredded bread as an example, the price is still 19.9 yuan, the same as at the beginning of the year. When the reporter asked the clerk whether the price reduction was completed, the clerk was reluctant to say much about it, but said that it would be adjusted in accordance with the regulations of the headquarters.

In the interview, the reporter learned that most consumers still have a wait-and-see attitude towards the price reduction of BESTORE. "Our family still likes to eat BESTORE, and when I was at home before, I also bought a lot online. Later, I found that it was better to go to the roasted food shop in the vegetable market, which was fresh and cost-effective. Mr. Qin, a citizen of Nanjing, told reporters that the price of the main good store is indeed a bit high, and he feels that the price is a bit inflated. "Let's take a look again, maybe I will buy some for relatives and friends during the New Year, I have a lot of face, and I am still reluctant to eat it myself. ”

There are really many people who have the same idea as Ms. Qin. Ms. Ma, a citizen, said, "Female colleagues get together, they just like to eat and eat, and now there are more delicious snacks and a lot of choices, so it is not necessary to have a good store." "Compared with the brand, Ms. Ma pays more attention to cost performance. "The brand is important, but working-class people like us still want something more affordable. ”

△ Porcelain food

Industry data

There are more than 100,000 snack companies in mainland China, and the competition in the snack market is becoming more and more fierce

According to iiMedia Research, the market size of China's snack food industry continued to grow from 2010 to 2022, from 410 billion yuan to 1,165.4 billion yuan. From the perspective of consumers, people believe that the biggest problem of online celebrity snack food is that the product quality needs to be considered (49.2%), followed by the high price of the product (49.0%) and unclear pricing (39.4%). It can be seen that under the premise that there are many substitutes, high price comparability, and a wide variety of brands in the snack market, consumers are more sensitive to the price of snack products.

So, what is the situation of the "rivers and lakes" of snacks-related enterprises in the mainland? According to the data of the enterprise survey, there are currently 121,200 snacks-related enterprises in the mainland. Affected by the increasingly fierce competition in the snack market, the number of registrations of snacks-related enterprises in mainland China has increased first and then decreased in the past decade, and the downward trend has slowed down this year.

Specifically, in 2020, there will be 26,600 new snack-related enterprises in the mainland, a year-on-year increase of 16.91%, reaching the peak of registration in the past decade. In 2021 and 2022, there will be 22,400 new snack-related enterprises in mainland China and 21,200 respectively, a year-on-year decrease of 15.87% and 5.17%. In the first 11 months of 2023, the number of new snacks-related enterprises registered in mainland China reached 25,400, a year-on-year increase of 28.21%.

In other words, snack-related companies are expected to usher in the second peak of registration in the past decade. In this case, in the first three quarters of this year, BESTORE's revenue and net profit attributable to the parent company both declined year-on-year, down 14.33% and 33.43% year-on-year. In fact, BESTORE in 2022 has already shown signs of slowing down its revenue growth, with an annual revenue growth rate of 1.24% in 2022, the lowest in the past 7 years. In the increasingly fierce competition of snack companies, it is understandable that BESTORE will reduce its price.

△ Ryohin Foods

Experts in the industry

The price reduction of BESTORE may cause a new round of price war in the industry

BESTORE chose to reduce prices at the end of 2023, what are the considerations, and what kind of chain reaction will it trigger?

Yuan Shuai, executive vice president of the China Academy of Urban Development and the Institute of Agricultural, Cultural and Tourism Industry Revitalization, believes that there may be many reasons why BESTORE chose to reduce prices at this time. First of all, from the perspective of the external environment, the current economic situation may have exerted certain pressure on the high-end snack market, and price reductions can help BESTORE better adapt to market changes. In addition, as consumers pay more attention to health and environmental protection, BESTORE also needs to adjust its product strategy to meet the needs of consumers. ”

Secondly, from the internal situation, after the new chairman and general manager Yang Yinfen took office, he may have re-examined the company's business strategy and believed that price reduction is an important means to promote the company's development.

BESTORE's price reduction may have a certain impact on its performance. Yuan Shuai analyzed, "On the one hand, price reduction can attract more consumers to buy BESTORE's products, thereby increasing sales and improving performance." On the other hand, price reductions may also have an impact on BESTORE's brand image, which may lead consumers to perceive BESTORE's product quality as declining, thereby reducing their willingness to buy. In addition, the price reduction may also have an impact on BESTORE's profits, and if the price reduction is too large, it may affect its profitability.

Yuan Shuai said that as one of the leading snack brands, BESTORE may cause a new round of price war in the industry. "Other snack brands may follow BESTORE's lead and also sell at lower prices to compete for market share. "This may have an impact on the profitability of the industry as a whole, but it will also promote competition and growth in the industry.

Modern Express + reporter Ji Yu text/photo

(Proofread by Hu Tao)