Sales plummeted by 90%, what happened to Wahaha's online store?

作者 | salmon 编辑 | 天宇

At the beginning of March, Wahaha's flagship store resumed live broadcasting, and its traffic and sales both increased significantly, and the momentum was fierce.

However, after 15 days, the sales of Wahaha's online store plummeted by 90%, causing people's attention and speculation, and the wind of remarks blew on the Internet: Wahaha, the top domestic brand, is about to fall off the altar?

Wahaha has always been a well-deserved "light of domestic products", a childhood memory of the post-80s and 90s, and has always been active in the front line of the market.

On the morning of February 25 this year, Wahaha's official Weibo released an obituary that Zong Qinghou, founder and chairman of Wahaha Group, passed away at 10:30 on February 25, 2024, at the age of 79.

Hundreds of thousands of netizens paid tribute to the elders online, and many people took the initiative to offer flowers and mourn offline. The remembrance of Zong Qinghou is not only a tribute to an outstanding national entrepreneur, but also a memory and emotion of an era.

This time, the Wahaha flagship store opened a live broadcast for the first time after the death of Zong Lao, and consumers held enough in the early stage, but the data fatigue in the later stage was fully revealed, which made people think: Can't the old domestic products be sold by feelings?

|Wahaha's flagship store sales fell off a cliff

According to the detailed data of the live broadcast of Wahaha's flagship store, as of March 19, the sales of Wahaha's official flagship store in March were close to 25 million yuan. However, the trend of sales has fluctuated dramatically. During the peak sales period from March 4 to 10, sales exceeded 2.5 million yuan for many consecutive days.

However, since March 12, sales have begun to decline significantly, and by March 18 and 19, sales have remained at about 200,000 yuan for two consecutive days, and sales have fallen by about 90% compared with the peak.

At the beginning of March, when the broadcast was launched, the sales scene of Wahaha's flagship store was extremely hot, and Wahaha's star products, such as AD calcium milk and Shuang Crooked, became the darlings of consumers.

Not only that, but the live broadcast room of Wahaha's flagship store also hung out a signboard of "growing up with you", earning enough tears of the times.

Some consumers even said bluntly, don't consume rationally, but "zong" love for a lifetime, and pay tribute to national entrepreneurs. This scene reminds people of the grand occasion of Hongxing Erke's live broadcast room, and Wahaha carries the beautiful childhood memories of consumers, accompanying the growth of two generations.

Such a national beverage brand, but the sales data plummeted to the bottom half a month after the broadcast. Compared to today's data on plummeting sales, the glory days of the past are particularly dazzling. The contrast between before and after is really obvious, which has caused a lot of discussion.

Some consumers said that the consumption rate could not keep up with the speed of stockpiling, and the drinks they bought were not drunk, and they would continue to buy after drinking; This is the support and trust of consumers for Wahaha.

Some consumers also believe that the "wild consumption" in the early stage is itself a hot head, and after the impulse passes, consumers will naturally return to rationality, and it is abnormal to continue to rise.

On March 21, Wahaha responded to the decline in sales of the official flagship store, and the customer service said that the reason was that it was out of stock, and the current delivery time had been booked until April. "We are cooperating with rookie logistics to deliver 7 warehouses across the country, and we can't place an order to indicate that the corresponding rookie logistics warehouse products have been sold out, and we can't buy them now, and we are seizing the time to arrange warehousing."

According to Wahaha's official flagship store, Nutrition Express, Shuang Crooked, Iced Tea, Soda, Zinc Duoduo, and some flavors of AD calcium milk have been sold out.

It can be speculated that supply chain and inventory management issues are the direct cause of the decline in sales.

Wahaha may have a mismatch between production and sales, resulting in product out-of-stock, which affects consumers' purchase decisions. This supply chain instability not only affects sales in the short term, but can also cause damage to brand image and long-term market position.

For example, this time the sales fell off a cliff, and Wahaha, as an old domestic product, faced overwhelming doubts.

In addition, Wahaha may have deficiencies in its e-commerce layout and operation strategy. With the rapid development of e-commerce platforms, online sales have become an indispensable part of enterprises, but Wahaha's layout and operation strategy in the e-commerce field have obviously failed to keep up with the pace of the times, which has led to its loss of advantages in the fierce market competition.

|Multiple factors for the fading of Wahaha's popularity

Although Wahaha's strength still exists, and online data does not show that the top domestic products have fallen off the altar, in the fiercely competitive and ever-changing beverage market, Wahaha's popularity is indeed fading, which is also an important reason why it is questioned.

From the four aspects of insufficient product innovation, fierce market competition, changes in consumer tastes and aging brand image, we can deeply analyze the reasons for the fading of Wahaha's popularity.

First, product innovation is insufficient and lacks freshness.

The lack of product innovation is one of the important reasons for the fading of Wahaha's popularity. In a rapidly changing market environment, consumer demand for products is also escalating.

However, Wahaha is unable to innovate its products and lacks competitive new products. For a long time, Wahaha's product line was relatively monolithic and lacked innovative elements, which made it easier for consumers to be attracted to other more creative brands when choosing drinks. In addition, Wahaha is also conservative in cross-border cooperation and new product development, failing to grasp market opportunities in a timely manner and missing the opportunity to expand the market.

Childhood feelings are rare, but innovation is the first driving force for the development of the brand.

Second, the market competition is fierce, and competitors are constantly emerging.

The fierce competition in the market is also one of the reasons for the decline in Wahaha's sales. With the continuous emergence of domestic and foreign beverage brands, the market competition is becoming increasingly fierce. These brands have made great efforts in product innovation, marketing strategies and channel expansion, attracting a large number of consumers' attention. In contrast, Wahaha is unable to compete in the market and fails to effectively respond to the challenges of its competitors.

The third is the change of consumer taste and the iteration of beverage demand.

Changes in consumer tastes have also had an impact on Wahaha's sales. With the improvement of living standards and the enhancement of health awareness, consumers have higher and higher requirements for the taste and quality of beverages.

However, Wahaha failed to keep up with the changes in consumer demand in terms of product development and quality control, resulting in some products being unable to meet consumers' taste and quality requirements. This makes consumers more inclined to other brands with more character and quality when choosing drinks.

Fourth, brand marketing is relatively conservative and lacks attractiveness.

Wahaha's brand marketing and promotion strategy is relatively conservative and lacks sufficient innovation and pertinence. In the Internet era, various new media and social platforms provide a broad space for brand promotion, and with the rise of young consumer groups, their demand for brand personalization and emotion is getting higher and higher.

Wahaha's lack of continuous interaction and communication with consumers, and its lack of innovation and attractiveness in brand image building, make it difficult to resonate with young consumers, which makes its brand's popularity and influence among young consumers gradually decline

The conservative marketing style has advantages and disadvantages, the good point is "stability", and it is not easy to have the overturn incident of Nongfu Spring's "bold marketing", but the disadvantage is that the brand attraction is insufficient for the newly grown young consumers.

|昔日顶流娃哈哈能否重振旗鼓？

In response to the sharp decline in sales of Wahaha's online store, Wahaha urgently needs to implement comprehensive measures from three dimensions: strategic adjustment, seizing opportunities, and consumer expectations, so as to regroup and cope with market torture in turbulent times.

(1) Adjust the strategy based on market demand

Wahaha should be guided by market demand and comprehensively upgrade its product line and market strategy. Product innovation is the top priority, and it is necessary to pay close attention to the changes in consumers' tastes and health needs, increase research and development efforts, and launch more innovative and competitive new products.

At the same time, the marketing strategy also needs to be adjusted, and it is necessary to make full use of multiple online and offline channels to carry out accurate and effective brand promotion and enhance brand awareness and reputation.

Wahaha should actively deploy online sales channels and expand product coverage and increase sales through new channels such as e-commerce platforms and social media.

(2) Seize opportunities with an open mind

Grasp market opportunities: With the continuous expansion and upgrading of the domestic consumer market, Wahaha should pay close attention to market dynamics and seize market opportunities. For example, you can pay attention to trends such as healthy eating and green consumption, and launch new products that meet market demand.

Grasp the technological opportunities: use modern scientific and technological means, such as big data analysis, artificial intelligence, etc., to accurately analyze consumer needs, and provide strong support for product development and marketing. At the same time, through intelligent production, logistics and distribution, etc., improve production efficiency and reduce costs.

Grasp cooperation opportunities: Actively seek cooperation opportunities with other enterprises, such as cross-border cooperation, supply chain cooperation, etc. Through cooperation, we can share resources, achieve mutual benefit and win-win results, and achieve common development.

(3) Adhere to the original intention to meet consumer expectations

Wahaha should always adhere to the principle of quality first, ensure product quality and safety, and meet consumers' expectations for high-quality products. At the same time, it is necessary to provide personalized products and services, and launch customized products according to the needs and preferences of different consumers to provide a convenient and efficient shopping experience.

In addition, Wahaha should also establish an emotional connection with consumers through the dissemination of brand stories and cultural connotations, and enhance consumers' sense of identity and loyalty to the brand.

Wahaha's positive reply to the sharp drop in sales not only shows the confidence of the old domestic products, but also a rare demonstration of the emotional connection between the brand and consumers.

As a veteran domestic product, Wahaha has always won the love of consumers with its stable product quality and extensive market coverage.

As the official response said, the heat is temporary, hard work and persistence are eternal, as long as the original intention does not change, Wahaha has the foundation and ability to rejuvenate in the future market.

We look forward to Wahaha growing together with consumers.