Recently, there have been rumors in the market that Moutai will open up some distribution rights. In response, an insider from Moutai Group told reporters from China Securities Journal that since 2024, Moutai has only opened up overseas distribution rights to some domestic signed distributors with overseas resources, allowing them to submit intentions to establish overseas Moutai exclusive stores to expand the overseas market. This move is not aimed at opening up distribution rights to the general public.
Encouraging distributors to expand the international market
At the Moutai Group International Market Work Conference held on December 30, 2023, Ding Xiongjun, the Party Secretary and Chairman of Moutai Group, stated that starting from 2024, they will gradually increase the export volume of Moutai baijiu, sauce-flavor series, and group family products. The goal is to achieve the international export market planning target by 2027. The company will simultaneously consider both the domestic and international markets, promoting the formation of a new pattern of “mutual support and complementarity.” In addition, Moutai will focus on regulating the development of the foreign vintage liquor market, promoting a healthy and cyclical process of “buying current-year liquor, drinking past-year liquor, appreciating aged liquor, and collecting old liquor.”
Ding Xiongjun emphasized that in the next step, Moutai will focus on the overall channel layout of “1+2+N,” use a multi-factor analysis method to comprehensively evaluate existing and future development markets, and promote product coverage in more countries and regions. While adhering to the overall principle of “no increase in the main body of contract signing and no increase in the total planned quantity of contracts,” Moutai will adopt the “1+1” implementation path. This involves guiding and encouraging distributors to actively expand the international market through incentive policies, allocation policies, pricing policies, business policies, etc.
Industry insiders believe that opening up overseas distribution rights to domestic signed distributors with overseas resources not only accelerates the construction of Moutai’s overseas market but also mobilizes and leverages the resources and value of domestic advantageous distributors. It also promotes the efficiency improvement of overseas distributors, helping optimize the domestic and international channel systems further.
Accelerating the process of famous baijiu going international
It is understood that Moutai’s international market currently covers 64 countries and regions worldwide, with 106 international distributors, 44 exclusive stores, and 3 Moutai cultural experience centers.
Cai Xuefei, a baijiu analyst and general manager of Zhiqu Marketing, told China Securities Journal that liquor consumption is part of culinary culture, and as China’s international influence grows, the internationalization of Chinese liquor is an inevitable trend. Additionally, with domestic baijiu consumption entering a mature market, the internationalization of Chinese famous liquors is a natural outcome of corporate development.
This trend is evident in the actions of baijiu companies over the past two years.
On the evening of January 28, Chinese player Zheng Qinwen won the runner-up in the Australian Open women’s singles, and “Guojiao 1573” appeared prominently in the advertising space.
In 2018, Luzhou Laojiao first connected with the Australian Open. After the first five-year cooperation ended, in December 2023, Luzhou Laojiao renewed its partnership with the Australian Open. Lin Feng, the General Manager of Luzhou Laojiao Co., Ltd., stated that joining hands with the Australian Open is an innovative cross-border move for a Chinese national brand and a strong practice in Luzhou Laojiao’s continuous exploration of internationalization.
Wuliangye also prioritizes internationalization. At the 27th 12·18 Co-Construction and Sharing Conference, Jiang Wenge, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee, Deputy Chairman, and General Manager of Wuliangye Co., Ltd., stated that Wuliangye will opportunistically adjust the factory price of the eighth generation Wuliangye, optimize the product structure, channel structure, and market structure, and appropriately reduce and solidify the planned quantity for the traditional channel of the eighth generation Wuliangye. The optimized quantity will be directed towards special specifications of Wuliangye, cultural liquor, and other products, as well as direct sales channels and the international market.
Cai Xuefei believes that Moutai continuously opening up the distribution rights of overseas specialty stores to distributors with overseas resources is a targeted layout for the overseas market. It can be seen as a significant breakthrough attempt for Moutai to participate in international competition. This is not only important for Moutai but also has important demonstrative value for the international development of the entire Chinese baijiu industry. Considering the development of the Chinese baijiu industry over the years, the influence of famous baijiu brands like Moutai has continued to grow, the quality of domestic production areas has matured, and overseas sales layouts and market management have continuously improved. On this basis, Moutai, Wuliangye, Luzhou Laojiao, and other baijiu companies have cultivated overseas markets for many years, and they already have a certain international influence. All of these factors provide favorable conditions for the internationalization of Chinese liquor.