【故事】中国饮品“教父”宗庆后

2024年2月25日，中国饮品业的一代教父——娃哈哈的创始人、董事长宗庆后因病医治无效逝世，享年79岁。据娃哈哈集团公告显示，宗庆后的告别仪式定为2月28日早上10时，在杭州娃哈哈集团下沙产业基地举行。

从创业的中年人到成为中国首富，宗庆后在中国快消行业留下了浓墨重彩的一笔，从创立联销体，到胜诉达能夺回娃哈哈，宗庆后的创业经历成为中国商业的传奇与经典案例。

宗庆后开创式的营销体系，也为中国快消品培养出一批杰出的企业家，如今的中国首富、农夫山泉董事长钟睒睒，在惠氏中国、美素佳儿、贝因美等担任过总经理的包秀飞等企业家，均在娃哈哈体系中工作锤炼过，由此，宗庆后堪称中国饮品业的教父。

据接触过宗庆后的人士回忆，宗庆后在面对任何人之时总是笑脸相迎，几乎很难从这位老者身上感受到不好的情绪，“和气生财”一词在宗庆后的身上得以印证。

宗庆后曾多次表示自己是一名信奉毛泽东思想的企业家，宗庆后正是靠着自己的信仰，一手打造出属于他和群众的快消品时代。“我是一个普通人，从底层崛起的凡人。幸运的是，我生于一个大时代；更幸运的是，我获得了一个机会，缔造了一家公司，并且因之而成为‘中国首富’，得到了价值的实现与认同。”宗庆后在给自己的传记中，写了这样一番序言。 CXO UNION-CXO联盟（cxounion.cn）

一、创新中诞生中国饮料教父

在风起云涌的20世纪80年代，无数年轻人纷纷下海经商，试图在巨大的市场经济中获取安家立命之本。而42岁的宗庆后在这群人中显得并不年轻，从流传下来宗庆后只身骑着三轮车在小学门口卖货的照片来看，人到中年的宗庆后在创业道路上并没有远超他人的捷径。

曾有文章指出：“民营企业，多以家庭作坊开始，形成了集经营权与所有权于一体的家族式管理模式，这种以家族族长为首，家族成员为中坚力量，普遍见于在改革开放大潮中涌现的一批凝聚力强、效率高、发展迅速的优秀企业。”毫无疑问，宗庆后的娃哈哈正是这一现象的典型代表。

作为娃哈哈“家长式”的领导者，所有的事务无论巨细均由宗庆后最终拍板决定，在娃哈哈漫长的发展中，宗庆后无疑是娃哈哈的核心支柱。在一次宗庆后与女儿宗馥莉共同接受采访之时，主持人问及宗馥莉：“娃哈哈减去宗庆后等于什么？”“等于零。”宗馥莉回答道。

接触过创业阶段宗庆后的人均认为，宗庆后在创业之时，有着高于他人的胆识，在很多决定娃哈哈命运走向的十字口路，宗庆后总会力排众议做出决定。其中包括了与此前的合作商终止代理花粉口服液、独立创立口服液品牌、娃哈哈品牌名字的命名，乃至借钱为娃哈哈做宣传广告。无论是亲历者的口述还是宗庆后的传记，都记录了公司内部人员在明确反对后，但宗庆后依旧不为所动。事实证明，正是这些举措的坚持和落地才奠定了娃哈哈的崛起。

而娃哈哈的崛起之路，离不开宗庆后创新式的营销手段。

在八九十年代，国内市场营养品的概念开始兴起，太阳神、三株等营养品公司迅速崛起，虽然宗庆后代理的保灵公司产品获得创业的第一桶金，但在与保灵公司合作破裂之后，新生的娃哈哈品牌面临着与众多知名品牌博弈，这对宗庆后是巨大的考验。 CXO UNION-CXO联盟（cxounion.cn）

宗庆后建立联销体的背景正是在90年代后，随着国营渠道的瓦解，市场化的农贸市场、批发市场等逐步建立。由于市场经济在国内刚刚起步，很多厂家与经销商的交易关系还停留在一手交钱一手交货的原始阶段，厂家对于经销商缺乏约束和沟通导致，经销商随意串货，胡乱调价，各个地区的销售情况厂家难以得到准确的反馈，一些经销商向人口密集的中大城市倾销商品，这就使得地区之间配货失调，严重影响到厂家的品牌形象与价格体系。

在宗庆后的营销手段中，联销体模式的建立无疑是整个销售网络的基石，也成为中国快消品行业一直被学习和讨论的模板。据宗庆后传记记录，联销体措施主要分为：一、经销商每年年初要先给娃哈哈打一笔“保证金”，打款金额是当年预计销售金额的11.7%。这笔钱可以年底返还，并按照等于或高于银行存款的利率给利息；二、经销商每次进货前，先交清货款，娃哈哈再发货；三、按照三级批发，严格定价，并且每个经销商划定区域，严禁串货，一经违反，取消经销商资格，扣除保证金；四、每个经销商都需要背负销售指标，完成不了指标的，动态清理淘汰。

联销体最大的特点是，从之前占主导地位的大流通大批发模式，转型为划定区域、划定渠道分类的渠道精耕。在这套体系中，各级经销商只能在划定的区域按照厂家的指导价格销售货物，这就限制了地区之间串货的问题，经销商为了业绩只能向本地区的下沉市场扩张。独立快消评论人肖竹青告诉记者，娃哈哈的渠道在最短的时间内沉淀至每个小地区和市场，娃哈哈也获得了每个地区真实的市场情况，娃哈哈也很快拥有过万个终端体系。

在娃哈哈进军饮品行业之时，娃哈哈最大的竞品公司乐百氏的产品与娃哈哈同台竞争。从AD钙奶到纯净水，娃哈哈与乐百氏的竞争是全方位的。乐百氏作为AD钙奶的发明者，在当时也是靠着强大的广告投放，出现在各大商场和超市中，娃哈哈在此时面临着与对手贴身肉搏的态势。

“在90年代，大部分快消品公司的渠道和营销仅限于中大城市，事实上很难触及到偏远的地区以及农村市场，而在当时农村无论是人口还是市场规模均是中国市场的主体，但娃哈哈作为快消企业最早将销售渠道触及到农村市场。而随着中国商业经济的发展，农村市场迸发出强大的消费能力，这也奠定了娃哈哈在国内市场的基本盘。”中国食品产业分析师朱丹蓬说，宗庆后在当时的眼光和判断是领先于行业的，在饮料行业实现了“农村包围城市”的先例，此后很多品牌也纷纷效仿并取得了不错的业绩，宗庆后实现了立足于国情的品牌发展路线。

这套销售体系以现在来看很常见，是很多厂家与经销商的合作基础，但在当时却是极为创新和大胆的制度，这意味着经销商需要和厂家“荣辱与共”。在宗庆后的传记中回忆，在当时这套制度也同样遭到了公司内部的反对，以及遭遇部分经销商的退出。但宗庆后依然对自身的产品抱有足够的信心，将制度贯彻到底。

宗庆后靠着创新的经销商制度，让娃哈哈建立稳定而庞大的渠道网络。另一方面，宗庆后在当时就意识到了广告宣传所带来的巨大优势，因此宗庆后不遗余力地进行广告投放。

在众多的商业案例中，八九十年代的成功商业案例几乎均有大胆的广告投放，例如秦池酒、孔府家酒、脑白金等，而娃哈哈作为最早在央视投放广告的快消品企业之一，娃哈哈显然也成为其中的佼佼者。

“宗庆后非常重视央视和省级卫视广告投放，完美实现了通过渠道推动铺市与陈列，并且通过明星代言及央视广告和省级卫视广告拉动形成流行，拉动娃哈哈饮料消费，这种‘推拉结合战略’成就了当时娃哈哈一个又一个爆品。”肖竹青告诉记者。 CXO UNION-CXO联盟（cxounion.cn）

曾与娃哈哈有过商业合作的神兵天将创始人傅华阳告诉记者，宗庆后为娃哈哈定下的营销基点就是“欢乐”，所有的广告营销也围绕此展开，而在此营销基础上，娃哈哈也为自己奠定了行业地位。“在90年代，我们制作过一段带有RAP的广告，彼时RAP在中国还是非常小众的音乐表现形式，但宗总在看完之后却很认同，认为这段广告很活泼，青年和孩子可能会喜欢。”

营销制度的创新、大胆的营销手段最终促使娃哈哈迅速成长，在90年代就成为了国内无二的饮品、营养品企业，娃哈哈也成为中国快消品行业举足轻重的企业。

二、赢下达娃之争——娃哈哈的惊险时刻

“打天下易，守天下难”。在八九十年代一飞冲天的企业中，很多企业却最终迅速归于沉寂，从当年的巅峰滑落，例如秦池酒、孔府家酒、健力宝等，归结这些企业从巅峰滑落的原因众多，但娃哈哈始终坚持在顶峰的原因离不开宗庆后的坚持与博弈。

在宗庆后的回忆以及外界的总结中，对娃哈哈最为危急的一次事件就是与达能的纷扰。1996年，娃哈哈与世界五百强公司、食品行业巨头法国达能达成合资协议，百富勤公司和达能共同出资4306.95万美元，取得了娃哈哈51%的股份。随后，百富勤将持有的股权卖于达能，达能瞬间成为娃哈哈控股51%的大股东，彼时达能作为大股东，通过董事会可以直接干预和决定娃哈哈的发展和决策方面，而达能同时还持有乐百氏、光明、蒙牛、汇源等中国企业的股权。

在当时，乐百氏的AD钙奶、汇源的果汁正与娃哈哈争锋相对地争夺市场。这意味着在很大程度上，这些公司乃至中国快消行业对于达能及其控股的企业没有任何商业秘密可言。对此，宗庆后曾多次公开表示对达能此举的不满，双方的关系迅速恶化。

2006年，达能派驻合资公司的新任董事长范易谋发现，宗庆后在合资公司之外建立一系列由国有企业和职工持股的非合资公司，这些非合资公司每年也为娃哈哈带来丰厚的利润。2007年4月，达能欲强行以40亿元人民币的低价，并购杭州娃哈哈集团有限公司总资产达56亿元、2006年利润达10.4亿元的其他非合资公司51%的股权。对此，宗庆后予以坚决的反对。 CXO UNION-CXO联盟（cxounion.cn）

在双方矛盾无法调和时，双方的诉讼也全面展开。达能在中国、美国、欧洲等地都起诉了宗庆后等人和娃哈哈公司。最终，在2009年达能把其在合资公司中拥有的51%股份，以30亿元人民币的价格卖于娃哈哈，至此，娃哈哈达能之争落下帷幕，宗庆后也顺利夺回了娃哈哈的绝对控制权。

值得一提的是，在当时，《中国经营报》曾全面调查、深入挖掘了达能与娃哈哈的品牌之争过程，其中宗庆后和时任达能亚洲区总裁范易谋分别接受了《中国经营报》记者的采访，阐述了各自的立场。最终，本报将此次纷争的来龙去脉、明暗交易独家公布于世。在2007年，《南方周末》将本报该系列报道列为致敬之年度经济报道。

让人感慨的是，在这场风波中，娃哈哈的合作伙伴以及员工始终与宗庆后同进退。即便在宗庆后传记以及文中上述人士的回忆中，在宗庆后做好最坏的打算，随时准备另起炉灶之时，绝大部分员工与经销商均愿与宗庆后共进退。

而这与宗庆后“家长式”关怀不无关系，无论是合作伙伴还是企业员工，宗庆后总以“长者与朋友”的身份相处，最终得到了大家的支持和拥护。“虽然我当时是乙方，也是宗总的晚辈，但宗总经常用勉励的话激励我们，他常说一次广告拍坏了没关系，总需要给人试错的机会。”傅华阳告诉记者。

曾在娃哈哈担任策划总监的肖竹青认为：“作为‘家长’的宗庆后，是非常有人情味的领导，工作十年以上的员工如果跟不上企业发展岗位要求，也都是安排转岗保安或仓库保管员岗位养老，宗庆后每年过年都亲自安排每个生产基地向工人饭卡充值，送一笔钱。”肖竹青认为，宗庆后懂得企业发展需要依靠员工，所以制定政策和机制鼓励骨干员工入股新项目或主业的配套项目，让娃哈哈发展的成就与员工共享。

进入21世纪后，饮品行业的竞争进一步加剧。农夫山泉、统一、养元等企业迅速崛起，在饮品、包装水等各个细分领域抢夺市场。而娃哈哈在经历这场重大风波之后开始了更为迅速的发展，从2008年的88.4亿元人民币，飙升到2009年的327.7亿元。2010年，宗庆后的财富又上升到534亿元，成为《福布斯》排行榜的中国首富，2012年，他再次以630亿元财富成为第一。

三、娃哈哈的精神领袖

在早年间，宗庆后曾做客著名主持人鲁豫的节目，当鲁豫向宗庆后提议“可以生产美国的蛋酒”时，宗庆后当即反驳：“那是澳大利亚的蛋酒，我喝过几次。”“全国人民不一定喜欢”这也被认为是宗庆后对于整个饮品行业的洞察非常之敏锐。 CXO UNION-CXO联盟（cxounion.cn）

2016年12月，有网友发帖称在高铁二等车厢偶遇宗庆后，他与同车厢的小孩逗乐；2017年，又有网友在武汉天河国际机场拍到宗庆后独自拉着行李箱候机。根据上述人士的说法以及娃哈哈方面的证实，宗庆后经常亲自前往各地调研市场。

事实上，无论是产品还是企业管理，宗庆后在公司事无巨细均亲自下场。“在20世纪90年代至21世纪初，电视广告作为最重要的营销途径，虽然娃哈哈旗下产品众多，宗总会亲自把控每一个产品的广告，经常会要求每个产品拍出五六个片子做对比，亲自与乙方讨论电视广告该如何呈现。”傅华阳告诉记者，每次宗庆后都亲自和团队讨论广告内容，且很有耐心。

“我从来没有看见过宗总对员工和合作伙伴发过火，他对每个人都是面带微笑。”傅华阳说，“在我的印象中，宗庆后就是最为典型的儒商。”

根据此前报道，宗庆后身兼董事长与总经理之时，很长一段时间内不设副总经理，由“总经理办公室”对集团各职能部门以及下属分公司（各省分厂）进行管理。这就表明，只有宗庆后一人是决策者，其他人都是执行者。娃哈哈销售网络中的30多个省级经理、营销网络中的2500多个一级批发商、生产网络中的70多个分厂厂长，都直接向宗庆后汇报。

宗馥莉曾公开表示：“一直以来，父亲都更喜欢单枪匹马，像个大家长一样独揽公司大小事务。”那时的娃哈哈既没有战略部，也没有副总经理岗位设置，宗庆后常年一人兼任董事长与总经理，基本所有市场决策都需要其亲自拍板。“而管理层们也对父亲相当依赖，每天就只等着老板分派任务，才知道谁干吗、该干吗。”

近年来，娃哈哈也在不断推出新产品以及跨界，跨界的领域包括了童装、奶粉、白酒、商场等，但很多还没有掀起太大的波澜。“伴随着中国城镇化的进行，娃哈哈的联销体难以持续发挥其优势。”朱丹蓬说，目前的渠道销售体系，需要公司为经销商提供更为细致的营销体系和服务，因此联销体系的局限性开始慢慢显露。

此外，在线上渠道崭露头角之时，农夫山泉迅速抓住窗口期，大力发展电商渠道，为自己大单品的出现创造了先决条件。宗庆后曾一度表示为了经销商的利益不会将主要渠道向线上转移。

“但快消品作为一个新旧产品交替迅速的行业，在产品方面大部分企业都是由年青一代的人操盘，以更好地捕捉市场动向和消费者变化。”清华大学品牌营销顾问孙巍认为。 CXO UNION-CXO联盟（cxounion.cn）

彼时，宗庆后也意识到娃哈哈出现了创新能力不足的问题，曾多次对外界表示娃哈哈现阶段缺乏新的主力产品。进入21世纪20年代，伴随着元气森林的崛起，农夫山泉多品类的百花齐放，娃哈哈在饮品市场的声音和地位遭到了撼动。在近年来兴起的无糖、低糖的行业浪潮下，娃哈哈尚未造出新的百亿大单品。

在此波折期，长期在基层磨炼，进行个人创业的宗馥莉站出来，走向台前，进入到娃哈哈的管理层，崭露头角谋划创新。2018年，宗馥莉出任娃哈哈集团品牌公关部部长，2020年，宗馥莉兼任娃哈哈集团销售公司副总经理。2021年，娃哈哈正式宣布宗庆后之女宗馥莉任娃哈哈集团副董事长兼总经理，负责日常工作。

根据相关消息人士的说法，在宗馥莉接任总经理之后，虽然宗庆后仍任娃哈哈集团董事长一职，但宗庆后对于公司的指导和参与的工作逐步减少。在外界看来，虽然当时宗庆后依然是娃哈哈的最高权力者，但早在宗馥莉进入娃哈哈管理层时，宗庆后已经在为宗馥莉全面接手娃哈哈做好了准备工作。

“创业公司的成功离不开创立者的魄力和坚持，而创业公司向一家现代化的企业过渡，则需要配套的管理制度，宗庆后在完成娃哈哈登上顶峰之后，将娃哈哈交于年轻的接班人，表明了娃哈哈将向制度化的企业迈进，而宗庆后留给娃哈哈的是初创者的奋斗精神与鼓舞。”品牌营销专家路胜贞说。 CXO UNION-CXO联盟（cxounion.cn）

宗庆后作为中国快消品行业的先驱者，在市场经济伊始，大胆采用创新营销思维，独创了一套快速占领下沉市场的营销体系，白手起家打造出了多个国民级的饮料品牌，更为快消行业培养出了一批杰出的企业家、经理人。娃哈哈也由此成为中国饮料的“黄埔军校”，而宗庆后更是当之无愧的中国饮品教父。

翻译：

Zong Qinghou, the godfather of Chinese drinks

On February 25, 2024, Zong Qinghou, founder and chairman of Wahaha, the godfather of China’s beverage industry, died of illness at the age of 79. According to Wahaha Group’s announcement, Zong Qinghou’s farewell ceremony will be held at 10 am on February 28 at Hangzhou Wahaha Group’s Xiasha industrial base.

From a middle-aged man who started a business to becoming the richest man in China, Zong Qinghou has left a strong mark in China’s fast-moving consumer goods industry. From the establishment of co-marketing body to winning the lawsuit against Danone to regain Wahaha, Zong Qinghou’s entrepreneurial experience has become a legend and classic case of Chinese business.

Zong Qinghou’s pioneering marketing system also trained a group of outstanding entrepreneurs for China FMCG. Zhong, the richest man in China and chairman of Nongfu Spring, and Bao Xiu Fei, who served as general manager of Wyeth China, Frso, BeingMei and other entrepreneurs, all worked in the Wahaha system. Therefore, Zong Qinghou can be called the godfather of China’s beverage industry.

According to the memories of people who have been in contact with Zong Qinghou, Zong Qinghou always smiles and welcomes anyone in the face, it is almost difficult to feel bad emotions from the old man, and the term “harmony generates wealth” has been confirmed in Zong Qinghou’s body.

“I am an ordinary man, a mortal who rose from the bottom. Fortunately, I was born in a big time; It was even more fortunate that I was given the opportunity to build a company that became ‘the richest man in China,’ a realization and recognition of value.” Zong Qinghou wrote such a preface in his biography.

1. The Godfather of Chinese beverage was born in innovation

In the upsurge of the 1980s, countless young people went into business, trying to get a foothold in the huge market economy. The 42-year-old Zong Qinghou in this group is not young, from the handed down Zong Qinghou alone riding a tricycle at the gate of the primary school to sell goods from the photo, people to middle-aged Zong Qinghou on the entrepreneurial road is not far more than others shortcut.

There was an article pointed out: “Private enterprises, mostly starting with family workshops, formed a set of management rights and ownership in one of the family management model, this family head, family members as the backbone, generally seen in the tide of reform and opening up a number of strong cohesion, high efficiency, rapid development of excellent enterprises.” Zong Qinghou’s Wahaha is undoubtedly the poster child for this phenomenon. CXO UNION-CXO联盟（cxounion.cn）

As the “paternalistic” leader of Wahaha, Zong Qinghou made the final decision on all affairs, no matter how large or small. In the long development of Wahaha, Zong Qinghou is undoubtedly the core pillar of Wahaha. During a joint interview with Zong Qinghou and her daughter Zong Fuli, the host asked Zong: “Wahaha minus Zong Qinghou equals what?” “Equal to zero.” Zong Fuli replied.

People who have been in contact with Zong Qinghou in the entrepreneurial stage believe that Zong Qinghou has higher courage than others when starting a business. In many crossroads that determine the fate of Wahaha, Zong Qinghou always tries to make decisions against all opinions. These included the termination of the agency of pollen oral liquid with previous partners, the independent creation of oral liquid brands, the naming of Wahaha brand names, and even borrowing money for Wahaha advertising. Both the oral accounts of witnesses and Zong Qinghou’s biography record that the company’s internal personnel were clearly opposed, but Zong Qinghou remained unmoved. Facts have proved that it is the persistence and landing of these measures that laid the foundation for the rise of Wahaha.

The rise of Wahaha is inseparable from Zong Qinghou’s innovative marketing methods.

In the 1980s and 1990s, the concept of nutrition products began to rise in the domestic market, and nutrition companies such as Sun God and Sanzhu rose rapidly. Although the products of Baoling Company, which was represented by Zong Qinghou, got the first pot of gold in starting a business, after the breakdown of cooperation with Baoling Company, the newly born Wahaha brand faced the game with many well-known brands, which was a huge test for Zong Qinghou.

The background of Zong Qinghou’s establishment of co-marketing is precisely in the 1990s, with the collapse of state-owned channels, market-oriented farmers’ markets, wholesale markets and so on are gradually established. As the market economy has just started in China, the trading relationship between many manufacturers and dealers still remains in the original stage of hand-over money and hand-delivered goods. The lack of restraint and communication between manufacturers and dealers leads to dealers’ random goods and random price adjustment. It is difficult for manufacturers to get accurate feedback on the sales situation in various regions. This makes the distribution imbalance between regions, which seriously affects the brand image and price system of manufacturers.

In Zong Qinghou’s marketing methods, the establishment of the co-marketing model is undoubtedly the cornerstone of the entire sales network, and has become a template that China’s FMCG industry has been learning and discussing. According to Zong Qinghou’s biography, the measures of co-marketing are mainly divided into: first, dealers should first make a “deposit” to Wahaha at the beginning of each year, and the payment amount is 11.7% of the estimated sales amount of the year. The money can be returned at the end of the year, with interest paid at an interest rate equal to or higher than a bank deposit; 2. Before each purchase, the dealer will pay the payment and Wahaha will deliver the goods; Third, according to the three levels of wholesale, strict pricing, and each dealer delimit the area, prohibited cross-goods, once violated, cancel the dealer qualification, deduct the deposit; Fourth, each dealer needs to carry the sales target, can not complete the target, dynamic cleaning and elimination.

The biggest feature of co-marketing is that it has transformed from the previously dominant large circulation and wholesale model to the fine cultivation of delineating regions and classifying channels. In this system, dealers at all levels can only sell goods in the demarcated area according to the manufacturer’s guided price, which limits the problem of string goods between regions, and dealers can only expand to the sinking market in the region for performance. Xiao Zhuqing, an independent FPA commentator, told reporters that Wahaha’s channels settled to each small region and market in the shortest time, Wahaha also obtained the real market situation in each region, and Wahaha soon had more than 10,000 terminal systems. CXO UNION-CXO联盟（cxounion.cn）

Wahaha’s move into the drinks business comes as its biggest rival, Raub, competes with Wahaha’s products. From AD calcium milk to pure water, Wahaha and Oxfam’s competition is all-round. As the inventor of AD calcium milk, at that time, it also relied on strong advertising and appeared in major shopping malls and supermarkets. Wahaha was faced with a close hand to hand fight with its rivals at this time.

“In the 1990s, the channels and marketing of most FMCG companies were limited to middle and large cities, in fact, it was difficult to reach remote areas and rural markets, and at that time, rural areas were the main body of the Chinese market, whether population or market size, but Wahaha, as a FMCG company, was the first to reach the rural market through sales channels.” With the development of China’s commercial economy, the rural market has developed strong consumption power, which has also laid the foundation for Wahaha in the domestic market.” Chinese food industry analyst Zhu Danpeng said that Zong Qinghou’s vision and judgment at that time was ahead of the industry, in the beverage industry to achieve the “rural encirclement of the city” precedent, since then many brands have followed suit and achieved good performance, Zong Qinghou achieved a brand development route based on national conditions.

This sales system is now very common, is the basis of cooperation between many manufacturers and dealers, but at the time it was a very innovative and bold system, which means that dealers need to share weal and woe with manufacturers. As Zong Qinghou recalled in his biography, this system was also opposed within the company at that time, and some dealers withdrew. But Zong still has enough confidence in his own products to carry out the system to the end.

Zong Qinghou relied on the innovative dealer system to allow Wahaha to establish a stable and huge channel network. On the other hand, Zong Qinghou realized the huge advantages brought by advertising at that time, so Zong Qinghou spared no effort in advertising.

Among many business cases, almost all successful business cases in the 1980s and 1990s have bold advertising, such as Qinchi Wine, Kong Fujia wine, Naobin, etc. Wahaha, as one of the earliest FMCG companies to advertise on CCTV, has obviously become a leader among them.

“Zong Qinghou attached great importance to the advertising of CCTV and provincial TV stations, and perfectly promoted the market and display through channels, and formed a popularity through star endorsement and CCTV and provincial TV advertising to promote Wahaha beverage consumption. This’ push and pull strategy ‘achieved Wahaha’s explosive products one after another at that time.” Xiao Zhuqing told reporters.

Fu Huayang, the founder of Shenbing Tianjiang who had business cooperation with Wahaha, told reporters that Zong Qinghou set the marketing basis for Wahaha is “joy”, and all advertising marketing is also launched around this, and on this marketing basis, Wahaha has also laid the industry status for itself. “In the 1990s, we made a commercial with RAP, which was a very niche form of music in China at that time, but Zong agreed with it after watching it, saying that it was lively and that young people and children might like it.”

The innovation of the marketing system and bold marketing methods eventually led to the rapid growth of Wahaha, which became the No. 2 beverage and nutrition company in China in the 1990s, and Wahaha also became an important enterprise in China’s FMCG industry.

2. Winning the Dawa Battle – Wahaha’s thrilling moment

“The world is easy to conquer, but difficult to defend.” Among the enterprises that soared in the 1980s and 1990s, many enterprises eventually fell silent and fell from the peak of that year, such as Qinchi Wine, Kong Fujia Wine, Jianlibao, etc. There were many reasons for these enterprises to fall from the peak, but Wahaha always insisted on the top of the reason is inseparable from Zong Qinghou’s persistence and game. CXO UNION-CXO联盟（cxounion.cn）

In Zong Qinghou’s memories and the summary of the outside world, the most critical event for Wahaha is the disturbance with Danone. In 1996, Wahaha reached a joint venture agreement with the World’s top 500 companies and the French food industry giant Danone, in which Paefulkin and Danone jointly invested $43.0669,500 to acquire 51 percent of Wahaha’s shares. Subsequently, Baifuqin sold its equity to Danone, and Danone instantly became the majority shareholder of Wahaha Holding 51%. At that time, Danone, as the majority shareholder, could directly intervene and decide Wahaha’s development and decision-making through the Board of directors, and Danone also held the equity of Chinese enterprises such as Lobbier, Guangming, Mengniu and Huiyuan.

At that time, AD calcium milk and Huiyuan juice were competing with Wahaha to compete for the market. This means that for the most part, these companies and China’s FMCG industry have no trade secrets for Danone and the companies it controls. In response, Zong Qinghou has repeatedly publicly expressed his dissatisfaction with Danone’s move, and the relationship between the two sides has deteriorated rapidly.

In 2006, Danone’s new joint venture chairman, Yimo Fan, discovered that Mr Zong had set up a series of non-joint venture companies, owned by state-owned enterprises and employees, outside the joint venture, which also generated substantial profits for Wahaha each year. In April 2007, Danone attempted to forcibly acquire 51% of other non-joint venture companies of Hangzhou Wahaha Group Co., Ltd. with total assets of 5.6 billion yuan and profits of 1.04 billion yuan in 2006 at a low price of 4 billion yuan. Zong Qinghou firmly opposed this.

When the contradiction between the two sides cannot be reconciled, the litigation of the two sides is also in full swing. Danone has sued Mr. Zong and Wahaha in China, the United States, Europe and elsewhere. Finally, in 2009, Danone sold its 51 per cent stake in the joint venture to Wahaha for Rmb3bn, bringing the Wahaha Danone dispute to an end and Mr Zong successfully taking back absolute control of Wahaha.

It is worth mentioning that at that time, China Business News had a comprehensive investigation and in-depth digging of the brand dispute between Danone and Wahaha, in which Zong Qinghou and the then president of Danone Asia Fan Yimou were interviewed by the reporters of China Business News and expounded their respective positions. In the end, this newspaper will be the context of the dispute, light and dark trading exclusive to the world. In 2007, Southern Weekly named the series its annual economic report.

What makes people feel is that in this storm, Wahaha’s partners and employees have always been with Zong Qinghou. Even in Mr. Zong’s biography and in the recollections of those above, the vast majority of employees and distributors were willing to stand with him as he prepared for the worst and was ready to start anew. CXO UNION-CXO联盟（cxounion.cn）

And this is not unrelated to Zong Qinghou’s “paternalistic” care, whether it is a partner or an employee of the company, Zong Qinghou always gets along with the identity of “elder and friend”, and finally gets everyone’s support and support. “Although I was a party B and Zong’s junior, Zong often used words of encouragement to motivate us. He often said that it didn’t matter if a commercial shot went bad once, and you always need to give people a chance to try and make mistakes.” Fu Huayang told reporters.

Xiao Zhuqing, who once served as the planning director of Wahaha, said: “Zong Qinghou, as a ‘parent’, is a very human leader. If employees who have worked for more than 10 years cannot keep up with the requirements of the company’s development, they will be transferred to the post of security guard or warehouse keeper for the elderly. Zong Qinghou personally arranges each production base to top up the meal card and send a sum of money to the workers every New Year.” Xiao Zhuqing believes that Zong Qinghou understands that the development of enterprises needs to rely on employees, so he formulated policies and mechanisms to encourage key employees to invest in new projects or supporting projects of the main business, so that the achievements of Wahaha’s development can be shared with employees.

After entering the 21st century, the competition in the beverage industry has been further intensified. Nongfu Spring, Uni-President, Yang Yuan and other enterprises have risen rapidly to seize the market in various segments such as drinks and packaged water. After experiencing this major storm, Wahaha began to develop more rapidly, soaring from 8.84 billion yuan in 2008 to 32.77 billion yuan in 2009. In 2010, Zong’s wealth rose to 53.4 billion yuan, making him the richest person in China on the Forbes list, and in 2012, he again topped the list with 63 billion yuan.

3. Wahaha spiritual leader

In the early years, Zong Qinghou was a guest on the famous host Lu Yu’s show, when Lu Yu suggested to Zong Qinghou that “we can produce American eggnog”, Zong Qinghou immediately retorted: “That is Australian eggnog, I have drunk it several times.” “The whole country may not like it” is also considered to be Zong Qinghou’s insight into the entire beverage industry is very keen.

In December 2016, a netizen posted that he met Zong Qinghou in the second-class carriage of the high-speed train and made fun of the children in the same carriage. In 2017, another netizen photographed Zong Qinghou at Wuhan Tianhe International Airport, pulling a suitcase alone as he waited for a flight. According to these people and Wahaha’s confirmation, Zong Qinghou often travels to various places to research the market. CXO UNION-CXO联盟（cxounion.cn）

In fact, whether it is product or enterprise management, Zong Qinghou personally ended up in the company. “In the 1990s and early 21st century, TV advertising was the most important marketing channel. Although Wahaha had a large number of products, the association personally controlled the advertising of each product, often asking for five or six films of each product for comparison, and personally discussing with Party B how to present TV advertising.” Fu Huayang told reporters that each time Zong Qinghou personally discussed the advertising content with the team, and was very patient.

“I’ve never seen Zong get angry with employees or partners. He’s always smiling at everyone.” “In my impression, Zong Qinghou is the most typical Confucian businessman,” Mr. Fu said.

According to previous reports, when Zong Qinghou was both chairman and general manager, there was no deputy general manager for a long period of time, and the “General manager office” managed the functional departments of the Group and its subordinate branches (provincial branches). This shows that only Zong Qinghou is the decision maker, and the others are the executors. More than 30 provincial managers in Wahaha’s sales network, more than 2,500 first-level wholesalers in its marketing network, and more than 70 branch factory directors in its production network all report directly to Zong Qinghou.

Zong Fuli has publicly said: “My father has always preferred to be a single person, like a big parent to handle the size of the company.” At that time, Wahaha did not have a strategy department, nor did it have a deputy general manager position. Zong Qinghou was the chairman and general manager all the year round, and basically all market decisions needed to be made by him. “Management is also very dependent on the father, and only wait for the boss to assign tasks every day to know who is doing and who should do.”

In recent years, Wahaha has also been launching new products and cross-border products, including children’s clothing, milk powder, liquor, shopping malls, etc., but many of them have not made too much waves. “As China urbanises, it is difficult for Wahaha’s affiliate to play to its strengths sustainably.” Zhu Danpeng said that the current channel sales system requires the company to provide dealers with a more detailed marketing system and services, so the limitations of the co-marketing system began to slowly reveal. CXO UNION-CXO联盟（cxounion.cn）

In addition, when online channels emerged, Nongfu Spring quickly seized the window period and vigorously developed e-commerce channels, creating prerequisites for the emergence of their own large products. Zong Qinghou once said that in the interests of dealers will not shift the main channel to online.

“But as FMCG is an industry where new and old products are rapidly changing, most companies in the product side are run by the younger generation to better capture market trends and consumer changes.” Tsinghua University brand marketing consultant Sun Wei believes.

At that time, Zong Qinghou also realized that Wahaha had the problem of insufficient innovation ability, and he repeatedly told the outside world that Wahaha lacked new main products at this stage. In the 2020s, with the rise of the vitality forest, Nongfu Mountain Spring and various categories of flowers blossomed, Wahaha’s voice and status in the beverage market were shaken. In recent years, under the rise of sugar-free, low-sugar industry wave, Wahaha has not yet created a new 10 billion large products.

In this tumultuous period, Zong Fuli, who has been practicing at the grassroots level for a long time and has carried out personal entrepreneurship, stood up, walked to the front of the stage, entered the management of Wahaha, and emerged to plan and innovate. In 2018, Zong Fuli served as the head of brand Public Relations Department of Wahaha Group, and in 2020, Zong Fuli served as the deputy general manager of Wahaha Group Sales Company. In 2021, Wahaha officially announced Zong Qinghou’s daughter Zong Fuli as vice chairman and general manager of Wahaha Group, responsible for daily work.

According to relevant sources, after Zong Fuli took over as general manager, although Zong Qinghou remained chairman of Wahaha Group, his guidance and involvement in the company gradually decreased. In the outside world, although Zong Qinghou was still the highest power in Wahaha at that time, Zong Qinghou had already made preparations for Zong Fuli to take over Wahaha in a comprehensive way when Zong Fuli entered Wahaha management. CXO UNION-CXO联盟（cxounion.cn）

“The success of a startup company cannot be separated from the founder’s courage and persistence, and the transition of a startup company to a modern enterprise requires a supporting management system. Zong Qinghou handed over Wahaha to a young successor after completing Wahaha’s ascent to the top, indicating that Wahaha will move toward an institutionalized enterprise, and Zong Qinghou left Wahaha with the spirit and inspiration of the start-up.” Brand marketing expert Lu Shengzhen said.

As a pioneer in China’s FMCG industry, Zong Qinghou boldly adopted innovative marketing thinking at the beginning of the market economy, created a marketing system that quickly occupied the sinking market, created a number of national beverage brands from scratch, and cultivated a group of outstanding entrepreneurs and managers in the FMCG industry. Wahaha has thus become the “Whampoa Military Academy” of Chinese beverages, and Zong Qinghou is well deserved as the godfather of Chinese beverages.

由CXO UNION-CXO联盟（cxounion.cn）转载而成，来源于中国经营报；编辑/翻译：CXO UNIONCXO联盟小U。

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