What Kind of Tobacco Brands Will the New Era Create?

  Compared to previous years, the overall trend in 2017 has shown signs of recovery in the industry, with improved economic conditions and better product market status, giving us a sense of "bottoming out and rebounding." I still remember the end of 2012 and the beginning of 2013, when the arrival of the new normal adjusted the pace, model, and trajectory of the tobacco industry, leading to evaluations and judgments about the previous "golden decade" of development.

New development environments create new development orders and give rise to new development models, which is an inevitable historical trend and a characteristic of the times. So, what changes or characteristics will the upcoming, highly likely new "era" of the tobacco industry bring to brand growth and operation? From the current signs, it is already beginning to show.

In recent years, the industry has faced pressure, and both brands and products have generally shown a trend of "upgrading and replacing," particularly reflected in three levels.

First, there is the refinement and sorting of brand value.

Yunchan Tobacco has many strong brands, such as "Yunyan," "Yuxi," "Hongtashan," and "Honghe," each capable of standing on its own, which also brings corresponding difficulties in establishing and unifying the overall style and value of Yunchan Tobacco. From the final establishment and deep exploration of the concept of "good mountains, good waters, good tobacco" to the current expectations for the future, it indicates Yunchan Tobacco's higher aspirations in this new development stage. Xiangchan Tobacco, with brands like "Furongwang" and "Baisha," has achieved a stable market position over the years. From "pure and harmonious Xiang tobacco, pure and harmonious the world" to the recently proposed "sharing with you, a fun life," it reflects the company's reanchoring of brand value in the context of upgrading and replacing.

Second, there is the improvement and breakthrough of product lines.

"Guojiumiang," "Hehua," and "KuanZhai" have distinct common characteristics, all achieving market volume through products, thus realizing family-style development and constructing a complete product series, awakening independent brand awareness, and being praised by consumers, similar to "HeTianXia." Another example is the currently popular "Zhonghua (Gold Medium)" and "Zhonghua (Double Medium)." It is well-known that the "Zhonghua" brand, due to its unique brand gene and industry status, has faced significant challenges in achieving breakthroughs in new products, but the emergence of new medium products seems to be breaking this "curse."

Lastly, there is the extension and upgrading of classic product specifications.

Products like "Hongtashan (Classic 2nd Generation)," "Yuxi (High-end Version)," "Baisha (Premium 3rd Generation)," "Furongwang (Hard Blue New Version)," and "Furongwang (Hard Yellow)" have given rise to slim and short products, expressing the determination and strength of upgrading classic "old" products. This "determination" and "strength" come from the judgment of market trends for slim, short, and explosive products and the structural upgrade-driven orientation.

From products to product lines to brands, the trend of upgrading and replacing has become evident. With the successful convening of the 19th National Congress and the arrival of a new industry environment, changes in brands and markets are already underway. Looking at the brand development situation in 2017, it is clear that this is a year of change.