It’s always interesting to hear about a new startup in the water cooler industry, especially during these challenging times. The Jilin Jiu Ding Beverages business was first conceived in late 2010 by business owner Xue Wang.
In April 2011, the company purchased 30,000 square meters of land close to a spring water source in Jingyu County in the Changbai Mountain region of China’s northeastern Jilin Province.
In June 2011, the company purchased a spring water production line, completing the adjustments just four months later, and is all set to begin production this month.
The company is talking to potential clients for one-year contracts and will supply water direct to consumers as well as via retailers.
With aspirations to become a major spring water cooler provider in the northeast of China within two years, Xue Wang and her company certainly have the mass market in their sights.
Where did the idea come from to start a water and water cooler business?
Xue Wang: Jingyu County is known as one of the three world’s famous mineral water concentration areas, on a par with the Alps and the North Caucasus region. Therefore, there is great potential to develop these natural, high-quality resources and even export to overseas countries in the near future.
Many well-known beverage companies in China, such as the Wahaha Group, the Farmer Spring and Master Kang Group, have built large mineral water bases in Jingyu County. There are still more water and beverage companies in China who would like to come and set up their own factories here. Interestingly, since we set up the factory, many companies in the water and beverage industry have visited us to explore opportunities for working together.
What were the main ambitions at start-up?
Wang: To break into the local market and reach 30% of the local market share during the first year. I believe it will take about six years to grow into a truly successful business.
We would like to be very well prepared before we enter into the market. Therefore, we haven’t started the production yet. In order to guarantee the quality of our products and customer service during and after selling the products, we need to spend some time on training staff for them to become qualified, and building a sound customer service group which would take a month or so. But we believe that this is one of the most important things to do, and customers will feel the quality and the services we provide through our products.
To start off with, we are focusing on the residential and office/commercial sectors, but will look at other areas such as schools, hospitals and public locations later on.
Is the Chinese water market different from other Asian markets and other US/European water cooler markets?
Wang: There is no doubt that the drinking water market is increasing on a worldwide scale.
In comparison to the water cooler market in Europe and the US, I believe the Asian region will show the fastest increase due to its significant economic growth and the demand from huge populations.
The economic growth in China, India, other Asian countries and Eastern Europe will open up an immense market, where the drinking water supply is insufficient and people are willing to invest for their health.
What do you consider the main priorities for your clients?
Wang: The main priorities are the quality of the products and consumer’s health.
What do you believe are the most important aspects of marketing a water business?
Wang: Above all, the distribution channels are the most important.
What are the most effective ways of winning new business and keeping it?
Wang: We must always ensure the quality and the safety of the products. It is also vital to improve and perfect logistics distribution, as well as always listening to customers and building trust with our consumers.
Can startup, smaller businesses really compete with bigger players?
Wang: Yes. We can fill in the gaps that bigger companies haven’t covered and we have lower costs than bigger companies.
Are you keeping up with trends in social media and are they important to your business?
Wang: Yes. Social media is very important to businesses in our modern society. In China, we have some popular social media, such as QQ and Micro blog. We will also use Facebook/Twitter etc in future when we start our overseas business.
How are you running your business in a ‘green’ way and how important is this?
Wang: We are running an environment friendly business by setting examples such as:
Running businesses in a ‘green’ way is very important. This is not only good for the environment but good for the business. It conserves resources, cuts down on waste and saves money in the long run.
What are the main challenges for the future?
Wang: The main challenges come from market changes, such as consumers’ demanding change and competitors’ changes.
Finally, what are the future business plans for your company?
Wang: After we have the spring water business up and running, we are going to use our natural resource to produce healthy juice such as blueberry, Ginseng, and Schisandra Chinensis. We aim to become a very well-known global company in the future.
Hannah Oakman is editor of Cooler Innovation magazine. Subscribe here.
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