INNOVATION PAYS OFF FOR OLD, HONORED BRANDS

Food lovers, including gourmets with the most discerning taste, love to accompany Peking duck with dark brown tianmian sauce－savoring the famed dish in the way it has been enjoyed for hundreds of years.

Yet few of them imagined that the sweet and salty sauce made from fermented flour would be used as a major ingredient in Western desserts.

In Beijing, an increasing number of laozihao, or time-honored brands, are making their presence felt among young consumers.

This month, cakes featuring ingredients from such brands, including the Chinese capital's oldest Peking roast duck restaurant Bianyifang, pickle maker Liubiju and honey producer Baihua, hit the market.

Chen Xia, 31, who bought a set of packaged cakes, said, "I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the Peking roast duck flavor."

The cakes are being marketed due to a collaboration between Beijing Youli, a platform that gathers and promotes historical brands in the city, and Bon Cake, a pastry brand that targets younger consumers.

Chen, who bought the cakes out of curiosity, said: "These traditional food brands have been around since I was a child. Now, I can sample them in the new form of cake."

She said her first taste of Peking duck-flavored cake was a little weird and something she had never experienced before.

"It was a bit salty initially, but then a light sweetness emerged and predominated. It packed a punch, and I couldn't resist taking a second and third bite," she added.

Chen said she was also attracted by cake featuring sugarcoated haws on a stick and black sesame.

The launch of the distinctive cakes is part of efforts by the local authorities to revitalize time-honored brands in Beijing.

Shang Xiping, president of major domestic retailer Wangfujing Group, which founded the Beijing Youli platform last year with the Beijing Tourism Group, said: "These brands are the city's business card. They carry its history and people's memories, as well as cultural heritage that can be passed on in a fast-changing world."

However, many such brands have not responded well to new retail methods and have failed to win the recognition they have gained from members of the older generation.

Fresh ideas

Shang thinks that laozihao requires fresh ideas for product content and marketing while retaining their original characteristics, quality and reputation to survive amid constantly changing market needs.

The collaboration with Bon Cake is aimed at combining traditional tastes and stylish afternoon tea snacks, in line with the lifestyle of the younger generation, Shang said.

It took four months of experimentation before the cakes were ready to market.

Huang Chenhao, deputy research and development manager at Bon Cake, said: "It was relatively easy to cater to traditional Chinese tastes in making Western desserts. The only thing we had to focus on was whether the public would accept the taste."

The key was to retain the traditional taste as much as possible.

Huang said: "During our collaboration, we have experienced the craftsmanship of these time-honored brands. They take special care with every step, from raw materials to the production process, so we now understand how just one minor mistake may have an impact hundreds of kilometers from the point of production."

To produce the cakes, no extra sugar was put into the mix, due to increased awareness among younger people of the need to watch their weight.

"We want our cooperation to evoke memories of childhood and also to involve traditional tastes and new raw materials, so that younger people will be attracted to these desserts," Huang said.

He added that the partnership is for the long term, and more cake flavors will be introduced.

Last year, Beijing snack brand Daoxiangcun, which was established in 1895, launched Location Zero, a renovated store on Dongsi North Street. Customers were offered a variety of authentic Beijing pastries with new twists－many of them inspired by pop culture to tempt the taste buds of younger shoppers.

A row of counters was added to the store, selling a variety of cultural and creative items, including pillows and keychains featuring images of the snacks on offer.

Young shoppers are quenching their thirst at the store with special Beijing-style tea, and the outlet has become a popular venue for them.

To improve customer experience, the store has also launched a takeaway platform.

Baihua, the honey brand, which was founded in 1833, has launched a series of fruit-flavored honey, including lemonade, blueberry and cranberry varieties.

Guo Lijun, chairman of Baihua, said, "We introduced these flavors to meet the needs of young people."

Baihua has also launched a bottled drink comprising honey and water. By twisting the cap and shaking the bottle, the two ingredients are mixed. "This increases the buyer's sense of experience and fun," Guo said, adding, "We believe that these new products are in line with the healthy dining needs of modern people."

Bold innovation

Meanwhile, Liubiju Pickle, which began trading in 1530, has reduced the saline content of its traditional pickles by 25 percent. It is using a new type of tianmian sauce and post-cooking techniques to diversify its products.

You Jiangfu, the brand's general manager, said, "We've also innovated to produce ice cream made from black sesame and black garlic."

Meanwhile, renowned Peking duck chain Quanjude's restaurant on Qianmen Street, and a shop selling herbal coffee produced by traditional Chinese pharmacy Tongrentang, which has a history of more than 350 years, have attracted widespread market attention.

During the June 18 online shopping carnival, more than double the number of consumers opted for time-honored brands rather than others on the major e-commerce platform JD.

Sales growth for storied brands also more than doubled during the festival, with many of them seeing sales of over 100 million yuan ($14.83 million).

A later survey by JD found that 75 percent of young people expressed a strong interest in innovative products from laozihao during the carnival. In particular, sales to those born after 1995 rose by 141 percent year-on-year.

Ready-to-eat roast duck slices from Quanjude and kebabs from Beijing hotpot chain Donglaishun saw brisk sales on a number of e-commerce platforms, including Taobao.

More than 1,100 time-honored brands have obtained official recognition from the Ministry of Commerce, and these companies date back 160 years on average. About 50 percent of them are engaged in food and catering.

However, few of these brands have been able to comfortably meet the demands of a modern economy, while the remainder are, for example, struggling to stay afloat by running small-scale workshops.

Shang, the Wangfujing Group president, said the success of a relatively few laozihao means there is still plenty of potential to be tapped in the overall development of time-honored brands nationwide.

In four to five months' time, Beijing Youli plans to open a futuristic store on the capital's Wangfujing shopping street that will feature strong local elements.

Shang said, "Beijing Youli will continue to work with multiple time-honored brands in various fields and develop a series of distinctive goods that take young consumer's consumption habits into consideration and also help spread Beijing culture."

Beijing Youli has opened a store at Universal Beijing Resort that features nearly 30 local and national time-honored brands.

Shang said sales at this outlet rose significantly last month, when the resort experienced a surge in the number of visitors during the summer vacation.

Online inroads

Beijing Youli has also entered the online market. It has worked with renowned brands to spread their traditions and culture, with celebrities invited to host livestreaming sales of these brands on the Douyin e-commerce platform.

During one celebrity sales session, Quanjude saw 10 million people browsing in a few hours for its sales of ready-to-eat duck slices, with business reaching 1.07 million yuan.

This year, the Chinese authorities released a guideline aimed at injecting new vitality into the nation's time-honored brands as part of efforts to boost consumption and fulfill people's desire for a better life.

The guideline, issued by the Ministry of Commerce and seven other government departments, detailed measures to unleash demand by encouraging innovation at these brands.

The brands are also urged to develop creative cultural products with relevant institutions, as well as holding cultural experience activities and providing customized service, according to the guideline.

It said modern information technologies such as big data and cloud computing should empower time-honored brands to cultivate new business models and consumption scenarios.

The guideline also said measures should be taken to establish business streets and scenic spots with the characteristics of such brands to better unleash their appeal.

Shang stressed that these brands must retain their core competitiveness and cultural identity.

"They have their own formulas for success… which can create new consumption hot spots to meet the cultural demands of young people," Shang said.

Renowned brands are likely to look to systematic reform, product innovation, packaging design, cooperation with other brands, and livestream promotions to boost their business, experts said.

"They will have renewed vigor after fully tapping their existing brand technology and adapting themselves to the new market environment," Shang said.

Xing Zhihong, chair of Jinghua Tea, which was founded in 1950, said, "Every brand has a legendary or inspiring story and constantly upgraded craftsmanship that has stood the test of time."

In addition to coping with intense market competition, Xing called for laozihao to act quickly to cater to increased calls from members of the public to safeguard their health and protect the environment.

"Many modern-day consumers have a deep love of traditional culture, and they often pay attention to and actively choose domestically-made products," she said.

"Therefore, time-honored brands should firmly seize this opportunity by constantly improving their production processes and quality, enriching their product mix, and using a range of new marketing methods to gain market attention."