The current Chinese wine industry is undergoing profound transformation and also facing many challenges: On the surface, the problem of slowing down in dynamic sales and poor connection with new consumer groups continues to plague industry manufacturers; the deeper contradiction lies in the distortion of wine culture and the barriers between consumers' minds - Wine culture has gradually become wine table culture, becoming a simple social tool or price symbol, and the younger generation's understanding of Chinese wine culture is also more vague.
Under this background, when the liquor industry enters the deep waters of adjustment, leaders are launching a question of the original intention of drinking with the courage to break through and establish a great foundation.
On September 9th - 13th, the 14th China (Guizhou) International Wine Expo with the theme of "Global Wine Promoting Open Cooperation" was held in Guiyang. As one of the organizers, Moutai Group participated in it in depth, not only demonstrating its leading position in the industry, but also regards this wine fair as a key carrier to achieve the leap from product value to cultural value and global value, providing a reference for the brand upgrade of China's liquor industry.
At present, China's wine industry is standing at a key leap node from selling products to selling lifestyles, from going overseas to going overseas with products to going overseas with culture. Moutai uses the Wine Expo and the Wine Culture Conference as a platform for product display and brand expression, and provides a systematic solution of "product matrix + cultural IP + scene experience", promoting Chinese wine culture to become a perceived, participateable and disseminated global language.
Experience breaks the boundary: From "selling wine" to "selling life", make Chinese wine culture sensible, playable, and disseminated
After fourteen accumulations, the China (Guizhou) International Wine Expo has become a top platform for gathering the strength of the global wine industry and promoting cultural exchanges. According to statistics, the total exhibition area of this year's Wine Expo is about 92,000 square meters, attracting more than 1,000 exhibitors at home and abroad, exhibiting more than 20,000 wine products, accounting for 25% of international exhibitors.both in terms of scale and internationalization, they are ranked among the forefront of the same type of exhibition in China.
This wine fair also received high attention from the Guizhou Provincial Government. Leaders of alcohol associations from dozens of countries around the world and well-known entrepreneurs from the leading domestic wine industry witnessed the opening of the event. For Moutai, this world-oriented wine industry event is not only a window for product display, but also a bridge for mutual learning between civilizations and a base for the export of Chinese wine culture.
Walking into the Moutai exhibition area, you can clearly feel its in-depth interpretation of "lifestyle". The Moutai exhibition area is distributed in the main exhibition hall of Hall 2, the supply chain hall of Hall 4 and the outfield sales interactive area. The three areas are narrative around the three major themes of "birth", "growth" and "bloom". Walking in the exhibition hall, the audience can not only understand the regional uniqueness of "no Maotai wine can be brewed without Maotai Town", but also intuitively feel the charm of the culture of the production area, and the empowerment of modern technology to traditional craftsmanship, from raw material breeding to recycling.
Moutai's lifestyle experience area prepares visitors for interactive wine culture games, tasting classrooms and other activities, vividly interpreting the sublimation of Moutai from "selling wine" to "selling lifestyle". The entire exhibition area integrates the roots of inheritance, cultural charm, inclusive mind, and colorful vitality. Through the brand philosophy of "following the heaven and respecting people, understanding reason and virtue", a cultural expression space that runs through ancient and modern times and connects the world.
At the opening ceremony, Zhang Deqin, Party Secretary and Chairman of Moutai Group, mentioned that wine is a link and bridge for emotional links. Moutai is actively building an exchange platform through the "Guizhou Liquor China Tour" and the "Guizhou Liquor Global Tour", jointly with CCTV to create the "Huang Xiaoxi T² Music and Art Festival" and hold the "Maoyou Carnival", so that consumers can feel the warmth of wine culture through interaction.
Behind this concept is Moutai’s strategic leap from “products going overseas” to “cultural going overseas” - it is no longer simply exporting liquor, but building through life scenarios to allow global consumers to understand the Chinese cultural core of “wine becomes tribute, wine becomes elderly care, and wine becomes joy”.
Product plan: From "high-end monopoly" to "full-scene coverage", Moutai uses "precise supply" to break the circle and new consumption
At this year's wine fair, Moutai became a shining "star booth". Its full product matrix covering diverse consumption scenarios demonstrates its inclusiveness and innovation in embracing global diversified consumption needs. The subsidiaries of Moutai Liquor Sales Company, sauce-flavored wine company, health wine company, wine company, ecological agriculture company, cultural tourism company, Laimao Liquor Company and other subsidiaries participated in the exhibition. From high-end liquor to sauce-flavored series of wines, from health wine to wine, from ecological agricultural products to cultural and creative products, there are a wide variety of products, opening a rich experience journey for global merchants and consumers.
A major event in this wine fair is that Kweichow Moutai Liquor (Boutique) has completed its renewal and upgraded and officially met with consumers. This renewal not only retains the core elements and packaging styles of classic sauce-colored ceramic bottles, seal carving seals, and continues the brand memory; it also comprehensively improves from three dimensions: technology, consumption experience and drink tasting matching: improve the moisture resistance and wear resistance of the label; enhance transportation protection performance; increase the height of the color box and builds two small drink tasting glasses to enhance emotional connection.
From the details upgrade of high-quality Moutai to the scene coverage of the entire product matrix, behind it is Moutai's "consumer-centered" business philosophy. As Zhang Deqin said, Moutai is in line with the era of "consumer sovereignty" and meets the needs of different groups through personalized products such as zodiac wine and five-star trademark 70th anniversary wine.
In addition to the exhibition hall, we also saw i Moutai optimize the service system and upgrade the cultural experience hall, so that consumers can feel respected in every link. This "endless product pursuit" not only breaks the barrier between young people and traditional liquor, but also allows the industry to see: Only by being close to consumer needs can the wine culture truly integrate into modern life and achieve sustainable development.
Cultural Return: Return to the original intention of "Wine becomes ritual, joy, and elderly care", and Moutai sets a "cultural ruler" for the industry
If the Wine Expo is a window for Moutai to showcase its products and lifestyle, then the second China Wine Culture Conference and the launch ceremony of the 2025 "China Wine Culture Month" held on September 10 are the core field for Moutai to convey the cultural core to the industry. At the meeting, Zhang Deqin proposed to return to the traditional original intention of "Wine becomes ritual, wine becomes elderly, and wine becomes joy". This is not only a tracing of the roots of Chinese wine culture, but also a breakthrough in the current chaos of "focusing on business and neglecting culture" in the industry - it brings wine from social props back to humanistic carriers, and uses the wisdom of Eastern life to reconstruct the value connotation of drinking.
" Wine becomes a gift" is essentially a cultural expression of "respect as the core" that expresses the awe of nature, which is reflected in Moutai's persistence in protecting the Chishui River ecology and deepening the cultivation of organic sorghum; respect for consumers is integrated into the standards of "Moutai Jiuzhang", hidden in the design of festival gift boxes, and displayed in the customized services of the cultural experience hall.
When Moutai transforms the ingenuity of brewing and the sincerity of hospitality into perceived "ritual", the wine is upgraded from a simple drink to a symbol of respect that transcends language. This is also the key to the Chinese wine culture going global: it is not the output of "rituals", but the transmission of the values of "respecting others and oneself".
"Wine is the core of the emotional continuation of "filial piety as the soul". From the story of Hua Lianhui, the founder of "Chengyi Shaofang", who seeks to make a grandmother, to the fact that Moutai has driven millions of farmers to increase their income through "order agriculture" and uses public welfare to help students to protect their growth, "filial piety" has long been sublimated from the family-level emotions to a sense of responsibility to the elderly and the people in the production areas.
Moutai advocates "drink less and drink better", which is not only a guide to rational drinking, but also a return to the essence of "oldering". The real "living old age with wine" is to make wine a bond of family affection, not a burden, which provides a sample for how the industry can balance cultural heritage with modern health concepts.
" Wine makes joy" is the key to the resonance of life with love as the bond. The Chinese people’s “happiness” is never ostentatious, it is a light drink during reunion, a free conversation between close friends, and a witness to the joyful events in life. Maotai understood this implicitness, so it launched a 100ml small bottle with a single drink and a 375ml small set to fit the two together, using the "Maoyou Carnival" to build an emotional communication platform, and expand life scenarios through the integration of live tourism.
This idea of "not deliberately creating excitement, but only protecting the true feelings with all your heart" hits the core of modern consumption. What consumers want nowadays are not “what to drink”, but “the mood and company when drinking.” Moutai extends "joy" from "the joy of drinking" to "the beauty of life", making wine a witness to a better life, and also opening up a new space for the industry to "from selling products to selling emotional value".
At the moment when the industry is facing profound adjustments, Moutai takes the Wine Expo and the Wine Culture Conference as an opportunity, not only demonstrates its own brand strength and cultural responsibility, but also points out the direction for the industry: Cultural is never a marketing gimmick, but the "root" and "soul" of the liquor industry. When more companies, like Moutai, convey respect with "ritual", bear responsibility with "filial piety", and connect emotions with "joy", Chinese wine culture will surely break through the limitations of regions and languages and become the real common language in the world, and the Chinese wine industry will also go further and more steadily on the road of high-quality development.
This transformation from selling products to selling culture has no end. But this step taken by Moutai has illuminated the direction for the industry: Only by keeping the roots of culture can we catch the future of the market.
(Source: XN Zhijiu)
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