Amid the waves of economic development, policy changes and adjustments always profoundly influence the direction of various industries. Currently, the concepts of Supply-Side Reform 2.0 and anti-involution are like a gentle rain, bringing new opportunities and transformations for the future of the baijiu industry. As the ancients said, "When all means are exhausted, change is necessary; once changed, solutions emerge; with solutions, longevity is achieved." Faced with intensifying market competition and overcapacity, the baijiu industry urgently needs reforms and adjustments to achieve sustainable development.
Supply-Side Reform 1.0 primarily focused on overcapacity in traditional industries, such as steel and coal, using administrative measures to cut capacity, achieving a temporary balance between supply and demand, and stabilizing economic recovery. However, as the economy developed and market conditions evolved, simply reducing capacity could no longer meet the demands of emerging industries and consumption upgrades. Supply-Side Reform 2.0 emerged, emphasizing innovation-driven growth, quality improvement, and market order standardization, aiming to optimize industrial structure through market mechanisms and policy guidance. Anti-involution targets vicious low-price competition and unfair practices among businesses, aiming to break low-level, repetitive over-competition and build a fair and orderly market environment.
In recent years, the baijiu industry has shown clear structural polarization. Leading companies, leveraging strong brand influence and robust distribution networks, continue to consolidate their market dominance, while many small and medium-sized baijiu producers are mired in homogenized competition. They often resort to short-term tactics like packaging imitation, low-price promotions, or even false advertising to vie for limited market space. Online sales channels are flooded with low-price products like "6 bottles of wine for 99 yuan" or "a bottle of baijiu for 9.9 yuan," severely disrupting normal market pricing and eroding consumer trust in the entire industry. This irrational competition not only leads to resource misallocation and efficiency losses but also weakens the industry's innovative momentum, trapping it in a "low-end lock-in" dilemma.
Supply-Side Reform 2.0 and anti-involution bring multifaceted positive impacts to the baijiu industry. In terms of industrial structure optimization, they accelerate deep industry reshuffling. By raising entry barriers and phasing out outdated capacity, the market will naturally eliminate small and medium-sized producers lacking core competitiveness, forcing all companies to shift from low-end price wars to high-value quality competition, driving overall industry upgrading. Like Darwin's theory of "survival of the fittest," only companies that adapt to market changes and possess core competitiveness can survive and thrive in fierce competition.
Regarding competition dimension upgrades, the previous extensive growth model relying on advertising and channel stockpiling will become obsolete. Companies must build a new competitive barrier integrating "brand value + cultural depth + technological innovation." For example, Moutai established a Solar Terms Research Institute to create cultural IP, expanding consumption scenarios to collection, investment, and social currency, enhancing its cultural value and market influence. Guotai Liquor pioneered an intelligent blending system, using flavor big data to offer personalized tastes, meeting consumer demands through technological innovation.
For improving supply chain efficiency, the industry will gradually reduce resource waste like excessive packaging and base liquor hoarding, shifting toward refined supply chain management. More innovative business models, such as liquor-tourism integration and immersive experiences, are poised to become new growth drivers. For instance, Moutai's "Youmi" mini-bars and Wuliangye's liquor-tourism experience stores in Chengdu's Kuanzhai Alley extend consumption scenarios from dining tables to lifestyle spaces, offering richer consumer experiences.
Of course, while advancing Supply-Side Reform 2.0 and anti-involution, it is crucial to avoid a "one-size-fits-all" approach. The baijiu industry has stratified consumption; while regulating low-end chaos, the unique innovations of small and medium-sized enterprises should be protected. Regulatory focus should be on establishing long-term mechanisms like quality traceability and eco-environmental protection, not simply restricting competition. In the future, the baijiu industry may form a "pyramid" structure: top-tier brands with international influence at the apex, regional specialty producers in the middle, and standardized products for mass consumption at the base, each level engaging in differentiated competition.
Supply-Side Reform 2.0 and anti-involution represent a critical opportunity for the baijiu industry to transition from scale expansion to value creation. Baijiu companies should actively respond to policy calls, increase innovation investment, enhance product quality, shape brand culture, and optimize industrial structure to achieve high-quality development in the new market environment, injecting new vitality into the prosperity of China's baijiu industry.
