CRI听力: Foreign Beer Goes Down Well in China

Beer plays an increasingly important role in Chinese people's lives. It's the most popular drink ordered in restaurants and pubs.

Domestic brews such as Tsingtao, Yanjing and Snow Beer have the largest market share, while foreign beers have been struggling to make their mark in China since the 1990s.

So what tactics are foreign beer companies using to win the hearts of beer lovers in China? Zhang Mengyuan went to Tsingtao Beer Festival to find out.

Budweiser and Heineken are the best-known foreign beers in China but in recent years, more and more overseas labels have been appearing here and taking advantage of beer's growing popularity. He Yong, secretary in chief of the China Alcoholic Drinks Industry Association, says this country now tops the world for beer drinking.

"China is the biggest beer-consuming market. Beer drinking has been growing in developing countries all over the world in recent years. In some developed countries, especially those with mature beer-producing techniques such as in Europe, consumption has either kept the same or is decreasing. Therefore, many foreign beer companies want to enter the Chinese market."

Although the current market in China is full of beer brands from all over the world, setting up business in China is not always straightforward for foreign beer companies.

In 1990s, a lot of foreign capital swarmed into China, brought in foreign beer brands and established joint ventures. But due to the lack of understanding of local market and improper operational methods, most foreign companies failed and left the country. Foreign beer brands started to enter China again in 2002, but this time they tried different strategies. He Yong explains.

"Previously, foreign companies took all the managerial decisions themselves and kept all the control, operating as they were doing in other countries. As a result, most failed to make a profit. When they started re-entering China, most companies chose to let Chinese people manage the business and drew up plans to suit the local market."

Getting the management and marketing right was one thing – but of course, the taste of the beer was the key to its success. Huang Kun, Brand Manager of Danish brewers Carlsberg, talks about the taste of Chinese consumers.

"Our marketing showed us that Chinese people liked light beer more than thicker ones. And beers that had a lighter flavor were also better received."

Normally, light beers from Japan and the U.S. would have been suitable for the Chinese market, while European beers were relatively thicker and not such a good bet. So no matter which country a beer comes from, all are produced for the Chinese market with local tastes in mind.

Because beer isn't suited for long-distance transportation, most foreign companies have established breweries in China and some have set up joint ventures with local companies, thus creating various sub-brands. Nevertheless, consumers are still most familiar with established labels like Budweiser and most new brands are not widely recognized. That's a problem foreign companies are still coming to grips with.

For CRI, I'm Zhang Mengyuan.