Under Market Pressure, Why Does Lang Jiu Still Choose to Actively Pursue Change?

AI · Banquet Track Deep Cultivation: Why Has It Become a Core Growth Engine?

Produced by | Zhongfang.com

Reviewed by | Li Xiaoyan

Against the backdrop of deep adjustments in the baijiu industry and the return to rationality in the sauce-flavored liquor track, the sub-premium segment has become the focus of competition. Price inversion and high channel inventory have become industry common issues. As a leading enterprise in sauce-flavored liquor, Langjiu Co., Ltd. faces market challenges head-on, adopting a proactive approach with a combination of strategies—through core product price optimization and organizational reform of the marketing system—to coordinate strategic growth and operational growth, steadily consolidating market fundamentals during industry adjustments and laying a solid foundation for long-term development.

As a key sub-premium product in Langjiu’s product lineup, Honghua Lang 15 mainly targets banquet scenarios, playing a crucial role in connecting mass consumption with high-end consumption. Previously, due to slowed industry sales and changing market conditions, the terminal price of Honghua Lang 15 declined, with prices in core markets like Jinan dropping below 400 yuan, and some channels experiencing price inversion, putting pressure on distributor profit margins.

To resolve the price dilemma and stabilize channel confidence, Langjiu Co., Ltd. officially announced a price adjustment plan for Honghua Lang 15 on March 6, 2026: ex-factory price lowered from 489 yuan to 439 yuan, suggested retail price optimized from 699 yuan to 599 yuan, aligning pricing with market consumption trends. Simultaneously, a channel inventory subsidy policy was introduced, compensating distributors at 50 yuan per bottle for existing physical stock, effectively safeguarding channel partners’ interests and alleviating inventory pressure.

This price adjustment is not a passive response but an active optimization based on market changes. On one hand, transparent price adjustments help stabilize market expectations, allowing retail terminals and consumers to clearly perceive product value and aiding in restoring sales momentum; on the other hand, the optimized pricing system considers channel profits, enabling distributors to “make money and promote,” further motivating channel promotion.

Market feedback shows that after the price adjustment, the market order for Honghua Lang 15 gradually improved. Online and offline channel prices aligned with the new system, inquiry enthusiasm at the terminal increased, and retailers’ sales mentality became more rational, gradually moving away from the passive “dumping at low prices.” This adjustment not only resolved Honghua Lang 15’s short-term difficulties but also demonstrated Langjiu’s operational logic centered on channels and consumers, laying a foundation for sustained deep cultivation in the sub-premium track.

The banquet market is a core scenario for baijiu consumption, accounting for about 35% of total baijiu consumption, and has become a key battleground for major liquor companies. Having focused on banquet scenarios for over 20 years, Honghua Lang leverages its “celebration symbol” to meet Chinese reunification needs, backed by solid quality reputation and brand recognition, earning the honor of “China’s top-selling sauce-flavored liquor in banquet markets for three consecutive years,” becoming the preferred choice for weddings, birthdays, family gatherings, and other occasions.

In the context of industry price rationalization, competition in banquet liquor has shifted from “price competition” to “value competition,” with consumers increasingly focusing on “cost performance” and “brand strength.” Competitors like Moutai 1935 have seen prices fall into the 500-600 yuan range, leveraging the Moutai brand to form strong competition, posing challenges to Honghua Lang 15. However, Honghua Lang 15 maintains a strong competitive edge through long-term reputation in banquet scenarios, stable quality output, and localized operational advantages.

From market demand, consumers in banquet scenarios pursue both “face” and brand recognition, as well as value and quality experience. Honghua Lang 15, with a suggested retail price of 599 yuan, positions itself in the high-end core price segment, inheriting the high-end value of Qinghua Lang and serving the mass market of Honghua Lang 10. This creates a clear layered product hierarchy that aligns precisely with the needs of the emerging middle class and large-scale banquet scenarios. Data shows that in 2025, Honghua Lang’s banquet scene grew by 73% year-on-year, becoming a key driver of market growth and demonstrating its ongoing competitiveness in the banquet track.

In the face of competition, Langjiu has not relied solely on traditional advantages but has continuously deepened its banquet scene operations through brand activities and scenario-based marketing innovations, strengthening the emotional connection between Honghua Lang and banquet scenarios, further consolidating its market recognition as “the number one banquet sauce-flavored liquor,” and building a solid foundation for long-term market share.

In February 2026, Wang Bowe, General Manager of Langjiu Co., Ltd., announced a major reform of the marketing organizational structure, abolishing the original business unit system and establishing five major sales companies: Qinghua Lang, Honghua Lang, Longma Lang, E-commerce KA, and International Business. This new structure forms “5 sales companies + 10 sales regions,” managed centrally by the company. Among them, Beijing, Shanghai, Henan, Sichuan, Jiangsu, Shandong, Guangdong, and other seven provinces/cities are set as independent regions, while the remaining areas form three radiation zones: Hebei-Tianjin, Anhui-Zhejiang, and Hubei-Hunan.

The core of this organizational change is “specialized division of labor and agile combat,” breaking down the management barriers of the original business unit system to achieve precise coordination between brands and channels. Each brand sales company focuses on product positioning, brand building, and price control; regional sales teams focus on terminal coverage, distributor services, and local market expansion; e-commerce and international channels target new audiences, new markets, and new business models. This truly enables “professionals to do professional work.” An independent accounting and clear responsibility model significantly shortens decision-making processes, improves market response efficiency, and makes the organization more agile in adapting to market changes.

Meanwhile, Langjiu actively addresses core issues in channel development by promoting systematic channel optimization. In response to issues such as regional dealer restructuring and inventory backlog caused by previous channel flattening reforms, Langjiu optimizes channel layout, balances interests, and prevents disorderly competition; simultaneously, it strengthens channel control, strictly regulates cross-channel sales, promotes inventory clearance, and accelerates capital turnover.

Data shows that in 2025, Langjiu’s dealer count increased by over 800, with nearly 100,000 new retail outlets, continuously expanding its channel network. Despite short-term pressures faced by dealers during industry adjustments, Langjiu’s organizational reforms and channel empowerment have maintained dealer confidence and fostered a “manufacturer + channel + consumer” collaborative development pattern, enhancing channel resilience.

During industry adjustments, quality and capacity reserves are the core assets for long-term development. Langjiu adheres to the principle of “brewing good liquor, storing new wine, and selling old wine,” strictly following the “store ten, sell one” strategy. The total stock of sauce-flavored Langjiu in the market does not exceed one-tenth of the previous year’s total storage. By the 2025 Chongyang Du Sha Grand Ceremony, actual stored volume of sauce-flavored Langjiu reached 300,000 tons, with sales volume in 2026 strictly controlled within 30,000 tons, ensuring product quality and value through scarcity.

In the ultra-premium product segment, Langjiu continues to strengthen its efforts. In 2025, Hongyun Lang’s total quota was only 300 tons, with strict control and public allocation, emphasizing scarcity value. Its annual shipments increased by over 10%, with less than 50 tons remaining in the plan, demonstrating competitiveness in the high-end market. The steady performance of high-end products complements the adjustments in the sub-premium segment of Honghua Lang, forming a product matrix of “high-end leading and mid-tier support.”

Operationally, Langjiu adheres to the “Three Products Strategy” (quality, brand, taste), implements the “Eight Persistences and Four Ensures” market measures, and promotes multi-scenario operations centered on consumers. It has launched activities such as the Three Products Festival, the Thousand Merchants Conference, and China Lang Brand Day to bring brands closer to consumers and strengthen brand recognition. In 2025, Langjiu achieved its planned production and sales targets, with dealer shipments showing slight growth, demonstrating resilience amid industry deep adjustments.

Currently, the baijiu industry is entering a stage of squeezed growth, with sauce-flavored liquor moving away from rapid growth to high-quality development. Fluctuations in the sub-premium market and channel inventories are temporary industry phenomena, not unique to Langjiu. The short-term decline in terminal prices of Honghua Lang 15 reflects industry adjustment and market rationality. Langjiu’s proactive response exemplifies the responsibility and commitment of leading enterprises.

In the long term, digesting channel inventories, stabilizing prices, organizational reforms, and maintaining quality will be core strengths for Langjiu to navigate industry cycles. Industry data shows that in 2025, the opening rate of mainstream sauce-flavored liquor products continued to rise, confirming that the consumer base for sauce liquor is still expanding, and long-term market growth potential remains.

Langjiu’s series of adjustments are not short-term gambles but long-term industry trend strategies. By improving operational efficiency through organizational reform, empowering channels to stabilize the foundation, and maintaining quality to build a moat, Langjiu is steadily accumulating strength during industry adjustments, laying the groundwork for high-quality future growth.

From the proactive price adjustment of Honghua Lang 15, to organizational reforms in marketing, and ongoing deep cultivation of banquet scenarios, Langjiu’s series of actions during industry adjustments demonstrate the strategic resolve and reform courage of leading enterprises. As competition shifts from scale expansion to quality competition, Langjiu’s focus on quality, channel connectivity, and consumer needs positions it to seek breakthroughs amid reform and pursue growth amid stability.

As organizational reform effects gradually unfold, channel optimization continues, and banquet track efforts bear fruit, Honghua Lang 15 is expected to gradually regain market vitality and synergize with other products. In the context of long-term growth in the sauce-flavored liquor track and increasing industry concentration, Langjiu’s steady layout will gradually convert into growth momentum, continuously consolidating its leading position in the sauce-flavored liquor sector.