Aesthetic Economy and Traditional Commerce

 　　The concept of "aesthetic economy" was first mentioned by German scholar Gernot Böhme in the book "Critique of Aesthetic Economy". He proposed that after experiencing the form of agricultural economy and industrial economy, we are forming a large aesthetic economy. form. The aesthetic economy surpasses the traditional economy that focuses on the practical functions of products and general services, and is an emerging economy that combines practicality and aesthetics, products and experience.

　　Chen Qiang (host), Senior Researcher of "Sales and Marketing" and Secretary-General of the C Alliance: In the roundtable forum of this marketing event, we have invited several traders from the C Alliance member companies and brands, who will represent their respective companies and industries. Sharing around "aesthetic economy and traditional business".

　　Li Lei, General Manager of Haojiayi Biological Dairy: The pursuit of beauty has always existed since ancient times. Why should our current business place aesthetic economy at a strategic level?

　　First of all, companies must understand consumers in order to attract consumers with products. Today's young people are more or less anxious about their appearance, they don't use beauty and filters, and they don't even dare to be on camera. This is an opportunity for our company. Facts have also proved that appearance can indeed bring sales and revenue. In this regard, Haojiayi is mainly represented by IP co-branding. We have launched corresponding high-value IP products for different groups of people, such as Peppa Pig Lactic Acid Bacteria for children and One Piece series drinks for young people.

　　How to seize the beauty economy? At the strategic level, business owners have to personally participate in product design and cannot be completely handed over to professional managers. The economy of appearance must be a topic that all business owners should pay attention to. At the organizational level, it is necessary to build its own emerging organization, carry out organizational structure changes, and let Generation Z, who understands young consumers, serve as product managers.

　　Li Jie, co-founder of Xuangu Village: There is a saying now that beauty is justice, and consumers will not buy products that are not good-looking. But what does the appearance correspond to? It is a specific consumer group, so we still have to do product design based on consumer portraits. Xuangu Village was founded in 2020, and our target group is mainly based on household consumption. Judging from our background data and crowd portraits, consumer groups are mainly concentrated in 30-45 years old, and this group accounts for as high as 80%, and they are mainly women. So, when we design products, the first thing we need to consider is which form women in their 30s and 45s will like.

　　In addition, packaging design should also combine category characteristics and brand positioning. For example, the brand positioning of Xuangu Village is to only make food with zero additives, so that children can stay away from junk food and let the whole family eat with confidence. Therefore, our packaging design must not only meet the aesthetics of the target group, but also highlight the characteristics of the product - simplicity and cleanliness. Think about supplies, express with brands, and finally use products to meet the specific needs of consumers.

　　Fan Kecheng, general manager of Beidahuang Shabak Liquor Industry: We are currently mainly doing the legendary pure grain liquor of Beidahuang Prosperity, and strive to become the second brand of national liquor. I think aesthetics corresponds to packaging design, there are two important points: one is to reflect your differences in the dazzling array of products, and the other is to find identity among your core consumer groups. Only in this way can we truly sell high-value and good products to the right consumers.

　　Our products are aimed at the mass consumer groups, and most of them are manual workers or alcoholic consumer groups, and they are also older. Based on this, we extracted symbols and cognitive essence in the packaging design of the 1950s and 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, added details, and combined some modern advanced technology, so that consumers can see the first time in the channel. our products and feel connected to themselves.

　　In addition, I think aesthetics, in addition to aesthetics, is also very important for the coordination and focus of product packaging. For example, considering that consumers do not know much about pure-grain liquor and Hook-tiao liquor, we increase the category awareness of pure-grain liquor in packaging and publicity, so that consumers can choose easily. Of course, no matter what product is, it starts with appearance, is loyal to quality, and must pass the test in terms of quality.

　　Cao Hongjiang, general manager of Anman Beverages: Our company is committed to the differentiated development of walnut milk. Currently, we have launched chewable walnut milk with walnut particles added. Combined with more than 10 years of experience in the fast-moving consumer goods industry, let me talk about my understanding of the aesthetic economy. Aesthetic economy should be aesthetic + economy. As an enterprise, the ultimate pursuit is the total profit margin and sales. Only after the total sales reach a certain volume, can the business purpose of the enterprise be realized. Products can't just look good, the core of the real product must be good.

　　The aesthetic economy is to be viewed from a long-termist perspective. Now the so-called Internet celebrity products are flooding. In the short term, the ranking, sales and evaluation are all very good, but will such products still be there in 10 years? Internet celebrity products often mean fast life and fast death.

　　From the perspective of traditional business, product power itself is critical. Products are the root, marketing is the branch, and consumers are the fruit. Aesthetics is equal to productivity, but it is more of an addition to productivity. Aesthetics can really add points to products. But companies can't entertain themselves and only focus on making product packaging dazzling, because consumers may not like it. On the one hand, it may not be professional enough, and on the other hand, it may not fully understand consumers.

　　Therefore, I believe that the combination of traditional business and aesthetic economy must be a systematic project, which should comprehensively consider the differences in product positioning, target groups, and the different characteristics of products, enterprises, and industries.

　　Luo Wangliang, head of Baman Technology Brand: Baman is a restaurant chain brand that first established itself in Beijing and has now opened more than 240 stores across the country. In the process of development, Baman has been adapting to and meeting the changing needs of the market and consumers.

　　In the 1.0 era, catering was a product with a cyclical shelf life. At that time, the stores sold were basically ready-to-eat products; in the

　　2.0 era, catering needed to meet the delivery scene, so there were more packaged foods;

　　In the 3.0 era, in fresh food supermarkets and shopping centers, consumers can buy products from retail terminals; in the

　　4.0 era, the aesthetic economy is combined with traditional business to better empower products with aesthetic value.

　　In Baman's comprehensive product planning, we have made joint names with many IPs, such as "Assassination of Novelists", "Doraemon" and "Detective Conan", which have brought more traffic to the store. As far as the aesthetic economy is concerned, I think it is aesthetic + economy, that is, a combination of punches. When it comes to the product itself, the most important thing is to meet the consumer's cognition and demand point.

　　Lu Yifan, founder of WohStudios: Why is it necessary to combine aesthetic economy with traditional business? A per capita GDP of $10,000 is a line, equivalent to a watershed between basic needs and spiritual consumption. When the per capita GDP is less than 10,000 US dollars, people are more inclined to the practical value and exchange value of products, and after more than 10,000 US dollars, people pursue more spiritual consumption and care more about the added value of products. Aesthetics belongs to spiritual consumption.

　　Beauty and aesthetics are two different things. Beauty is objective, but aesthetics is very subjective. Different industries have different definitions of beauty, and beauty has different performances in practical applications. It has certain directionality and functionality. For example, the NIO car we used to serve belongs to the travel industry. How to reflect the beauty of the product? It must not be a gimmicky picture. In the design, we must focus on showing the futuristic and reliable products of the products, so that consumers can feel that the products are more reliable, more futuristic, and greener. This is our design purpose. For another example, we have designed a Chenguang stylus, and its beauty is reflected in the fit between the human hand and the pen, which is the beauty of its use value.

　　Chen Qiang: Based on the explanations of the above C alliance member companies and brand traders, the effect of aesthetic economy on traditional business is obvious. The C-position alliance is consolidating more and more excellent and young brands. I believe that the collision of this kind of resources and ideas will definitely produce a stronger chemical reaction.