All-media reporter Tan Faxin

Entering the twelfth lunar month, the pace of the Spring Festival is getting closer and closer, and handling new year’s goods and preparing for the reunion dinner has become a matter of concern to most citizens. Recently, the reporter visited a number of hotels and restaurants in the city and learned that before the New Year’s Eve, the reservation for New Year’s Eve dinner was "hard to find". Many hotels and restaurants were fully booked after the 24th day of the twelfth lunar month, and only a few halls had seats left.

Through the reporter’s visit, I learned that in addition to going out to eat the group annual banquet, many citizens choose to make the group annual banquet at home, and some also invite chefs and cooks to come to the door to serve and leave the group annual banquet at home, which not only saves trouble but also has the atmosphere of the New Year.

Reservation for the annual banquet of the restaurant group is "hard to find a table"

In order to seize the rare business opportunity of the Chinese New Year, the merchants took precautions, put up a publicity banner to book the annual banquet of the group one or two months in advance, and some even launched a series of preferential activities, making the idea of the Chinese New Year early. In anticipation of the Spring Festival, the citizens put the group annual banquet on the family’s important agenda early, and willingly "pay big money" for a comfortable year.

On January 10, Mr. Wang, who worked in a public institution in the city, was depressed. On the morning of the same day, he called six hotels in the city to book the group annual banquet, and they were all told that the reservation was full and only a few seats were available for reservation. "I didn’t expect that I couldn’t book it more than ten days in advance. It didn’t seem so popular in previous years?" Mr. Wang introduced that in the past two years, he and his family had a reunion dinner in the city hotel, and the booking time was equivalent to this year. Although the price of the banquet was higher than usual, there was no phenomenon that seats could not be booked.

"We don’t have a private room now. If we want to book the group annual banquet, we can only spell the table in the hall." The staff of a restaurant near the sewage treatment plant in Zhoucheng said that at the end of December last year, the reservation of the group annual banquet had already begun, and even the reservation hall should be "the first to strike first."

The staff of a large restaurant in Shinan Ancient City told the reporter that there were many people who booked the group annual banquet this year. As early as last October, someone called to make an appointment, but the hotel didn’t start accepting reservations until December. "The private rooms from the 24th to 28th of the twelfth lunar month have already been booked, and there are few big private rooms left at noon." It is understood that the restaurant began to have a holiday on the 29th of the twelfth lunar month.

The reporter found that compared with small private rooms and large private rooms, during the Spring Festival, thousands of families were reunited, and large private rooms were obviously more popular.

Family dinner chefs come to cook.

Do you want to eat New Year’s Eve at home or in a hotel? This is a problem. Eating at home has an atmosphere, but the food is more homely and it is also very troublesome to cook. Eating food and service in the hotel is good and easy, but there is no feeling of Chinese New Year more and more! "Many city residents began to consider the issue of reunion dinner.

As the Spring Festival approaches, the group annual banquets of major hotels and restaurants have already been booked out. Don’t worry, just buy a table of semi-finished reunion dinner home, or book a chef’s home service directly, without doing it yourself.

"When a chef cooks at home, he can enjoy the chef’s special service at home". The reporter visited and learned that there are not a few people who provide on-site service for the chefs of the group annual banquet. Some chefs usually pick up the business of cooking at home, but at the peak of the group annual banquet at the end of the year, orders are constantly coming, and some can’t accept orders because of schedule conflicts. Citizens only need to make a phone call to make a reservation, and determine the number of people to eat and the contents of the menu, so they can wait for the chef to cook at home. Some citizens are too busy to ask chefs to help them buy food.

In addition to booking a chef through usual contact, you can also invite a "cook" through a housekeeping company.

Liu Feifei, a citizen, works in an enterprise in could, so he can have a holiday on the 28th of the twelfth lunar month. In previous years, the group annual banquet could only be booked in the hotel. This year, she chose to do the group annual banquet at home. "I was busy with my work and didn’t have time to prepare. I heard that a friend usually invited chefs to come to the door for family dinners, so she tried to contact several chefs. After several times of communication, the chef’s schedule was finally confirmed. At noon on the 29 th of the twelfth lunar month, the chef was invited to make a group annual banquet. " Liu Feifei said, before eating the group annual banquet in the hotel, I always felt almost the atmosphere, so I had the idea of inviting the chef home. Unexpectedly, many citizens have the same idea. She contacted several chefs to determine the right time.

Why did you choose to invite a chef to cook at home instead of going directly to the hotel? Mr. Zhang said that on the one hand, it is more economical to have a family dinner, on the other hand, it is more convenient to invite chefs to visit and reduce waste. "All the ingredients are purchased by yourself, which is cheap and reassuring. Counting the remuneration for the chef saves a lot of money than in the hotel. Moreover, everyone also likes the atmosphere of reunion at home. "

"The raw materials of dishes can be purchased by customers themselves or given to us, because some ingredients, ingredients and sauces are difficult for customers to prepare at home, which will affect the taste of some dishes." Master Xie said that before, he used to cook and cook for others empty-handed. Now, many people try to save trouble and simply let them arrange the whole banquet.

The group annual banquet is a "lively and convenient"

The purpose of the vast majority of citizens booking the group annual banquet is very clear — — That is lively and easy.

Wang Yuchen, a 29-year-old citizen, said that he and his wife are both working in the company, and they are under great pressure at ordinary times, especially at the end of the year. Almost all the preparations for the Chinese New Year are carried out in a hurry. A few days ago, they were busy doing cleaning at home until late at night, so tired that their backs ached. Therefore, he decided to change the group annual banquet from home to the hotel. Although the cost is much higher, there is no need to prepare dishes a few days in advance and clean up after meals. The picture is convenient and easy, and you can take the opportunity to make time to chat with your family and free your wife from the tedious housework. "It is worthwhile to spend more money!"

Ms. Xiao, a citizen, said that in the hotel for the New Year, she can feel the joy and excitement of the Spring Festival. She believes that the Chinese New Year is to be lively, and it is very pleasant to have a reunion dinner in a happy atmosphere.

Liu Yuhang, who works in other places, just returned to Enshi on January 6th. As soon as he got home and put down his luggage, he rushed to a nearby hotel to book a table for the New Year’s party and informed his relatives and friends. He said that according to the usual practice in previous years, in order to spend the next year, he would go to various food markets and supermarkets to buy vegetables, chickens, ducks and fish, and then rush home with big bags, wash vegetables, kill fish and cook, and work hard for a while … … After eating a reunion dinner, he felt extremely tired from running around. This year, he decided to entertain relatives and friends in the hotel. Liu Yuhang told reporters with a smile, comparatively speaking, it is much easier to have a group dinner in a hotel, and it can relax the body and mind.

At the end of 2023, ACE-YKYB, a clothing brand headed by Z.TAO, opened its first offline store in Hangzhou Yaowang X27 Theme Park. The overall design was mainly gray and white, focusing on young trends. ACE-YKYB, whose full name is YOUNG KING YOUNG BOSS, was founded by Z.TAO and his team in 2019.

It is nothing new for stars to enter the clothing industry and create personal brands. According to incomplete statistics, at least 20 personal fashion brands created by domestic stars are active in the market.

In 2023, under the upsurge of physical consumption, old brands returned to the market, new brands actively explored offline, and star street brands gradually recovered.

At the same time, there are still star street brands closing stores and withdrawing from the market. Just like the ever-changing popularity, traffic is easy to disappear, and star brands are always short-lived and criticized for "cutting leeks". How to find a long-term development model is a common problem in the industry.

one

There are still star street brands shrinking in closing stores.

As early as 2003, CLOT, founded by Edison Chen, had brought a wave of entertainment stars from Hong Kong, Taiwan and the mainland to create personal brands. The trendy brands that appeared at that time-PHANTACi from Jay Chou, STAYREAL from A Xin in May and MADNESS from Shawn Yue-were still active in the market.

In the next twenty years, more and more star fashion brands were just a flash in the pan, and after a short boom, they gradually fell silent and were finally forgotten. For example, DUEPLAY in Ryan, WDMD in Bao Beier, and STAGE…… in Show Lo … have all become history, and some once-hot brands have inevitably declined.

Looking back on 2023, there are still star street brands shrinking in closing stores. At the beginning of the year, Shawn Yue’s personal brand MADNESS, which was founded nine years ago, adjusted its business line, and the online Tmall flagship store stopped operating. Subsequently, its first offline store in Sanlitun, Beijing, and the only brand direct store in the mainland also closed.

Source: HYPEBEAST

In June, YCY withdrew from the ranks of shareholders of Shanghai Rixin Yueyi Brand Management Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of BABT, and actually withdrew from the brand; The first offline life concept store of CANOTWAIT_, a trendy brand founded by William Chan, which landed in Shanghai in 2022, has not been searched at present.

Before that, in 2022, the star street brand experienced a fierce tide of closing stores. In July 2022, SMUDGE, a JJ Lin trendy clothing brand that once opened physical stores in shanghai new world and Wuhan centers, closed its last store in Changle Road, Shanghai, leaving only online sales channels.

On May Day, STAYREAL, a trendy brand founded by A Xin and illustrator Buerliang, closed the Xidan Joy City store and withdrew from the Beijing market. At its peak, STAYREAL once had more than 40 stores, and now there are only five, located in Shanghai, Guangzhou, Changsha and Suzhou.

Also in 2022, Edison Chen’s personal brand JUICE closed its stores in Taikooli in Beijing and Taikooli in Chengdu. At present, there are only three stores in China, namely Shanghai, Chengdu and Guangzhou, and the goal of "opening 50-100 stores" has long been dashed.

Source: CLOT official website

At the same time, new brands are emerging. At the end of 2022 and the beginning of 2023, Nana Ou-yang’s personal brand nabi and Dylan’s personal brand D.Desirable appeared one after another.

New brands are emerging quickly, and "rollover" is also fast. The first product series "Yunduo Capsule Series" launched by nabi, a personal brand in Nana Ou-yang, is hotly debated because of its high price and low quality. The rabbit ear bathrobe with a price of 998 yuan is made of 86% polyester fiber, and the product pricing is seriously inconsistent with the material price.

Pricing and quality issues are the core of the long-term criticism of star street brands. At the same time, Lu Han’s trendy brand U.G.C was also hotly searched for pricing and quality issues. A blogger commented: "The clothes with a price of 1,500 yuan are full of threads, and the lathe work is poor, and there are broken lines everywhere. It is estimated that the cost of one piece is only 60 yuan."

On January 2nd, in the notice of Shanghai Municipal Market Supervision Bureau, a short down of DANGEROUS PEOPLE brand was notified because it failed to meet the filling standard requirements, which easily affected the normal hormone secretion of human body. DANGEROUS PEOPLE brand is a menswear brand launched in Joker Xue in 2015.

The research of iResearch once pointed out that more than 70% consumers are willing to pay a premium below 30%, and young people are more willing to pay a high premium above 30%. Stars have their own appeal, self-created brands often have a premium, and fans-based audiences are also willing to pay the bill. The excessive premium of some brands has exceeded the acceptance of consumers and fans, and young consumers are becoming more and more rational.

A long-term fan who bought the brand’s trendy brand products told the brand that idolize’s buying trendy brands means that fans pay for emotional value, and it is understandable to pay a higher premium. However, high prices and low quality can easily arouse fans’ resentment and be regarded as disrespecting fans, thus affecting the star’s personal image.

In her view, young consumers have become more and more rational, especially the fan groups are more and more familiar with the operation mode of the star economy. Most fans will no longer take it all without brains, and they will still consider the cost performance when buying star fashion products, especially the quality of products.

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Flash+physical store, actively explore offline

In addition to the frequent contraction and controversy of closing stores, there are also some positive new trends in 2023.

According to the number of brands, most of the current active star street brands have opened physical stores, which are operated online and offline at the same time. With the recovery of offline consumption, star street brands have been actively deploying offline physical retail since last year.

South Korean actress Jessica’s personal brand BLANC&ECLARE is frequently distributed in the China market. In November 2022, China opened its first store in Vientiane World, Suhewan, Shanghai, and then quickly landed its second store in Hefei.

In 2023, BLANC&ECLARE opened its first stores in Beijing and Xiamen successively. According to the brand official website, BLANC&ECLARE also plans to expand in more than 10 cities including Chengdu, Xi ‘an, Nanning and Xiamen.

We11Done, the personal brand of Korean singer G-Dragon’s sister Quan Damei, is also one of the trendy brands that expand the offline retail layout frequently in recent two years.

According to the big data of Win Business, We11Done has opened 14 stores in shopping centers and department stores with an area of more than 50,000 square meters in 24 cities across the country, and has floor-to-floor brand stores in the core business districts of Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Hangzhou, Chengdu and other cities.

In June, 2023, STAYREAL, a A Xin street brand that left the Beijing market for one year, returned in the form of STAYREAL PARK theme limited stores, introducing limited clothing and interactive experience devices, and then STAYREAL PARK theme limited stores were held in Shanghai, Guangzhou, Xi ‘an, Chengdu and other cities.

For more brands, compared with the heavy investment of long-term stores, the rental cost and operation and maintenance cost of curation and flash are lower, which is the priority choice for many star street brands.

Team Wang design, a brand with Jackson Wang as the manager and creative director, has been actively deploying flash in the world in recent two years, and has opened the concept space of the lower line limit in Shanghai, Shenzhen, Chengdu, Bangkok, Singapore and other places.

The location of pop-up shop is more flexible, and many brands will choose the core business district where the passenger flow in first-tier cities gathers, and at the same time play the role of marketing and publicity.

For example, Team Wang design’s time-limited concept stores are opened in the trend business districts of first-tier cities such as Shanghai TX Huaihai, Chengdu IFS and Shenzhen Vientiane Tiandi, and giant devices are often arranged in the stores to attract punch cards to break the circle.

Source: Team Wang design

At the same time, flash is also a test of physical stores under the landing line, which provides reference for the location of subsequent stores. GOODBAI, a brand founded by Bai Jingting and well-known domestic designer Shangguan Zhe, opened nomadic stores "Good Time Park" in Vientiane Tiandi, Paris and Singapore before the first physical store in Yanqing Road, Shanghai.

It is worth mentioning that star street brands gradually expand from clothing to more categories, such as dolls, ornaments, daily necessities, etc., from clothing brands to "fashion and lifestyle brands", and offline space is becoming more and more diverse.

For example, William Chan’s brand CANOTWAIT_ has also launched products such as masks, water cups, cultural creations and fragrances; GOODBAI is positioned as a "clothing and lifestyle brand". Both its stores and pop-up shop emphasize relaxed and comfortable living scene layout, and provide special coffee and co-branded desserts in the stores.

During Halloween last year, TEAM WANG design also held Halloween activities with the theme of Under the Castle in Shanghai, including Halloween themed secret rooms and outdoor Halloween fairs, which attracted wide attention.

The star’s own brand itself has a strong cultural attribute. The cross-border opening of secret rooms, markets and other forms is essentially to cater to young people’s favorite consumption formats, gain insight into the youth culture where fans are located, and convey lifestyle trends.

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Explore the long-term development model

From a broader perspective, both domestic and international fashion brands are flooding into the market.

Domestic trendy brand stores such as Randomevent and ROARINGWILD have successively opened their stores into the core business of the city. The data shows that Randomevent stores have covered many cities such as Shanghai, Beijing, Chengdu and Changsha. ROARINGWILD has 9 stores in Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen.

Meanwhile, Supreme, an internationally renowned fashion brand, plans to open the first independent store in China market at No.291 Fumin Road. At present, the block has erected a large enclosure, and Shanghai will welcome Supreme’s 17th store in the world.

According to the consulting firm Frost & Sullivan, by 2025, the market size of China trendy retail industry will reach 475 billion yuan. As one of the gold diggers, star street brands still have great market prospects.

A core pain point is that the brand is highly dependent on the popularity of the stars themselves. Without the awareness of long-term development, the brand will soon die with the loss of popularity.

In the view of Cheng Weixiong, an independent analyst in shoes and clothing industry and founder of Liangqi brand, fashion brand is the lifestyle brand that best represents the fashion trend. It is not enough to rely solely on the appeal of stars. It is necessary to be more creative in product research and development, to show the channel selection in the latest channel where young users gather, to go to shopping centers offline, and to learn new marketing methods such as planting grass online to promote users’ reach.

Cheng Weixiong is optimistic about the future development of street brands: there is room for street brands, but to truly recognize the originality of street brands, rather than the homogenization of’ simple price increase+celebrity endorsement’, the individuality and differentiation of users need the materialization of lifestyle.

In 2023, some star street brands also received attention and began to enter the mainstream market. In November, TEAM WANG design officially launched the cross-border cooperation project capsule series "DONG" with FILAfusion, a trend sports brand owned by Fila, with Jackson Wang as the creative director.

Whether this star tide brand can survive for a longer time, let us wait and see.