From Store Count to Direct Terminals: How Liquor Brands Must Rethink Growth

Running Out of Space

The 2026 Liquor Retail Chain Conference in Yantai released the "TOP80" list, which ranks the leading liquor retail chains by self‑reported store count, illustrating the market’s expansion from roughly 500 billion CNY and 10 000 stores a decade ago to about 2 200 billion CNY and over 35 000 stores today.

Beyond the ranking, the organizers repeatedly emphasized a new consensus: “Store count is an entry ticket, not a medal.” This reframes stores from a final goal to a prerequisite for deeper engagement.

Why the Expansion Model Stalled

According to Zhao Yu, deputy secretary‑general of the China Alcohol Circulation Association, the number of stores only reflects network size, not business health. Some brands have many stores but limited revenue; others have fewer stores but strong per‑store performance and customer loyalty.

Data shows that about 60 % of liquor firms face price inversion and 58 % of distributors see rising inventory, indicating that the old “run‑to‑the‑land” model is no longer viable. Consumer habits, purchasing logic, and information channels have changed.

Three Evolutionary Stages

Xing Chunlei, vice‑president of the association, outlined three eras:

1.0 : Brand success depended on dense, wide distribution – “channel is king.”

2.0 : Flattened channels and direct control of terminals became the competitive edge.

3.0 : Success now hinges on deep operations, collaborative efficiency, and ecosystem construction; simply opening more stores no longer solves these challenges.

Direct Stores as the New Lever

Leading brands such as Maotai, Wuliangye, Yanghe, Luzhou Laojiao, and Fenjiu are rapidly opening proprietary stores. The logic is that a store’s value lies not in its physical space but in its role as the brand’s last physical touchpoint with the consumer.

iMaotai’s digital direct‑store platform recorded 15.31 million monthly active users, 6.28 million new users, and over 212 000 orders in a single month, with the flagship product “Feitian Maotai” accounting for 143 000 orders and more than 1.45 million consumers purchasing the product.

Analysis of the data shows that over 50 % of users are from third‑tier cities and below, and nearly 65 % are around 30 years old, indicating that digital direct stores can reach deep‑market consumers at scale and accelerate generational brand loyalty.

One‑Code (Five‑Code) Strategy for Non‑Direct Stores

Because the majority of terminal stores remain outside brand ownership, the industry adopts a “one‑item‑one‑code” system. Each bottle carries a unique identifier that enables consumers to verify authenticity, trace origin, and receive a rebate.

Luzhou Laojiao’s five‑code implementation in 2025 resulted in more than 12 million boxes of five‑code products, 5.6 million bottles opened, 13.6 million scans, and a scan rate above 50 % for core SKUs, while maintaining a 90 % price‑stability rate at the terminal.

The five‑code hierarchy (cover code, bottle code, box code, carton code, pallet code) links physical items to a digital trace, turning the scan into a natural anti‑counterfeit and anti‑diversion mechanism: scans in unauthorized regions trigger instant alerts, and distributors cannot block them because the rebate belongs to the consumer.

The Deepest Pain: Anonymous Consumption

Unlike cosmetics or appliances, liquor brands have historically lacked visibility into who actually drinks their product. The one‑code system transforms each bottle into a data touchpoint, capturing who opened it, when, and where, thereby building a user profile.

When brands design scan incentives as “reverse red‑packets,” the entire channel—manufacturers, distributors, and retailers—benefits directly from genuine consumption, turning inventory into a measurable revenue stream.

From Rented Traffic to Owned Assets

The opening analogy—stores as entry tickets versus medals—highlights that coverage is necessary but not sufficient for sustainable growth. Brands must shift from treating stores as the end goal to using them as the starting point for building a user relationship network.

Digital tools (QR codes, mini‑programs, online tastings) now allow brands to convert the physical store from a pure sales point into a user‑acquisition channel, aligning the brand’s success with long‑term consumer relationships rather than short‑term price wars.

Ultimately, the decisive factor is whether a brand can abandon the obsession with store count and adopt a user‑centric evaluation system where stores are merely a means to an end.