Xinhua Insight: Decades apart, two snack pioneers make customers go nuts

The atmosphere was tense at the Three Squirrels office, China's largest retailer of snack food on Alibaba's Taobao and TMall platform, as they waged a logistical fight on the Single's day battleground.

The words "Decisive battle of Single's Day" hung like war banners over hundreds of employees, most in their 20s, as they feverishly churned out the thousands of online orders flooding in by the second.

Employees wore pink shirts reading "Make our 200 Mln", referring to the 200-million-yuan (about 3.17 million US dollars) target the company set for its Nov. 11 sales. Slogans such as "No rest for our service!" were draped throughout the office.

Lunch offered brief reprieve as barbecue was served and celebrities dropped by to show support.

At the company warehouses, express delivery workers lined up at conveyor belts to cross-check delivery boxes and rectify errors.

Well before the clock struck midnight, the company's 200 million yuan target was met, leaving them with a daunting two million deliveries.

Three Squirrels' growth has been exponential since it was founded three years ago by Zhang Liaoyuan. In 2012, its Singles' Day sales were 7.6 million yuan.

The 39-year-old founder and CEO launched the company in Wuhu city, a mid-sized Chinese city with a population of 3.8 million on the bank of the Yangtze river.

Zhang follows in the footsteps, to a degree, of an equally successful snack company launched in the city during the 1980s.

Like Zhang's Three Squirrels, which found success through China's e-commerce, Shazi Guazi, or the Fool's sunflower seeds, became a huge success in Wuhu during the early 1980s by embracing a new model of business.

Brand owner Nian Guangjiu was hailed as China's first private businessman after he challenged government rules by hiring more than 100 private workers. Nian went to prison three times for disrupting market order, until his name was cleared by late Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping.

DIFFERING RECIPES FOR SUCCESS

Nian's success in the 1980s has been attributed to his open mind, daring personality, tenacity and a keen eye for market demand.

He was working in a different business environment than Zhang, as capitalism was shunned by most Chinese prior to the country's opening up.

According to an interpretation of Marx's Das Kapital, entrepreneurs who employ more than seven workers are considered capitalists, so by employing 100 workers, Nian's business was criticized and he was accused of being a capitalist.

Later, his willingness to push the boundary paid off after he received approval from Deng. His story marks a key moment during China's transition from a planned economy to a market economy.

Compared to Nian, Zhang works in a much more relaxed business atmosphere, where the private economy and entrepreneurship are bolstered by the government.

Now, Three Squirrels thrives not only off the praise of leadership, but also from rave reviews by online buyers, who are drawn by the company's unique marketing concept.

While placing orders, customers are referred to as "owners", and the company's cute squirrel mascots will chat with them through messaging app WeChat to confirm details on their order. The packaging of the nuts shows careful attention to detail: each package of nuts come with a wet tissue, a bag for shells and a nut cracker, if needed.

The company provides an endearing individualized service to buyers and makes an effort to guarantee quality. "Each box of nuts can be traced back to the orchard where it is produced, so quality is always the top priority," said Zhang.

COMMON THREAD

Although their branding techniques are far different, there is a natural connection between Three Squirrels and Shazi Guazi as they both share the same city, the Wuhu Daily said in a commentary.

"Wuhu's business culture is one of daring to try, daring to do and innovation. Courage and persistence led snack sellers to win over others, and common attention to quality ensures that they can last a long time," the newspaper commented.

Zhang Liaoyuan said he and Nian were successful because they took full advantage of the opportunities of the time.

Though the Fool's sunflower seeds have since lost a bit of their share to other brands, 78-year-old Nian is now retired and has passed the business on to his son.

Zhang said he is taking precautions not to allow success to dwindle, as was the case with Shazi.

"It is important to seize the chance and seize the market, but it is also important to keep the chance in check," said Zhang.

"Online commerce is quite fragile and its death may come if the economic environment and technology fail, so I'm always on alert."

To stay fresh, Zhang said he plans to expand to the countryside and smaller cities to find new markets because big cities are already saturated. Endit