Shared power bank: price increase is the first step, the second step has not been thought of yet

A shared power bank placed on the basement floor of a shopping mall in Beijing. Photo: Chen Ke, reporter of China Reporter

It’s getting less and less useful. 

"33 minutes of use, the amount payable is 5 yuan." After returning the shared power bank in a shopping mall in Beijing, Yang Hui (a pseudonym) stared at the payment page on his mobile phone and sighed again. 

When the bubble of sharing economy such as shared bicycles, shared cars, and shared umbrellas burst, only shared power banks came all the way to the end. At present, the market pattern of "three electricity and one beast" dominated by street electricity, small electricity, incoming calls and monster charging has been formed. On May 19, "Shared Charging First Share" Monster Charging released its first financial report since listing. Data show that its 2021 Quarter 1 operating income was 846.90 million yuan, an increase of 162.5% year-on-year. 

Head-sharing charging operators seem to have survived well, but they have been criticized for gradually raising rental prices. What is the logic behind the price increase? Is the price increase a normal market behavior, or is it a new round of "cutting leeks" after the operator’s "horse race"?

Why have prices risen?

The payment information shown to reporters by Yang Hui shows that using a brand of shared power bank for 33 minutes requires a payment of 5 yuan. 

The increase in the price of shared power banks has attracted the attention of consumers as early as 2019. Recently, with the surge in user scale and landing scenarios, prices have risen again. Consumers have felt strongly about this, which has further promoted the topic.

At present, the billing system of shared power banks is mainly divided into free time, billing standard, billing unit, daily cap price, and total cap price. After sorting out the adjustments made by operators to several of the standards in recent years, the reporter found that any change in the standard will affect the rental price accordingly.

Taking incoming calls as an example, in 2019, users can charge for free for 2 hours in a single consumption, while the free time in 2020 and 2021 has been cancelled; in terms of billing standards, it will cost 1 yuan per 30 minutes in 2019 and 2 yuan per 30 minutes in 2020; in terms of billing units, it will be charged every 30 minutes in 2019 and 2020, less than 30 minutes will be charged for 30 minutes, and in 2021 it will be charged per hour, and less than 1 hour will be charged for 1 hour.

"Maybe the two-hour free time is about the same. Now not only has the free time been shortened or cancelled, but the billing standard has also been changed, and it is obvious that more money is spent." Yang Hui said. It is worth noting that even if the billing standard has not changed on some platforms, the adjustment of the billing unit will make consumers pay more for the same time. For example, under the premise of the same 1 hour and 15 minutes of use, the user will pay 1.5 yuan more for a billing unit that charges 3 yuan per hour than a billing unit that charges 1.5 yuan per 30 minutes.

The adjustment of the billing system, coupled with the different landing scenarios, has further caused the rental price to rise. After visiting several business districts in Beijing, the reporter found that the rental price of shared power banks is basically stable at 2 to 3 yuan per hour, and KTV, bars, Internet celebrity stores, popular scenic spots and other places with high traffic will reach 4 to 5 yuan per hour.

Jiang Han, a senior researcher at Pangu Think Tank, told the China Reporter that the core purpose of the price increase is to seek more financing. "When the sharing economy became a trend, it may be possible to raise enough funds with a PPT, and now the market has passed the’burning money ‘period. Most consumers driven by electricity anxiety will not choose to abandon it because of price issues, which is why operators dare to risk user churn to rashly increase prices when they are short of money." Chen Liteng, a life service e-commerce analyst at the Internet Economic and Social Research Center, also told reporters that shared power banks used to be "horse racing" at a low price, without considering income. Now the market is mature, users have formed usage habits, and platforms are more concerned about sustainable development.

From the perspective of the profit model, it may be more revealing the logic behind the price increase. Experts say that the way for shared power bank operators to make money is to continuously pave the way. When there are more and more entrants, in order to seize market share, operators can only accept high admission fees and give merchants certain bargaining rights. The prospectus from Monster Charging shows that its commission rate has risen from 42.7% in 2019 to 44.1% in 2020, and the entrance fee has increased by as much as 260%.

The reporter learned that there are currently two types of merchants laying shared power banks: buyout type and franchise type. Under the buyout type, after purchasing from the operator, the merchant takes all the proceeds of the user’s rental and has the right to adjust the unit price of the rental; under the franchise type, the merchant and the platform share the proceeds. It is worth noting that the sharing ratio between the two parties is gradually imbalanced. "At present, the merchant will take 70% of the profits and withdraw cash from the Mini Program every month." A ground marketing staff of the small electric power bank told the China Report reporter that for stores that want to increase prices, the small electric does not specify the price increase range, but will give suggestions according to market conditions, "It is too outrageous and will damage our image, and users will not accept it."

Under multiple factors, price increases seem inevitable, and operators are becoming more and more cautious. The ground marketer revealed that whether it is new points or old contract renewal points, the net profit that merchants can eventually bring to operators has become a new standard for measuring performance. "This is completely different from the more you shop, the more money you get."

What are the key factors for future competition in the industry?

On April 1 this year, Monster Charging was listed on Nasdaq. (The picture comes from the Internet)

Will the price of shared power banks continue to rise?

"Changes in prices will inevitably affect the number of users. This is a dynamic process. As long as there is market demand, appropriate price adjustments will help maximise the platform’s revenue, while the retention of users will inhibit price fluctuations and gradually form a suitable price system," Chen Liteng said. Jiang Han believes that with the monopoly in the regional scope, operators can have a certain amount of room for price increases. If it exceeds the tolerance limit of consumers, it may lead to a crisis of trust.

In fact, it is not only the price issue, but also the overlord clause, difficult return, slow charging speed and other issues of shared power banks, as well as factors such as smart phone battery life capacity enhancement and low price of online power banks, which also make the profit model The development of a single shared power bank industry is increasingly limited.

On April 1 this year, Monster Charging became the "first share of shared power banks" in China, and Jiedian and Sodian also announced the completion of the merger on the same day. Subsequently, Xiaodian Technology sprinted to Hong Kong stocks. As early as May last year, Meituan announced its re-entry into the field of shared power banks. Industry insiders speculate that with the high stickiness between consumers, Meituan’s entry may change the industry landscape.

"Increasing prices is not the ultimate solution to the problem, and the merger of Street Power and Soupower is also normal. Now it is either a group to keep warm or to speed up the listing, which is an inevitable development outcome." Jiang Han analyzed that in addition to renting the majority of the income of shared power bank operators, there is also a small amount of advertising business and power bank sales. If you want to achieve long-term sustainable development, you must find profitable business models. "From the current point of view, these models are not profitable."

Shared power banks are also seeking to make great progress. "Bamang Technology", established after the merger of Jiedian and Soudian, will create innovative consumer scenes, and has launched smart end points such as mask machines and body temperature monitors; Monster Charging also positions itself as a "technology consumer company" and crosses the Baijiu business.

"What should we do? Or what is the right thing to do? No one can give a clear answer now, but from a diverse perspective, is there any other way to get more revenue? Or like Meituan, there are other businesses that can be used as support, and sharing power banks is just a means to improve user stickiness, or to improve service levels." Jiang Han said.

Written by China Reporter Chen Ke

Nanjing, Jiangsu: Focus on the 2023 Golden Fair | After three years and thousands of miles, Qin Huai holds hands with Meituan

Not long ago, Qinhuai District and Meituan reached a cooperation intention, the two sides signed a strategic cooperation agreement, and the Meituan Jiangsu project landed in Qinhuai District. The signing of this cooperation agreement took 3 years and 1300 kilometers of time and space.

picturepicture

At around 8 a.m., during the morning rush hour, at Zhangfuyuan Subway Station, four members of the Chaotiangong Street Urban Management Department were busy, arranging the shared bicycles at the subway entrance neatly to ensure the smooth passage of people and vehicles at the subway entrance.

At a glance, the bright and bright yellow "Meituan" has become the "main force" of shared bicycles at the Zhangfuyuan subway entrance. Data show that Meituan’s market share in Qinhuai District accounts for about 80% of the region’s total, double that of a year ago.

The share of Meituan shared bicycles in Qinhuai District has increased significantly

There is also an investment story behind

Makes Meituan Jiangsu project and Qinhuai District "hand in hand" successful

This cooperation originated from a visit in 2020. Three years ago, when Chaotiangong Street in Qinhuai District visited the Ping An Financial Center Building located at Xinjiekou, it was found that Meituan Daojia, Meituan takeaway and other business lines had settled in the building. "At that time, we felt that this was an opportunity, so we decided to take the initiative to’break the ice ‘." The relevant person in charge of Chaotiangong Street recalled. The next day, the street came to visit, hoping that Meituan would land more business lines in Qinhuai District. "Rejected" by investment promotion personnel is "common food", and "finding a way" is a must-answer question. After more than ten visits, the Qinhuai District investment promotion team learned that Meituan was preparing to land some business sectors in Hefei, Chengdu and other places.

"We seized the opportunity, grasped the time difference, and arranged for a special person to seamlessly connect the project as soon as possible," said the relevant person in charge of Chaotiangong Street. District leaders immediately led teams to Beijing and Shanghai to visit Meituan Company, with a thick stack of materials combed overnight, to promote investment resources and business environment in both directions. In the past three years, although there was the impact of the epidemic, he alone went to Beijing and Shanghai four or five times to communicate face-to-face with Meituan, and the number of online and telephone communications was countless.

The 1,300-kilometer journey has narrowed the distance between Meituan and Qinhuai District. During the negotiation process, Meituan’s unintentional request to increase the market share of shared bicycles in Ning has been highly valued by Chaotiangong Street, Qinhuai District and even Nanjing City. It is also this opportunity that makes Meituan finally decide to keep the Jiangsu project in Qinhuai.

The maintenance and management of bicycle order in the old city is very complicated, and the backlog of bicycles is serious. How to ensure that Meituan shared bicycles increase the quota, and at the same time do a good job in operation management? Qinhuai District Urban Management Bureau, Chaotiangong Street and Meituan Company have conducted many on-the-spot surveys on the location of shared bicycles, scientifically and rationally laid out them, and strengthened operation management and dynamic management through intelligent algorithms, real-time monitoring, and increased manpower investment.

According to the relevant person in charge of the Urban Management Department of Chaotiangong Street, the Street Urban Management has implemented five measures of "designating people, fixing posts, timing, setting scope, and setting standards" for subway entrances, popular business districts, and key road sections. Congestion sections and peak periods are centrally rectified to improve the "dredging" effect of shared bicycles, effectively solve the problem of parking and management of Meituan shared bicycles in the Qinhuai area, and form a "ecosystem" of Meituan Company’s regional operation in Qinhuai.

At the same time, in Chaotiangong Street, where Meituan has settled, there are as many as 3,000 small and micro merchants, and the Meituan platform covers 100% of the merchants. In the future development, the Meituan Jiangsu project will realize the full settlement of the entire industrial sector, carry out the pilot construction of the real-time consumption system, create an online and offline convenient life circle, and continuously improve the digital operation level of merchants.

Meituan Jiangsu project settled in Qinhuai District

It is a microcosm of the continuous hard work of Qin Huai’s "investment promotion people"

Since this year

Qinhuai District will do a better job in attracting investment with greater efforts

Building a strong industrial city and empowering high-quality development

As of the end of July, Qinhuai District had achieved a total investment of 28.75 billion yuan in contracted projects, the actual total investment was 7.75 billion yuan, 52 billion yuan projects were registered, and 24 were started or operated. Won the "red flag" incentive for the success of the city’s investment promotion ratio, and the first quarter target task progress award of the Municipal Investment Promotion Bureau. Successfully signed 49 billion yuan projects such as the China Consumer Finance Headquarters and BBK Robot. As of the end of June, 4 large-scale projects, 3 high-quality industrial projects, and 2 headquarters projects were introduced. As of the end of August, 35 activities such as the promotion meeting of the Qinhuai District and the Southern New Town Headquarters Base (Hong Kong) in Nanjing and the promotion and exchange meeting of the jewelry industry in Qinhuai District in Nanjing were successfully held.

Editor: Li Zhuo

Proofreading: Xiong Xiangning

Review: Cang Shujun

Dragon set group gathers in Beijing "New King of Comedy" Zhou Xingchi laughs at fried cold rice

1905 movie network news Scheduled to be released nationwide on the first day of the new year 2019, director Stephen Chow’s "New King of Comedy" has now opened for national pre-sale. On January 22, the film held a "self-cultivation of actors" conference in Beijing. Director Chow Xingchi and 10 leading actors appeared together. The creators all wore orange ribbons on their wrists, which meant to recommend this "sincere (orange) work" to the national audience.

The scene exposed many film details, not only revealing the inside story of the "Dragon Set Troupe" for the first time, but also sharing the bitterness and laughter behind the transition from "Dragon Set Life" to "New Comedy King Life". Xing Ye bluntly said that it was their enthusiasm that moved him; Zhou Xingchi and Wang Baoqiang made an update on the scene to test the actors’ "self-cultivation". Faced with the question of "fried cold rice" on the Internet, Zhou Xingchi responded humorously on the spot: "I have fried Yangzhou fried rice, but I have never fried cold rice". Wang Baoqiang also responded modestly to the question of "selling stupid", admitting that "I will turn the doubt into a motivation for hard work".

There were many surprises at the press conference, and Zhou Xingchi’s early audition clips were broadcast. The line of "looking for a princess" that Xingye said that year was a hint that he was looking for "Snow White" Wang Baoqiang 30 or 40 years ago; Wang Baoqiang, as a "super star fan", sent Xingye a cartoon of his mental journey in the 20 years after watching "King of Comedy", in order to thank the director for his encouragement. "Liu Piao Piao Piao" Cecilia Cheung even sent refueling blessings to "Yin Tianchou" from space, ridiculing him that "he said that he would only raise me, but now he has raised so many people", and inspiring everyone to continue to work hard for their dreams!

 

The "Dragon Troupe" revealed the inside story of the casting selection, and E Jingwen was named the "most beaten" heroine

Since the official announcement, there has been a lot of curiosity about "The King of New Comedy", among which the most concerning is Xing Ye’s choice of actors. At this press conference, the lead actor made his first full lineup appearance, and the story behind the casting selection was exposed. The female lead, E Jingwen, played Rumeng, an elderly young woman who was a walk-on. She said that she had similar experiences both in and out of the play. She joked that she was selected by Xing Ye because she "carried the beating". It was revealed that she was determined to "hold on no matter what" before entering the group. Who knew that Rumeng was often bullied and beaten during the walk-on in the film, and the longest was even "beaten for two days in a row". She joked: "The beating has broadened the scene", which can be called the "most beating" female lead.

In the film, Zhang Quandan plays Rumeng’s boyfriend Charlie, who claims that he has the temperament of a "gentle trap", and that "extra gentle and special trap is mysterious" is even more appetizing to the audience.

Jing Ruyang, who plays Rumeng’s best friend Xiaomi, bluntly said that his legs were shaking when he first saw Xing Ye.

One of the screenwriters of the film, Huang Xiaopeng, was also selected by the director to play an important role. In the play, he silently guarded the dream, which can be said to be a double guarantee for the screenwriter. Cai Zerui, who played the director of the play, said that he was selected by the director because he was a "literary youth".

And Miao Yilun, who plays a well-known director, spoiled the scene with "forever is from now until the destruction of the universe, you will not succeed" and hit Rumeng hard, and apologized at the scene "I regret it", encouraging everyone "Don’t listen to what the self-righteous people say, dreams and the future must be fought back with your own hands".

When it was the turn of Zhou Yunshu, who played Wang Baoqiang’s assistant, to introduce her, she showed off her "repeater" characteristics on the spot, and touted Wang Baoqiang in the audience, showing professionalism and adding bursts of laughter to the warm scene.

Compared with the newcomers, veteran actors Zhang Qi and Yuan Xingzhe play the heroine’s parents in the film. The two praised the experience of working with Chow Xingchi: "He really wants everyone to be the best." "Working with Xingye has a kind of spiritual oxygenation." The relationship between the heroine Rumeng and her parents in the film is very touching, and the actor Zhang Qi also said: "I hope parents in the world can understand their children."

"I was very touched," Mr. Chow said of the real reasons for choosing the actors. "When I was filming, I could feel their enthusiasm. When I saw them after so long, I saw that they were still as enthusiastic, and I was very touched." He said: "Each of us is Yin Tianchou, and we are all working hard for our dreams, and I am also working hard for my dreams." He also hopes that "The King of New Comedy" will give more strength to the hard-working people in the new year, "I hope the audience will be more confident and work harder after watching the movie."

 

Zhou Xingchi’s early audition clips were exposed, and the live funny comments considered themselves "the best actor"

At the scene, Zhou Xingchi and Wang Baoqiang reacted to the other starring stars’ exam questions. In the burst of laughter, the starring stars explained what "actor’s self-cultivation" is. Demonstrate how to use the correct posture to watch "The King of New Comedy" on the first day of the new year; and in the test of the exam question "Meet Zhou Xingchi, he chooses you as the protagonist", Xing Ye personally played the role, and the starring stars restored the real joy and excitement when they were selected by Xing Ye at that time.

After starring in the "audition", Chow Xingchi’s precious audition footage from his early years was also broadcast live. In the video, the young Andy Lau and Tony Leung’s audition clips were also displayed together, instantly triggering a wave of "memory killing". Xing Ye watched the performance of the three people with a smile. When the host asked who was the best actor, he replied with a smile: "Me." Then he solemnly expressed his enthusiasm for acting from his former self and friends, and found that he still had a fire on his body. Speaking of the line of "looking for a princess" back then, Xing Ye laughed that this should be a hint that he was looking for Wang Baoqiang, so he searched for 30 or 40 years before finally finding Wang Baoqiang who played "Snow White".

"The New King of Comedy" is a movie full of "little people". In the Spring Festival when big stars and big productions gather, many people break a cold sweat for it. In this regard, Zhou Xingchi bluntly stated that the result is not important, what is important is to convey emotion and temperature: "My purpose is always to make the audience like it, and I hope that in this work, the audience can find themselves and find hope."

 

Zhou Xingchi Wang Baoqiang confronted the outside world and questioned "Liu Piaopiao" and blessed "Yin Tianchou" in the air. 

Since the official announcement, not all expectations have accompanied "The New King of Comedy", and some people have expressed doubts. At the press conference, Zhou Xingchi and Wang Baoqiang responded to two sharp doubts and faced them head-on. Facing Zhou Xingchi’s question of "what else can you do besides fried cold rice", Wang Baoqiang said: "Your guesses about Xingye’s movies are sometimes inaccurate, and you need to feel it yourself." Zhou Xingchi responded humorously: "I have fried Yangzhou fried rice, but I really have never fried cold rice."

Regarding Wang Baoqiang’s question of "what else can you do besides being stupid", Lord Xing smiled and said, "In fact, I also really want to know what else he can do, so I found Baoqiang, but I didn’t expect him to be able to play Snow White." Wang Baoqiang expressed his gratitude to netizens: "Thank you all for motivating me in various ways, which has strengthened my determination to continue to work hard."

The scene also prepared a special surprise for Xingye on the same day – Cecilia Cheung, who played "Liu Piao Piao Piao" in "King of Comedy" 20 years ago, sent blessings to "Yin Tianchou" through the VCR, and ridiculed him "back then that he said he would only raise me, but now he raises so many people". This scene of air dialogue caused bursts of exclamations on the scene.

As a "super star fan", Wang Baoqiang sent his carefully prepared paintings on the spot, restoring his 20-year journey of being deeply influenced and inspired by "King of Comedy", in order to thank "King of Comedy" Zhou Xingchi for his encouragement, "20 years ago," King of Comedy "inspired me, and 20 years later, this" King of New Comedy "will definitely inspire more people. I believe that after watching the movie, everyone will feel that Star Lord’s comedy has always made you laugh and cry, and will be inspired and deeply moved." 20 years ago, the time and space connection, the strong human touch touched the warm audience.

The film "The King of New Comedy" is directed by Stephen Chow, and co-starred by Wang Baoqiang, E Jingwen, Jing Ruyang, Zhang Quandan, Zhang Qi, Yuan Xingzhe, Huang Xiaopeng, Cai Zerui and Miao Yilun. The film is currently on pre-sale across the country. It will be released on the first day of the new year to cheer up the hard-working self and harvest positive energy in the new year!

Guangshui: Enjoy the game and grow into outdoor sports game training activities in Wushengguan Town Central Kindergarten.

  This training activity provides the participating teachers with an educational model that can be used for reference on how to organize outdoor sports games for children more effectively, and plays a positive role in scientifically and reasonably arranging and organizing sports games in kindergartens and standardizing all aspects of sports games in kindergartens. Teachers have said that they will create more and more fun sports games with children in the future, and truly practice the educational concept of "playing by learning" and "playing by learning".

A deputy director of Chongqing wrote a novel and was transferred to the vice chairman of the Federation of Literary and Art Circles on the rich list (Figure)

  Writing online novels to earn milk powder money, thinking that he wrote social novels rather than officialdom novels, has been transferred to the vice chairman of the Federation of Literary and Art Circles.

  Text/Figure Guangzhou Daily reporter Zhang Dan

  Zhang Bing, 46, stood in front of the reporter, glowing with the brilliance of a mature man.

  From 2010 to 2012, for three consecutive years, under the pen name "Xiaoqiao Laoshu", he won the list of rich writers through royalties of more than one million yuan per year. In 2010 and 2011, Hou Weidong’s Notes on Officialdom was selected into the China Book Power List selected by Guangzhou Daily twice. In 2012, Notes on Hou Weidong Officialdom won the Bronze Award of the West Lake Type Literature Biennial Award jointly selected by Zhejiang Writers Association and China Literature and Art Newspaper.

  Zhang Bing modestly told the Guangzhou Daily reporter that he was not even an "official", but a "petty official" at best. He prefers to call his novels "social novels" rather than "officialdom novels".

  Recently, Zhang Bing is rushing around Beijing and other major cities for his new book "The Past of Bazhou". At this time, his identity is a best-selling novel writer on the Internet. And his other little-known identity is a place class cadre. Zhang Bing used to be a member and deputy director of the Municipal Garden Administration Bureau of Yongchuan District, Chongqing, and now he is a member and vice chairman of the local Federation of Literary and Art Circles.

  On famous novels

  Struggle is the hero’s way to success.

  Guangzhou Daily: You are famous for Notes of Hou Weidong Officialdom. What do you think of this novel?

  Zhang Bing: The so-called officialdom novels are classified for the purpose of sales. In essence, I feel that I am only writing a social novel. Just because the protagonist is a civil servant, the name of the novel is called "Official Notes". In fact, the characters involved in the novel are all kinds of people, including farmers, entrepreneurs, pyramid schemes and all professions.

  Guangzhou Daily: Was there a similar novel on the Internet at that time?

  Zhang Bing: No. At that time, many of the online "officialdom novels" were written in the way of crossing. For example, the author crossed back into the officialdom and used his later knowledge to change his fate. This is the mainstream. The novel I wrote is a purely documentary theme, without any trace of fantasy. To put it more professionally, there is no "golden finger" in the novel that changes the protagonist’s fate, and struggle is his way to success.

  Guangzhou Daily: It is called a must-read novel for civil servants, even a "textbook". What do you think?

  Zhang Bing: I think it’s not just a textbook for civil servants, but a textbook for all young people. Because all "shopping malls", "officialdom" and other industries have the same cultural genes, the same ideas and methods of doing things, but each has its own geographical and industrial characteristics. It solves the problems that young people encounter when they enter the job, and these problems are common.

  On novel creation

  It’s time to change.

  Guangzhou Daily: There have been media reports before that you originally wrote online novels to earn money for children’s milk powder?

  Zhang Bing: Yes. After graduating from college, my wife was assigned to Beibei District, and I was assigned to Yongchuan District. There was a two-hour drive between them. Because of the separation between the two places, she resigned and came to my side, but she lost money in business and was pregnant with a child. I was working in a government office, and my monthly salary was only 13,400 yuan. There was a child who was eating milk powder, and his wife was breastfeeding, so she couldn’t go out to work. What should I do with this income?

  I just want to make money legally. At that time, I saw that a novel website advertised that an online writer could earn one million yuan a year writing novels, so I moved my mind to write online novels. This money is unimaginable in government agencies.

  Guangzhou Daily: What office were you working in?

  Zhang Bing: I was in the Political and Legal Committee, and then I went to the Bureau of Landscape Architecture. Before that, I also stayed at the grassroots level.

  Guangzhou Daily: How much can you earn every month by writing online novels?

  Zhang Bing: At that time, I was still at work, and I couldn’t guarantee to update my novels every day, so I didn’t subscribe much, but I still got three or four thousand yuan a month. This is much higher than my salary. I was late in writing novels, and I was older. I was 35 years old. I have never worked in writing before, but I have come into contact with a lot of people and things, and I have a certain life experience, which has become my advantage.

  In addition, my writing experience is consistent with the development of online novels. I entered from the development stage of novel websites, when there were subscriptions online, and novels could be supported by online fees. Since then, the novel website has entered the capital stage. After a large amount of capital enters, it is accompanied by IP fever.

  Guangzhou Daily: What was the theme of your first novel?

  Zhang Bing: The first novel is a travel novel, which is called "Yellow Sand Wears Golden Armor in Hundreds of Battles". Later, I found that although time-travel novels were not my specialty, they were still rated as one of the more representative time-travel novels in those years.

  The novel I wrote was in a relatively cold dynasty, and people’s understanding of this history in the late Tang Dynasty and the early Song Dynasty was not high.

  On the Novel’s "Big Sale"

  It’s true, not a "trick"

  Guangzhou Daily: When did Hou Weidong’s Notes on Officialdom become popular?

  Zhang Bing: After I wrote Notes on Hou Weidong Officialdom for a year and a half, I found that this novel has become popular. At that time, it was 2010, and the search engine would publish the search list of online novels, and "Hou Weidong" had already ranked in the top ten. It is actually a novel that changes the fate of the protagonist. Changing the fate is a problem facing many young people. If you want to survive, you must change your destiny.

  Guangzhou Daily: Your brushwork is still very delicate.

  Zhang Bing: My mother is a Chinese teacher. When we were young, the most annoying thing she said was that no matter where we went to play, she would definitely say, "Watch carefully and write a diary when you come back." At that time, I hated this sentence most, which made us have no fun.

  But in retrospect, diary writing at that time still played a certain role in later novel creation.

  Guangzhou Daily: Why do you think your novels stand out among many online novels?

  Zhang Bing: True.

  Because I have rich grassroots experience, the stories I write are those things that happened at the grassroots level. Everyone likes it because it is true. I didn’t judge it. I just told it out, which is relatively objective.

  My book is about the changes of the times and the fate of characters. Therefore, I have always denied that this is an "official novel". It is about an era, but the character is a civil servant.

  Many of the things I wrote are "officials" and can’t reach "officials". Many people read my novels, and they must feel the fate of the characters before they like them. Everyone is very supportive of my "entrepreneurship"

  On Cultural "Matrix"

  This is the limitation of every author.

  Guangzhou Daily: When did you go to college?

  Zhang Bing: In 1992, so the background of all the protagonists in my novels was in the early 1990s. At that time, it happened to be my youth, and it was the time when my work began. Every author has certain limitations in time and space, which cannot be avoided.

  In other words, every author has a "matrix" of writing, which is composed of time and space, and is both a "matrix" and a limitation. Every author has his favorite place and time. If the author can completely transcend the place and time, he must be a great writer, which is rare.

  It should be said that "Bashu" is my cultural "matrix".

  Guangzhou Daily: When you first joined the civil service, was it what you imagined?

  Zhang Bing: My father works in a prison. I know that it is impossible for a civil servant to make a fortune. What I am thinking about is that I can change my family’s situation by legal and proper means and with my own ability. I thought of writing in my spare time. Fortunately, I succeeded as soon as I wrote it.

  Guangzhou Daily: If you write "Hou Weidong" now, will you still be able to achieve the success of the past?

  Zhang Bing: This is not a question of the times, but a question of people. After so many years, I can’t write the same works as at that time. It may be better or worse than at that time. If the writing is the same, in this era, I think the work will still be successful. The gene of culture goes deep into people’s bone marrow, and people may not realize it themselves.

  Guangzhou Daily: Do you always write after you get home from work?

  Zhang Bing: All of them. I spend all my spare time writing. I don’t play cards, dance, sing, smoke or keep mistresses. I have no time. My spare time life is writing life.

  Guangzhou Daily: Did the unit know that you were writing a novel?

  Zhang Bing: I didn’t know that before. But in 2010, I was on the list of rich writers, and the unit knew.

  On the Transfer of Literary Federation

  I volunteered to go there.

  Guangzhou Daily: Does it affect you if the company knows that you write novels?

  Zhang Bing: It doesn’t have much impact. Now it is a pluralistic society, and people are already very inclusive. They are more appreciative of my "entrepreneurship" and won’t think I am eccentric.

  Guangzhou Daily: What is the reason why you transferred from the deputy director of the Bureau of Landscape Architecture to the Federation of Literary and Art Circles?

  Zhang Bing: I went to the Federation of Literary and Art Circles to be a member of the leading group, vice chairman, and also a deputy division level, which is a level tone. This is my decision to combine my personal wishes with organizational needs.

  In fact, the main reason for the transfer is that I applied for it myself. Because in the functional department, things are too complicated, which takes up a lot of my time. Personally, I feel that I am a very mediocre deputy director, but as an author who specializes in writing novels in Bayu area, I am excellent. I think I should be put in a place of greater value.

Shanghai Sports Lottery issued a notice of closing for the Spring Festival holiday.

Recently, Shanghai Sports Lottery issued a notice of suspension during the Spring Festival. According to the notice, according to the Announcement of the Ministry of Finance on the Arrangements for the Closing of the Lottery Market in 2024 (Announcement No.73 of the Ministry of Finance in 2023), the closing time of the sports lottery in the Spring Festival of 2024 is from 0: 00 on February 8 to 24: 00 on February 17. During the closing period, except for instant lottery tickets, the sales, lottery and redemption of other lottery games in the country will be stopped.

The national networking lottery and digital games of sports lottery stopped selling at 0: 00 on February 8, 2024, and resumed selling at 0: 00 on February 18; The arrangement of quiz sessions, opening time, closing time and drawing time of traditional sports lottery football games shall be implemented in accordance with the relevant quiz sessions announced by the Lottery Center of the General Administration of Sports. The sales of national online single quiz football games and basketball games stopped at 22: 00 on February 7 and resumed at 11: 00 on February 18. The specific matters are subject to the announcement of SMG.

It is worth noting that the manual service of Shanghai 95086 Sports Lottery Customer Service Hotline Platform was suspended during the closing period and resumed at 9: 00 on February 18th.

In terms of redemption, during the closing period from February 8 to February 17, all sports lottery stores in Shanghai stopped paying small prizes of less than 20,000 yuan (including 20,000 yuan) for computer-based lottery tickets, and resumed redemption on February 18. The redemption time of CCB grand prize is from February 8 to February 17, when the market is closed, the redemption of grand prize will be suspended, and the redemption will be resumed from February 18.

In order to protect the rights and interests of lottery buyers, if the last day of the redemption period of various games falls during the Spring Festival holiday, the deadline for redemption will be postponed to the first day after the holiday (February 18); If the game redemption period includes 10 days (including February 17th) during the Spring Festival holiday, the deadline for redemption will be extended by 2 days. (From January 30th, China Sports Daily, 08 edition) 

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"Print+Music" Suzhou people’s nightlife has a new way to open.

  Zhongxin. com, Jiangsu News, December 30 (Zhou Jianlin) On the evening of the 29 th, Suzhou Art Museum was full of youthful atmosphere. When the lights gradually dim, musicians slowly step onto the stage and pluck the strings, and an encounter between printmaking and music opens a beautiful journey.

The concert scene. Zhang Jian photo
The concert scene. Zhang Jian photo

  Recently, the first China Youth Printmaking Biennale is on display in Suzhou Art Museum. More than 230 prints with different styles and different themes fully reflect the diversity and diversity of contemporary youth printmaking art and their enthusiasm and pursuit of artistic creation. In the night, printmaking has become a dazzling stage background for the concert.

  This "Parallel Universe-Classical Chamber Music and Jazz Cross-border Fusion Concert" was specially invited by composer and jazz guitarist Xu Zhihan, jazz pianist and composer, and percussion player Rong Chenchu played in the daytime. This is a young jazz group active on the world stage.

The concert scene. Zhang Jian photo
The concert scene. Zhang Jian photo

  A song "Into To Rivers" brings people peace and reverie. With the progress of the concert, songs such as "Last day All Day", "Journey of Blessing" and "Dust" are constantly touching everyone’s heartstrings.

  "China ancient prints have a long history and reached its peak in Ming and Qing Dynasties. Regardless of printmaking or music, art is often connected. With the changes of the times, art will change from one style to multiple elements, thus making cross-border creation. " Xu Zhihan said that the print works on the spot also added a lot of inspiration to their creation.

  Yuan Xin, who listened to the concert in the art museum for the second time, is a "post-90 s", and Suzhou Art Museum has become her new punching place. "Whether it’s music or painting, it’s all about expressing young people’s truest self-feelings in the present life. It can resonate and cause the greatest interaction. " Yuan Xinxiao said that musical resonance is a new standard for young people to choose a spouse.

  "Art has no boundaries. The Voice-over Series of Philharmonic is an attempt to cross-border and integrate art in Suzhou Art Museum this year. This year, different kinds of concerts such as folk music and western music have been planned one after another." Yang Yi, deputy director of Suzhou Public Cultural Center and deputy director of Suzhou Art Museum, said that it is expected that more and more visitors will enter the art museum to watch art exhibitions and experience concerts, and feel the beautiful life in Suzhou, which will become a new way for them to open up Suzhou nightlife. (End)

Antique beauty cosmetics are neither ancient nor beautiful.

Once Guofeng Beauty is solidified into a revised copy, a concept and a face value of "changing the soup without changing the medicine", how long can consumers buy it?

Even if you haven’t bought Guofeng beauty cosmetics, you must have heard of Forbidden City makeup, Huaxizi carved lipstick, Mao Geping Guofeng series …

Following the "national tide" fever, domestic beauty brands have been rising in recent years.

According to the report of CBNData, in 2020, the growth rate of domestic brands in the beauty care industry is much higher than that of foreign brands. At the same time, during Tmall’s "Double Eleven" in 2020, domestic beauty products went to sea and increased by more than 10 times.

Many domestic beauty brands make good use of China elements to create product differences. Among them, the makeup of the Forbidden City made the "national beauty" fire out of the circle.

Even international brands are jealous to join in the fun. L ‘Oré al, Chanel, Estee Lauder, Givenchy, YSL, etc. are all playing the national beauty in the China market.

In April 2020, Wang Yifan, who "restored" China’s ancient cosmetics, was in Hangzhou, Zhejiang. /vision china

However, if you play too many routines, aesthetic fatigue is inevitable. After the makeup of the Forbidden City and the Summer Palace, netizens ridiculed that "Tiantan lipstick is ready to go", "Great Wall eye shadow is gearing up" and "Xiangshan socks are stepping up production".

Once Guofeng Beauty is solidified into a revised copy, a concept and a face value, how long can consumers buy it?

Beauty cosmetics are rubbing against the national style.

The Forbidden City Wenchuang, which was raging around, set off a wave of national marketing as soon as it entered the beauty industry.

Take the Forbidden City Taobao as an example. In 2018, it launched "Floating Sky, Canghai, Forbidden City Crane Series" and "Dark Night Streamer, Forbidden City Mother-of-pearl Series" (hereinafter referred to as "Crane Series" and "Mother-of-pearl Series" respectively).

In terms of design elements, these two series of items include their designs, which are from different collections of cultural relics in the Forbidden City. For example, the design inspiration of the mother-of-pearl series comes from the "Mother-of-pearl Hua Niaowen Bed with Black Paint" in the Palace Museum.

In terms of name, the mouth red number of the crane series is added with three major colors: "Palace Wall Red", "Lang Yaohong" and "carmine". According to the sales data of Taobao in 2018, this new gameplay made the Xianhe series lipstick sell 80,000 pieces on the day of "Double Twelve".

On September 6, 2020, Beijing, the cultural service area of the 2020 Service Trade Fair, the Forbidden City lipstick was launched by the Forbidden City. /people’s vision

Such a marketable idea soon attracted a group of followers.

M.A.C, who is good at "copying homework", immediately launched the "New Year Limited Series" jointly with the Forbidden City. Not only international brands, but also Xie Fuchun, one of the founders of Guofeng beauty brand, refused to accept the old age and jointly launched the "ancient perfume" with the Forbidden City.

Other "students" can’t sit still, so they join hands with other cultural and creative IPS. The most representative is the joint make-up of Kating and the Summer Palace, which is called "A Hundred Birds Face the Phoenix". The Summer Palace co-branded makeup was once a hot spot in the Forbidden City makeup: who is the official lipstick?

Kazilan asked Dunhuang Museum for a co-branded makeup, and L ‘Oré al asked China National Museum for a co-branded lipstick. Finding a joint name of the museum has become the standard of the hot spot of the national wind for a time.

We don’t engage in co-branded Huaxizi, but take the opportunity to bring out "carved lipstick", that is, we present ancient elements on lipstick with the ancient embossed process of re-engraving.

Other brands that don’t engage in co-branding have also racked their brains to find China elements to launch their own national beauty series. When the brand Hua, a new domestic product, knew about it, she gave the six blush colors of the new series names such as "slow voice", "qingpingle", "fairy", "recalling the youth", "Sauvignon Blanc" and "seeing each other".

European and American brands are also in line with the Chinese style: Armani produced a simple and rude limited high-gloss powder for the Year of the Dog, Givenchy produced a limited edition cosmetics for the Year of the Monkey, and Chanel once again launched an oriental screen series of cosmetics.

In fact, it is not new to play with national beauty. The master is here to play Guofeng Beauty Makeup-Dai Chunlin, who has been in existence since the Ming Dynasty, and Xie Fuchun, who inherited the tradition of Yangzhou powder in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, are the two founders of Guofeng Beauty Makeup.

On August 22, 2017, in Changzhou, Jiangsu Province, citizens passed the Chinese time-honored brand Xie Fuchun Cosmetics Commercial Retail Store. /vision china

Duck egg powder, which ancient celebrities competed for, has always been the top product of Dai Chunlin and Xie Fuchun. Rouge, as the overlord of ancient makeup, and the thrush tool "snail Dai" favored by ancient nobles are also the star products of these two companies.

The classic four-piece set of Xie Fuchun Town Store is rouge, powder, hair oil and fragrant parts. The royal makeup series of Dai Chunlin Palace, which became famous in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, continues to this day; Dai Chunlin also launched a Dream of Red Mansions, a series of twelve women in Jinling.

Things will develop in the opposite direction when they become extreme.

It didn’t take long for Guofeng beauty cosmetics to be lively, and the problem came.

The landmark event is that the Forbidden City makeup is in a crisis of production suspension. In January 2019, the Forbidden City Taobao issued an official statement: the original series of makeup of the Forbidden City Taobao still has a lot of room for improvement from appearance to quality, and decided to stop production across the board.

At this time, it was less than a month before Taobao, the Forbidden City, launched makeup.

The rush to stop production is directly related to insufficient production capacity. According to national business daily, a few days after Taobao put on make-up in the Forbidden City, some consumers reported that the products that had been purchased before were refunded. The customer service responded that the pre-sale quantity of makeup has reached the production capacity saturation, so the pre-sale is suspended.

However, the most fundamental reason is the poor quality of the products. Weibo, the official Taobao official of the Forbidden City, responded to the shutdown event, saying that "the lipstick appearance feedback is not high enough, and there is room for improvement in the smoothness and color of the paste. Eye shadow pearlescent particles are not fine enough, and some colors have flying powder phenomenon. Blush, pink, and orange are acceptable. The practicality of the emerald blue is not good. "

To put it bluntly, the creativity of Guofeng beauty cosmetics is good, but it is not easy to cooperate with the production end.

The "2020 Domestic Makeup Market Research Report" released by Yiou think tank and Tmall Beauty (hereinafter referred to as "Yiou 2020 Domestic Makeup Report") points out that low-price competition and high marketing expenses restrict the investment in product research and development. In order to enter the market quickly, most domestic make-up brands rely on OEM production. This has led to a situation that a foundry works for multiple brands at the same time and the products of different brands converge.

The report also pointed out that due to the low barriers to entry in the beauty industry, brands without independent product design and innovation capabilities are keen to copy or imitate popular categories and styles, and then sell them at lower prices, further intensifying competition in the same category and depressing overall industry profits.

National business daily once reported that Hua Xizi officially released the recruitment information of "high-paid anti-counterfeiting officials" to the outside world in March 2020. After only one month (June), the anti-counterfeiting officer complained about nearly 2,000 fake information on various e-commerce platforms and prosecuted more than 300 cases.

From the perspective of consumption, many European and American brands’ "Chinese style restrictions" have been repeatedly ridiculed. Armani’s limited high-gloss powder in the Year of the Dog was ridiculed as "the biggest killer in the beauty industry". Givenchy’s limited make-up in the Year of the Monkey also caused netizens to ask: "Do European and American big names have any misunderstandings about Chinese style?"

Moreover, the common routines such as changing the copy, putting together the concept, and spelling the face value are much more played, which is also easy to cause aesthetic fatigue. If there is no more core product innovation, the enthusiasm of consumers will be difficult to sustain.

In contrast, the century-old brand of neighboring Japan, excellent product strength is fundamental.

Shiseido in Japan, the brand name comes from the Book of Changes. Shiseido’s brand symbol "Toona sinensis", that is, a gorgeous and elegant camellia, symbolizes the Japanese cultural tradition of appreciating nature. The treasure of its town store is a product with real vitality for a hundred years, such as EUDERMINE red honey dew lotion developed on the basis of western pharmaceutical prescriptions in 1890.

Difficult to be high-end

"Big-name flat replacement", that is, a cheap substitute for big names, is the key for some domestic beauty brands to rely on the national wind elements.

Imagine, if the price of the Forbidden City Xianhe series lipstick is not within 150 yuan, but 300-500 yuan, will it still sell so well? In the long run, if you want to be stable and strong in the whole market, it is almost a consensus of domestic beauty brands to hit the high end.

Forbidden City lipstick. /vision china

This is because there is a "1 billion curse" in new consumer brands, that is, when the brand grows to an annual sales of 1 billion yuan, it will encounter growth bottlenecks. If we don’t transform at this time, once the traffic dividend fails, the profit model of the whole enterprise will collapse. It is at this stage that the perfect diary vigorously promotes the transformation of the brand to "high-end".

On the one hand, Perfect Diary invited Zhou Xun and Poke Ye (Troye Sivan) as brand spokespersons; On the other hand, the perfect diary quickly laid offline stores. By September 2020, Perfect Diary had opened 200 stores in just 20 months.

Yiou 2020 Domestic Makeup Report also pointed out: Some insiders believe that domestic make-up is not high-end because "I dare not try, I dare not invest, I am afraid of failure, and I am afraid that the loss will outweigh the gain". On the one hand, domestic cosmetics that lack brand accumulation have to maintain sales at low prices; On the other hand, weak profits and lack of talents make it impossible for domestic cosmetics to further develop and innovate and differentiate products and brands.

However, even if the intensity of burning money is well-known in the industry, what kind of answer sheet can the perfect diary hand over in the high-end impact? Perhaps, everything has just begun.

On April 18th, 2021, Beijing Guangqu Road Business Circle, Heshenghui Shopping Center, Zhou Xun endorsed the PERFECT DIARY perfect diary beauty cosmetics chain store. /vision china

Mao Geping, another representative of the impact on high-end domestic products, has been positioned in high-end domestic cosmetics from the beginning. In addition to the big IP of founder Mao Geping, it also cooperated with the Forbidden City to produce a three-season makeup series. Even if it is praised by netizens as "the subversion of the value of Guofeng beauty", from the sales data, the joint makeup of the Forbidden City is far less than before.

After all, the price of the third season’s "rockhopper gold-plated stunning lipstick" jointly issued by the Forbidden City in Mao Geping reached 560 yuan. To fight the big names in Europe and America in this price range, it seems that the joint name of the Forbidden City in Mao Geping is not enough to rely on the IP of the Forbidden City and the beautiful face value.

In the high-end development of the brand, Shiseido in Japan provides another example.

According to the research report of Guojin Securities, Shiseido adheres to the strategy of "high-end priority" and gathers resources to high-end brands at the brand end; At the research and development end, many research results of "whitening", "sun protection" and "anti-wrinkle" have been created; On the channel side, let its high-end brands seize the most luxurious location; On the marketing side, Shiseido has always led the Japanese advertising design community; On the supply chain side, Shiseido’s global layout has achieved efficient production.

To this day, Shiseido is constantly updating its market strategy to keep up with the changes in the consumer market.

For the growing domestic beauty brands, there is still a long way to go to high-end and even globalization.

Author | Shu Shaohuan

Typesetting | Zhen mi Li

Original title | Antique cosmetics: After the "national wind fever" is on fire, what should beauty do next?

First published in issue 589 of New Weekly.

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