Wang Pu, Co-founder of Yuanqi Forest: A 6-year Exploration on the Overseas Expansion Path from Chinese Flavors to a Global Brand | 2025 Overseas Expansion Conference

On July 25th, guided by the Department of Commerce of Zhejiang Province, the Secretariat of the China Cooperation Center for Special Economic Zones of BRICS Countries, the Hangzhou Bureau of Commerce, and the Qiantang District Bureau of Commerce, and jointly hosted by 36Kr and Qiantang Construction Group, the 2025 "From 'Ingenuity' to the 'World'" Overseas Expansion Conference will be grandly inaugurated at the Grand Mercure Hangzhou Qiantang. As a brand - new IP event of 36Kr focusing on the fields of globalization and overseas expansion, the conference will set up a main venue and a sub - venue, the "Investing in BRICS" - Country - specific Cooperation Matching Meeting. The main venue of the conference will be divided into two major chapters: "Finding Certainty in Uncertainty" and "Doing Business Globally", focusing on popular overseas expansion fields such as consumption, technology, e - commerce, finance, and new energy. It will cover more than 10 keynote speeches, 5 round - table discussions, and the release of the East Forward 2025 Overseas Globalization Innovation List, decoding the certain logic of the coordinated growth of "product - technology - ecosystem" and providing a referable global development path for enterprises to break through the fog of globalization and build sustainable overseas expansion capabilities.

On that day, Wang Pu, the co - founder of Yuanqi Forest, will bring a keynote sharing titled "Yuanqi Forest's Overseas Expansion: Youth Means Vitality".

The following is the content of Wang Pu's speech, edited by 36Kr:

Distinguished leaders, guests, and media friends:

Hello everyone! I'm Wang Pu from Yuanqi Forest. I'm very grateful to the organizer, 36Kr, for the invitation, which allows us to gather here to jointly discuss the opportunities and challenges of enterprises' overseas expansion.

In the past decade, the globalization process of Chinese enterprises has undergone significant changes, gradually upgrading from simple product output to in - depth transmission of brand value and culture. This year marks the 6th year of Yuanqi Forest's overseas expansion. Looking back on this journey, the breakthrough from 0 to 1 was full of hardships. During the overseas expansion process, we faced many challenges such as differences in consumer perception and restrictions of overseas laws and regulations. As a startup company established less than a decade ago, every step of Yuanqi Forest's overseas exploration was in uncharted territory, and we accumulated experience through continuous "pit - falling". Today, I'm honored to share these practices and insights with you.

Many people ask us why we choose to expand overseas. The answer is actually very simple. It stems from the original intention of founding our company - to take the familiar and delicious flavors out and let more consumers taste our products.

Here is a personal story I'd like to share with you. A young man from Costa Rica, after accidentally tasting Yuanqi Forest's sparkling water, hoped to bring this product to his friends in his hometown. So, he picked up the goods from a warehouse in New Jersey, USA, transported them by truck to Florida for shipping, and then shipped them back to Costa Rica via the Caribbean Sea. At first, we thought it was just an accidental event, but later we found that his order volume gradually increased from the initial 10 cases to 100 cases, 400 cases, and now a whole container. This story is a microcosm of our original intention for overseas expansion.

Let's first review the development history of Yuanqi Forest. In 2015, we first established a R & D center, and in 2016, we officially founded the company. From the very beginning, we have been aspiring to become an international company. We firmly believe that the development of the world is continuous. A great company doesn't stand out by creating a brand - new industry but by creating high - quality products, adhering to the concept of putting users first, gradually establishing high industry standards and good reputations, and thus winning consumers' favor. At Yuanqi Forest, the standard for measuring whether a product is high - quality is very simple: we are willing to share it with our family and friends.

Based on this concept, in 2019, Yuanqi Forest took its first step overseas and started its overseas expansion journey.

It took us 6 years to expand from the domestic market to the global market. In July 2022, Yuanqi Forest's sparkling water officially entered the sales channels of Costco in the United States. In January 2024, we completed the full - scale layout in Costco, the mainstream channel across the United States.

As of now, Yuanqi Forest has entered the mainstream channels of more than 40 countries and regions. Among them, natural and refreshing flavors such as white peach and lychee are very popular among overseas consumers. In addition to mainstream markets such as the United States, Canada, Mexico, Australia, Singapore, and Indonesia, we will explore more new countries and regions in the future.

Now, Yuanqi Forest can be seen in overseas Chinese channels. More importantly, we have entered many local mainstream channels. For example, in Singapore, we cover about 900 mainstream supermarkets and convenience stores, including Fair Price. In Indonesia, we cooperate with local leading convenience stores and supermarkets, covering more than 40,000 retail outlets. These achievements mean that Yuanqi Forest has truly entered the daily lives of local consumers.

Globalization has made the world more closely connected, but diversity is also a basic feature of the world. Different countries' systems, economies, and cultures have created different consumption characteristics and market thresholds, so enterprises face various challenges when expanding overseas.

Specifically in the food and beverage industry, there are different eating habits and cultures around the world. For Chinese food and beverage brands to expand overseas means adapting to a brand - new market from scratch. We also encountered many challenges in this process, mainly in the following three aspects:

First, conduct detailed user research. We believe that the demand for a delicious and healthy beverage is universal, transcending national boundaries and categories.

Taking the entry into the US market as an example, we needed to figure out the definition of a "good product" in the US market, so we conducted a lot of in - depth research. Before entering Costco, Yuanqi Forest's sparkling water ranked among the top ten best - selling sparkling waters on Amazon in the United States for two consecutive years during the Black Friday season, accumulating a large amount of user feedback. We selected users who had purchased more than three times to understand why they chose Yuanqi Forest over other brands. User feedback showed that the sparkling waters in the US market had single flavors and weak tastes, while Yuanqi Forest's sparkling water had a strong fizz and rich flavors, which was our unique competitive advantage.

Second, highlight distinct cultural characteristics. The design of this bottle you see has undergone in - depth research. The big Chinese character "Qi" on the bottle is a symbol of Chinese culture, which contains vitality and inner strength and also inspires us to explore the unknown. In addition, the bottle also incorporates fruit elements loved by Asians.

Third, meet strict standards. The product is the foundation, and to enter Costco in North America, we also need to cross the high threshold of compliance. Entering Costco requires a strict review process: first, the verification of supplier qualifications. Costco will send a third - party to inspect the warehouse and check the hygiene and operation processes, which takes 3 - 4 months. Then, there is the factory inspection stage. Costco will inspect Chinese factories according to the standards, covering aspects such as equipment, food safety management, and social responsibility. This not only tests the enterprise's food safety management ability but also puts forward high requirements for social responsibility compliance ability.

Finally, with the high - standard operation of the Xianning factory, Yuanqi Forest passed Costco's food safety review in three months and successfully obtained the "pass" to enter the mainstream shelves in North America.

From online sales on Amazon to full - scale distribution in Costco, Yuanqi Forest opened the door to the US market with its "product strength".

In addition to product localization work such as taste research and packaging design to adapt to the market, the local compliance system also puts forward high requirements for us. Taking the Southeast Asian market as an example, we faced many challenges when entering the Indonesian market. Indonesia has high compliance requirements for food and beverages. To sell products in Indonesia, each product and each flavor needs to apply for BPOM certification. To enter mainstream supermarkets, both the factory and the products must obtain Halal certification, which is a hard threshold for entering the Indonesian market. Regarding Halal certification, the factory, each raw material, the production process, and product specifications need to be tested. In 2023, Yuanqi Forest's Hubei factory obtained the Halal certification issued by the Indonesian government agency. This is the second Halal certification obtained by the factory after the Singapore MUIS certification, and the Indonesian BPJPH Halal certification is widely recognized internationally. Singapore is one of the countries with the highest food safety standards in the world, with strict access standards for additives such as preservatives. In 2020, Yuanqi Forest's beverages were approved by the Singapore Health Promotion Board to use the "Healthier Choice" label.

In the overseas market, we strive to get closer to young consumers and actively communicate, interact, and co - create with these energetic, health - conscious, and innovative young people.

During last year's Panda Day event in the United States, we launched a bamboo grapefruit sparkling water with a panda image on the bottle. It was very popular among on - site consumers. The panda image became a top - notch "golden signboard", attracting many people to take pictures and injecting full - of - vitality oriental energy into the bustling streets of New York.

In addition, Yuanqi Forest has established a long - term cooperation with the dragon boat club of the University of California, Irvine, providing sponsorship for its daily training, team - building activities, and important competitions. This is not only a cooperation between the brand and the club but also an attempt to strengthen brand identity through oriental cultural symbols. The dragon boat has strong Chinese cultural characteristics and has become a bridge for cultural exchange between Yuanqi Forest and local young people.

This year is the 6th year of our overseas expansion. Yuanqi Forest has received sincere feedback from many users around the world, including suggestions on concepts, tastes, and lifestyles. It is this love that makes us more determined on the overseas expansion journey.

At the beginning of July this year, two new flavors of Yuanqi Forest's iced tea - white peach jasmine and grapefruit green tea - were launched in mainstream retail channels in Indonesia for the first time. This is the second product line to enter the Indonesian market after the sparkling water. In the future, we will continue to work hard to bring more good products to every corner of the world.

Now, from product strength, brand strength to innovation ability, Chinese enterprises are not inferior in the global perspective. Therefore, we are more convinced that the Chinese food and beverage industry has great potential, and in the future, well - known Chinese brands will surely emerge in the world, and there will be more than one.

Thank you all again!