China Suntory Investment Co. Ltd. was a single venture enterprise set up by Japan Suntory Co., Ltd. and approved by Chinese National Foreign Trade Administration in July 1999. However, Suntory’s business in China began in 1984, when the company first built its joint venture beer factory in Lian Yun Gang of Jiang Su province.  In 1995, Suntory entered Shanghai market and set up companies of beverages producing and beer producing respectively.  Through 20 years’ hard work, Suntory has invested in 3 beer factories, 3 beverages factories and set up an investment company as well as its headquarters. Suntory has spent 3 billion dollars in the whole investment and sells 20 billion RMB of products every year.

The products of Suntory always enjoy a good reputation since they were on the market.  The Suntory beer, whose sale keeps on rising step by step, is widely welcomed by the consumers in Shanghai and adjacent areas.  Since 1999, the Suntory beer has been leading in the 500 best industrial enterprises of Shanghai (beer industry); it was the sales champion for 5 years. In 2000, it was honored as a brand in a ready market of Shanghai, which was kept for four years.  Since 2001, it has been chosen as the Famous Brand of Shanghai.  In other cities of China, Suntory also acquires tremendous achievements.

Owing to its right business operating policy and philosophy, Suntory has been successful. The general manager gangtianfanghe believes in the Suntory’s business philosophy of “creating profits for both the society and the consumers makes the company benefited”. On the basis of the philosophy, Suntory has worked out its own policy and put a great effort in improving qualities of its products, promoting a better management and nurturing talents. All these contribute to its present achievements.

1.      Promoting management; Improving quality

The company is fully aware of that to cut a figure in the heated competition, to maintain the vitality of the products, both innovative management and upstanding quality are to be ensured. Therefore, the company has always put the producing management and products quality control as primacy, in order to promote products quality control and sanitation sureness prevent system on the basis of  ISO9001: 2000, HACCP postulate.

At the same time, the company has first carried the TPM into execution among the national beer industry and put the responsibility of reducing costs, preventing malfunction and improving quality into every employee’s daily work, then the phases of everyone’s participating in the management and everyone’s service for the quality is formed. The company doesn’t hesitate to put into treble costs.  From raw material choosing system to sensory quality testing system in the whole course, the company has held the pass strictly.  Before going to the next procedure, every precedent working procedure in the whole producing course is controlled by strict detecting standards. To use HPLC (efficient liquid phase chromatogram instrument) is to ensure refreshing taste of the beer. Suntory use the mineral water filtering through the rock layer of all ages, along with the most fresh and high quality barley, rice, hop as raw material. Though the cost is 5 to 6 times higher, the quality is fully guaranteed.

The company insists on the hyper-frequency and the item of products testing.  Besides sending the sample to the headquarters in Japan periodically for quality testing, every set of products should pass the “72-hour deposit testing system”. In other words, the products doesn’t leave factory until 3 days after its being canned, even in high demanding season like summer, by no means of letting on piece of unqualified products flow into the market. All aspects of researching data indicate that since the first day when Suntory products were launched, each item of quality guideline fluctuate little, the quality remains extremely stable.

The company not only thinks much of the quality of the products, but also hold the pass of the packing strictly. In allusion to the explosion of the beer bottles, the company doesn’t hesitate to invest 400 million in 2 years and take lead in developing “Suntory Special Bottle”, the compression resistance standard of which is as 3 times as high of national standard according with that of the developed countries. The “Suntory Special Bottle” has obtained national patent. At the same time, to coordinate with the launching of the special safe bottle, Suntory has first launched international vulgate 20-bottle plastic case in China, which heightens the sides and the interval between holes, improves the joint extent between bottles and case, which effectively prevent the damage caused by collisions among bottles. Considering the convenience in moving and storing, weight of the whole bottles and cases were lightened by 28grams.  The cases and bottles are welcomed by both the franchisers and the consumers.  At the same time, the company has perfected the packing of Suntory beverage from appearance to label, which is to satisfy the consumers more.

Owing to the first-ranking raw material and strict quality control, Suntory uses the water of high costs to produce the beer of high quality. The products, as a name brand on the basis of best quality, rapidly acquired the prevalent acceptance.

2.      Setting up name brand; Striving for the market

Both beer and beverage are fast consumable goods. Heated competition makes the products renovate rapidly. In order to set up “Suntory” the name brand in Shanghai and surrounding areas, to strive for the quotient, the company has set down its marketing strategy. Merely in 3 years, Suntory has become the primary brand in the beer industry, realizing unbelievable leap.

The advertisement “drink then choose Suntory” contains 3 promises, which also embodies the marketing philosophy. Firstly, refreshing taste – according to the results of market research, the company takes the lead in launching the refreshing beer of law content of mellow and less stimulation to body, which set the consumers’ heart at rest while drinking. Secondly, better quality with low price – Suntory adopts natural mineral water in brewing top grade beer, imports raw materials from Canada and Germany, fresh barm from Japan by air-ferry. Though cost is as 5 to 6 times high as tap water, the price is as low as a bottle of mineral water. To give up the boon to the consumers makes the products accepted by more and more consumers. Thirdly, deepen separate sales strategy – the company combines advanced sales method with local facts, then originally creates the “deepen separate sales strategy”. Any shop on the avenue or on the alley is supplied with Suntory beer, while the special salesman directly visits the shopkeepers and make tracks of sales results and citizens’ opinions. Now, suburbs in shanghai and surrounding cities, Suntory is seen everywhere, any consumer can buy the Suntory beer they like near their houses.

To meet with vary requirements of all consumers, Suntory keeps on developing new products, Suntory has launched “Suntory pure beer”, “Suntory ice brew beer”, “apple juice” and “grape juice’, which are all highly appraised.

Suntory not only develops a new method of its own in marketing strategy, but also develops a school of its own in building up the brand. In order to let every member of the society to share the happiness of Suntory, the company spent a great amount of money in social commonweal. In 1999, Suntory organized a “respect, love, understand the elders tea party” to celebrate the international elders day, and donated books towards 800 work models. In the battle against “SARS”, Suntory donated 1 million RMB and 1 million cases of beverage towards Shanghai Civil Administration and Shanghai Board of Health Administration respectively. This year, Suntory sponsored the TV station to open up the “Summer Beer Complaints Hotline”. Suntory has always been supportive to help the government organize cultural and sports activities. Last year, Suntory sponsored “KunShan Foreign Investment Enterprise Basketball League”.  All these make a impact on the society.

Successful sales strategy makes the sales keep on rising year after year.  According to the statistics, the beer sales went up from 1993’s 134, 000tons to 2003’s 270, 000tons, the amplitude of which reached 101.5%. Early half of this year, the sales went by 20.7% compared to that of the corresponding period in last year, it is predicted that the sales will break through 300, 000tons this year and will reach a brand new heights. According to the latest report of 2003 beer consumption from world authoritative research institution – AC Nelson, Suntory products was leading in the guidelines of all items in among Shanghai beer industry, including 95% of brand well-known scale; 72% of taste fitness; 73% of daily consumption in families. Meanwhile, the Suntory beverages are deeply loved by the consumers, sales of tea drinks went up by 13% to that of last year.

Suntory -- the world famous brand has deeply implanted into the consumers’ mind. It is the leading brand with brilliant success. 

3.      Nurturing talents; Assembling new heights

Suntory pays great attention to nurturing and in draught of the talents, lately, the company has fetched in a great number of excellent administrant and has employed many fine college graduates, distributing in different departments like technic department and sales department. At the mean time, the company spent a great deal of money in training the staff. The company doesn’t attract the employees with decent salary, but holds the staff together through providing personal promotion space and potential discovery. Aiming at the employees from different departments and different positions, the company offers different kind of training course.

Every employee should take the basic course as well as the pertinent skill-training course. Till this moment, administrants upper than middle-level have been to Japan to take the short-term training course. The company also cooperates with colleges to exchange and discuss new techniques in producing beverages and brewing beer. Moreover, the company founded “Suntory Scholarship” for Jiang Nan College in WuXI. Last year, the company sent the employees graduated from the college to Japan for both language and skills training in order to shape the talents that the company requires. In the factories, exterior post skills training course and management skills training course that every employee takes per year are more than 5 times. The notion of “Development for both the company and the staff’ has become the most important cultural philosophy in the Suntory Enterprise.

Favorable development space, efficient skill-training courses have greatly intensified the coherence in the company. Enthusiasm of the employees has boosted, which brings a bright future for the company.

Suntory’s developing story fully embodies its “innovation, enterprising, seeking facts” spirit, in the future, Suntory will keep to the philosophy of “endless energy, innovative thoughts and sharp decision-making”, speeding up investment pace in China.  The company will keep on offering international top-ranking products in order to realize its promise of “improving the living standard in the whole world”. Suntory is sure to prosper along with the development of China.