Exclusive CCTV Dialogue with Zheng Xiaofeng: Uncovering Cheerday’s New Quality Development Path
Release Time ：2025-12-17 Back To ListAgainst a backdrop of sluggish consumption and cutthroat, saturated competition across the beer industry, a brewery rooted by Qiandaohu Lake has defied market headwinds and delivered outstanding results: it has hit record-high performance for two consecutive years, maintaining an annual growth rate of 20% to 30%, with its products exported to 43 countries and regions worldwide.
Zheng Xiaofeng, Chairman of Qiandaohu Beer, was recently invited to CCTV Finance’s Dialogue program. Centered on the theme “A New Path for Beer Development”, he shared his career shift from teacher to brewer, the brand’s commitment to independent operation, insights into industrial trends and emerging market opportunities. He explained how the enterprise has carved out a distinctive quality-driven path amid fierce homogenized competition through unwavering dedication and constant innovation.
01
Venture Into the Unknown to Brew Timeless Fine Beer
In 1985, Zheng Xiaofeng resigned from his teaching post and stood out among 400 applicants to join Qiandaohu Brewery, the largest local enterprise at that time. He switched from a teacher to a brewer, convinced that this was a worthwhile opportunity worth pursuing. This bold mindset of breaking conventions and embracing the unknown laid the groundwork for his future leadership, empowering him to steer the brand forward with innovative vision.
As one of the factory’s earliest employees, he started with zero professional brewing knowledge. Shortly after recruitment, he was sent to Hangzhou Brewery for advanced training, tasked with overseeing the entire brewery’s production. He immersed himself in every workshop shift, mastering every production stage from raw material processing to fermentation control, memorizing and mastering every detail of brewing. This down-to-earth foundation forged his lifelong obsession with product quality.
During the massive wave of industry mergers and acquisitions, major beer giants repeatedly sought to acquire Qiandaohu Beer, regarding it as a highly valuable target. Yet Chairman Zheng firmly opted for independent development. “My judgment on the industry trend is that large conglomerates will centralize production post-acquisition. Small regional brands like ours would likely vanish after being taken over.”
Behind this decision lies the local entrepreneur’s profound sentiment and responsibility. “Qiandaohu boasts unparalleled water resources. It would be a waste to leave this precious water untapped. I am determined to brew premium beer with this lake water, so consumers across China and the globe can taste fine beer crafted from Qiandaohu.”
Rejecting acquisition meant choosing a far tougher path. Asked whether he worried about shrinking market space, Zheng saw untapped potential: “When all small breweries get acquired, our chance arrives.” He foresaw that after giants dominated the market via low-price strategies, they would inevitably raise prices—creating a window for quality-focused brands to differentiate themselves.
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Ultimate Dedication Forges a Hidden Champion
“One person can hardly excel at more than one thing in a lifetime.” For 40 years, Chairman Zheng has lived by the principle of ultimate dedication, staying rooted at Qiandaohu Lake and devoting himself fully to beer brewing.
China’s total beer output has fallen to 70% of its historical peak, yet Zheng views this decline as an opportunity. “The shrinking volume eliminates low-quality, homogeneous products. Demand for premium beverages remains strong, which is a golden chance for brands that prioritize quality.”
People drink not only for social fun, but for emotional communication and individuality display. Diversified, personalized craft beer keeps pace with current consumption trends. Brands focus on user needs to develop distinctive beers for varied life scenes and emotional feelings.
In fact, instead of engaging in head-on competition with large conglomerates holding abundant industrial resources, Qiandao Lake Beer resolutely stepped into the untapped niche market of high-end customized beer at an early stage, when the whole industry was blindly pursuing scale benefits. Despite high costs and tremendous technical difficulties in the initial phase, Chairman Zheng firmly believed that this strategic path was the only viable way forward for the brand.
Established in 2008, the custom brewing division has specialized in personalized beer for 17 years, evolving into a well-regarded OEM partner for over 60 renowned beverage brands.
Top-tier products withstand rigorous inspections. As Zheng put it: “Customization has driven massive leaps for our company. Every factory audit, unannounced inspection and technical exchange with partner brands pushes us to upgrade quality control and brewing standards.”
03
Live Yeast Beer: Launching the Ultimate Battle for Freshness
“Our goal is to let consumers taste beer exactly as it flows fresh out of fermentation tanks.” Beyond customized brewing, Qiandaohu Beer is pioneering technological innovation with live yeast beer, launching what it calls the ultimate battle for authentic fresh beer.
Delivering fresh, flavorful beer to every consumer is the lifelong pursuit of the brewery’s master brewers. Unlike traditional pasteurized beer, this “breathing beer” retains natural active yeast, delivering an extremely vivid, authentic taste profile.
Live yeast beer is produced overnight and delivered via full cold-chain transport to offline outlets, enabling production and consumption on the same day. Online orders can reach customers’ tables within 30 minutes, preserving the original fresh flavor straight from fermentation tanks.
This strict standard of maximum freshness imposes unprecedented challenges on supply chain hygiene and quality monitoring. To overcome technical barriers, the brand abandoned traditional distribution channels and built a proprietary direct-store network with 40 outlets in operation, with plans to expand coverage to all major and medium-sized cities across Zhejiang Province next year.
“Large corporations dismiss this business due to high operational complexity and strict requirements—but this is our niche opportunity.” The direct-store model creates deep, loyal, controllable consumer links, forming an unrivaled competitive barrier impossible for big brands to replicate. Zheng added: “We first bring premium fresh beer to Zhejiang residents, then gradually expand nationwide.”
Reviewing the brand’s development journey: Qiandaohu Beer pioneered China’s light lager category, built an immersive beer town and beer museum for consumer experience, and now redefines beer freshness with live yeast technology. It has never halted its pursuit of quality and innovation amid competition from industry giants.
Chairman Zheng draws confidence from two irreplicable core strengths: the unique natural water source of Qiandaohu Lake, and a technical team recruiting top brewing experts worldwide. “We take the opposite path of large corporations: we focus on projects they ignore, meeting consumer demands left unfulfilled by conglomerates.”
Finally, Zheng shared sincere advice for young entrepreneurs in traditional industries seeking breakthroughs: “Pursue work you love and fit your strengths. Identify unmet consumer demands overlooked by major corporations, and perfect your craft relentlessly—success will follow.”
Qiandaohu Beer’s 40-year journey is a story of dedication and continuous innovation. Rooted in local ecology, guided by relentless brewing passion and sharp consumer insight, the regional brewery has blazed a high-quality, high-growth new path amid saturated industry competition.
Upholding its original aspiration, Qiandaohu Beer will persist in specialized, differentiated and high-end development. It will integrate ecological advantages and brewing craftsmanship into every bottle, letting more consumers savor the pure, fresh flavor born from nature and authentic brewing.