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iF Juices: Turn a Good Concept into Real Business

As a lawyer Hans Au once advised corporate clients in Europe and Beijing. His friend, Florian Eysler, was a purchasing manager for a European auto-maker in Beijing: just the kind of people you’d expect to quit their corporate jobs and start a fruit juice company in Beijing. Right?

Au and Eysler’s tiny iF Juice Shop in the Central Park community just inside the East Third Ring Road in Beijing may not prompt thoughts of finely honed legal arguments or precise automotive specifications, but it exudes a sense of precision and restraint, with an emphasis on quality and sanitation (you can watch them as they work). The 25-square-metre iF shop that opened in November 2007 is a powerhouse when it comes to producing smoothies and fresh-juice beverages.

But the attention to detail does not stop there: with just a glance at the iF menu, rendered in English and Chinese, customers can assess the sweetness value of each product offered by the duo, whether it’s a naturally sweet watermelon drink carrying a “four-red-apple” rating or a bittersweet “four-green-apple” rating for the grapefruit drink or other delights in between. Even the “teardrop” bottles used to sell the beverages are unique, bearing English and Chinese logos and ingredient tags, and if you must have one, there’s an attractive media kit available that tells the iF story.

The enterprise’s simple, tasteful presentation is underlined by an equally simple and tasty concept: “Before we started, we promised our friends and families to never ever put anything nasty (like sugars, juice concentrates, preservatives, or even water) into our beverages. And that’s how we keep it: simple, pure and natural.”

Yet all of this leads to a bigger idea: cultivating a brand name and making it last. That’s why, even before the iF store was opened, iF had employed a full-time designer to take charge of all the images and decorations of the store and its products, Au, the founder and manager of iF Foods Limited, said.

 Au first came to China in 1995 to work on his doctorate in Chinese law. After two years’ study at Nanjing University, he returned to Germany before joining a British law firm that eventually sent him to work in Beijing in 2002. His Chinese improved greatly in his daily communication with the firm’s Chinese clients, and it was during this time that he met and married his Chinese wife. The couple has a beautiful son.

In 2005, Au quit his job. Still, the idea of starting a juice shop had not occurred to him. It came to him from the sweet difficulty of raising his son, who was just 2 and who hated eating vegetables like so many other kids. One day, the child’s ayi (maid) left some sauce in a pan after making a carrot dish. Rather than try to foist the carrots on the boy, Au simply poured the juices on his son’s rice. The boy ate it without complaint.

As a result of this experience, Au decided to buy a juice-extractor set, and often invited his son to join him in making fruit and vegetable juices. A transformative event happened: his son was happy to drink the juices he’d helped create, because, as Au said, “It was his own achievement.”

Au, a vegetarian who follows a natural and healthy lifestyle, discussed the idea that was forming in his mind with Eysler, who shares some of Au’s ideals: they formed a business partnership with the goal stated above.

They began by squeezing, blending and mixing fruit and vegetables. Selling out 200 bottles of their three basic recipes within a couple of hours at Chaoyang Park in the summer of 2006 convinced them to continue: iF was born.

The first shop represented an investment of 180,000 yuan (US$27,000). Soon, a major obstacle would loom, because in the beginning, the one-day shelf life of their preservative-free products resulted in some waste. Gradually, they adapted to their customers’ preferences and the varying requests they got in winter and summer. The amount of wasted product began to decline and is now controlled at about 10 to 15 percent, according to Au, with every effort being made to sell the right product to the right people at the right time.

Central Park area residents have fallen for iF. During off-days, iF sells an average of 50–60 bottles per day; the number triples during the summer.

The daring duo recovered their initial investment in just four months, as one good thing led to another.

Several months after opening, the chef of a famous five-star hotel in Beijing visited the store and asked iF to serve as a juice supplier for the hotel. This inspired Au and Eysler, who expanded their marketing effort. They began seeking contracts with hotels, restaurants, embassies and multinational companies in Beijing to supply their products, and iF is now a supplier to the Ritz Carlton and The Pennisula, supplying 100 litres of iF products per day.

At the same time, iF is enlarging its production capacity to meet mounting orders. In the latter half of 2008, iF began designing a larger production facility in southern Beijing to serve corporate clients, mainly. Now, the 400 square metre facility stands near the Xinfadi Farm Product Wholesale Market, one of the largest in Beijing.

But what does it take, as a foreigner, to run a business in China? Au said the most useful lesson is to understand the cultures and histories of China and the Chinese, which are totally unlike those of the West with regard to distinct practices and approaches to problem-solving. He recalled a night when some of his imported equipment, weighing 700 kilograms, was delivered. He was shocked when he saw the big machine being unloaded by a delivery man and several security guards. Had this happened in Germany, he might have been stopped by the police and sued.

“There are things you think are very hard to accomplish in Germany that are very easy in China, but there are also things the other way round,” said Au. “You can easily outsource certain business activities in Germany, as there is a very detailed division of service suppliers, but in China, you have to be more versatile. Besides, you cannot manage your Chinese employees using the complete and mature style of corporate management in the West: there is a looser culture here. Also, you have to rely more on private channels of capital, as financing for small enterprises in China is insufficient.”

However, as a foreigner, it is wise to adapt to the environment, said Au. “You have to constantly adjust yourself to the realities here. However, you don’t have to change everything as we have our own advantages as foreigners. The perfect way is to find the zhongyong zhidao (the way in between),” he said with a proud smile as we expressed our surprise about his understanding of zhongyong zhidao.

“如果”果汁：德国的健康生活理念在北京延伸

文/赵迪迪


“如果，你想享用健康的饮品，请到‘如果’果汁店来。如果，你爱上它们，请带它们回家。”如果（北京）食品有限公司（以下简称“如果公司”）总经理汉斯站在柜台前，操着流利的普通话介绍着每种果汁的口感和特色，如数家珍。

在这家面积仅25平方米的小店内，处处洋溢着青春活力，散发着清新芳香。店面整洁干净，分为前台销售区和后台操作区，柜台里整齐有序地摆放着十几种瓶装果汁、果昔、果蔬汁以及三明治和沙拉。销售区和操作区采用透明门窗半封闭隔离，操作区的制作人员穿着防污染工作服。“我们的饮品都是纯天然的，没有添加任何糖分和防腐剂。我们会根据每种水果的生长周期和压榨力度来调节它的酸甜度，每瓶饮品的甜、酸程度都会在菜单上明确标注。”汉斯自豪地说。

胡萝卜汁引发商业灵感

来自德国的汉斯就是这家位于北京朝阳区新城国际“如果”果汁店的创始人之一。从1994年大学毕业后来到中国到如今，汉斯和中国已经有了15年的情结。

谈到开果汁店的创意，汉斯认为很大程度上要归功于他和儿子之间的一段小故事。汉斯始终认为只有纯天然、不加任何添加剂的食品和饮品才是最健康的，他认为儿子喜吃的甜食都是人为添加了糖分或经过特殊处理，不利于健康。于是，他试图让儿子吃些胡萝卜之类的蔬菜，却遭到抵制没有成功。汉斯在一次做饭时无意间将胡萝卜炒出了汁水，便顺势浇在了米饭上，没想到儿子竟然爱吃。后来，他又榨了苹果汁，并添加进胡萝卜汁中，既营养又美味，儿子果然喜欢。汉斯由此引发了联想，这种奉行时尚、自然理念，融健康和娱乐元素于一身的经营生意可以向市场推广。

开业之初坚守目标群体

2006年夏天，汉斯和另一位创始人——原大众汽车中国投资有限公司采购部经理——傅伦尝试着将不同种类的水果或水果和蔬菜榨成果汁，并研制出了3个基本的配方。在试营业阶段，他们便取得了几个小时销售200瓶的骄人业绩。随后，两位创始人潜心深入研制配方，并投重资引进了先进的专业榨汁设备。

2007年11月，“如果”果汁店正式开张营业。汉斯和傅伦投资总额约18万元，其中装修和购置设备12万元，其它小部分资金用于房租和筹备。他们为果汁店设定的目标消费群为购买力强的白领、年轻家庭和崇尚健康生活的时尚人士等。因此，在最初选址时，他们便将店面选择在消费水平偏高、商用和住宅结合的街区。虽然当时店铺7000多元的月租金相对较高，但由于区域内高薪高职、外国籍及海归人士占到80%以上，十分符合果汁店定位的目标消费群，汉斯认为物有所值。

拓展业务扩大市场空间

2008年，是“如果”果汁店获得成果的一年。由于经营得当，经济环境良好，开业仅半年果汁店便收回了前期投入的成本。每到销售旺季，果汁店每天可以产销150—180瓶果汁；非旺季时，果汁店日产销量也可达到50余瓶，日客流量达到40人次。

果汁店保持相对稳定的销量后，汉斯和傅伦开始着手拓展新的业务，为公司开阔市场。他们将果汁在德国食品店、经营进口食品的便利店等地点代为销售；与德南面包房相互代为销售果汁和三明治；为德国使馆学校配送果汁和食品等。

如今，如果公司正在逐渐将业务拓展到北京的5星级酒店、饭店、公共饮食行业、外企以及大使馆等领域。目前，公司已经与北京丽思卡尔顿酒店、北京王府半岛酒店等长期保持着业务往来。为此，公司投资延伸了生产线，扩大了生产规模，在北京果蔬集散地——新发地建立了工厂以供应大客户的需求。“我们拥有了规模适度的中央厨房、设备齐全的车间，加上经验丰富的采购、完备的物流和出色的设计师，我们的业务不断扩大，业绩正在蒸蒸日上！”汉斯骄傲地说。

换位思考避免一意孤行

汉斯认为，北京市场前景乐观，可供施展才能的空间很大。他提议：“老外在北京做生意是个不错的选择，但也会遇到一些困难。这时候，最好找个中国朋友做‘中间人’帮忙化解矛盾。”

如果公司的经营理念之一是注重细节。“如果”果汁的包装瓶子由公司特别设计并专门请工厂代为生产，申请了专利；2009年春节期间，公司启用了设计师设计制作的富有中国传统风情的品牌标志，虽然这样做成本会提高，但品牌效应的打造会事半功倍。

此外，汉斯建议：“外国人在北京办企业，在经营方面一定要注重管理，绝对不能照搬自己国家的全套管理办法。在中国，要注重人性化管理，简单说，就是要学会管理人。”在他看来，很多外国人认为任何事情都可以外包出去做，但在中国，经营者必须亲力亲为，因为中国市场还不是十分完善，还未拥有完美分工。比如，做小生意融资难，经营者就必须亲自操作疏通，尝试探索私营融资渠道，增大流动资金。

学习中国文化才是经商王道

外国人在北京经商可能遇到的最大困难将是文化差异的客观存在。汉斯认为，有些外国人考虑问题的角度和周围的中国人不一样，比如容易把某事想得太过简单或太困难，这会体现在工作方式中。“外国人只有真正了解中国的历史和文化、北京的市场环境和商业规则，在北京经商才能取得成功。”汉斯感慨道。

“如果”果汁除了外卖，在一定范围内也可以免费送货，因此，不少消费者希望果汁店的销售范围扩大。2009年，如果公司将在继续推广品牌、创造效益的基础上，注重零售服务，引进加盟店，计划将进军北京的西单、三里屯、大望路，上海的南京路、淮海路等繁华地段，以实现更广阔的发展。