China News Service, Beijing, September 26 (Reporter Chen Su) In recent years, China's consumer market has shown new changes: a large number of emerging consumption scenarios such as emotional consumption and experiential consumption have risen rapidly, almost all of which are inseparable from the promotion of private enterprises. Private enterprises are no longer a "supplementary force" to the market.
In late September, the first store of Heytea in Taikoo Li, Sanlitun, Beijing, was renovated and opened. Even though there was a sudden heavy rain on the opening day, there was still a long queue of hundreds of people in front of the door, which lasted more than 4 hours. The reason for the long queue is because Heytea launched the "Tea Ice Cream" experience line in Beijing for the first time. New products such as "Jujube Puree and Buffalo Milk Ice Cream" accurately hit the local feelings of young people. The limited-edition refrigerator magnets were sold out on the day of opening, and many people posted their check-in records on social platforms.
In recent years, driven by private enterprises, a large number of new consumption scenarios sought after by young people have emerged one after another, promoting the continuous renewal and revitalization of China's consumer market.
"Private enterprises have shown great vitality in terms of enriching product supply and innovating consumption scenarios." Zhang Xinxin, an assistant researcher at the Xi Jinping Economic Thought Research Center, said that with unique advantages such as flexible mechanisms, market acumen, and courage to innovate, private enterprises can accurately understand and quickly respond to market demand, and timely develop and launch marketable new products and services.
In the field of new tea drinks, a report released by the Red Food Industry Research Institute shows that the national ready-made tea market size is expected to reach 210 billion yuan in 2026, among which the leading private brands occupy an absolutely dominant position. In terms of product innovation, throughout 2025, the 75 tea drink sample brands monitored by the Red Food Industry Research Institute launched a total of 2,691 new products. The average number of new products for sample brands per month was 1.3 times, and the average number of new products per month was 3. Head brands such as Bawang Chaji, Nayuki's Tea, Heytea, and Chabaido are active in new product launches.
New tea beverage companies grasp the needs of young consumers in real time, continue to iterate on product innovation and scene upgrades, and turn daily drinks into lifestyle carriers with both social attributes and emotional value.
In addition to new tea drinks, in the field of trendy toys that are highly sought after by "Generation Z", through IP incubation, scene operation and global layout, Bubble Mart's products have not only entered mainstream domestic commercial entities, but also landed in other countries and regions, becoming a new window for young consumers around the world to understand Chinese culture. In the cultural and sports performance market, a large number of private performance organizations continue to release the vitality of experiential consumption by creating diversified forms such as immersive theaters, theme music festivals, and city tours. The scene where popular performances are “hard to get a ticket” just proves the strong creativity of private enterprises in content supply.
"Stimulating the vitality of the private economy is the key to cultivating long-term sustainable consumption capabilities." Jin Li, Vice President of Southern University of Science and Technology, said that the innovation of private enterprises not only meets the growing personalized and quality needs of residents, but also taps potential consumption increases through supply-side innovation, leading consumption to upgrade from "physical" to "experience". A vibrant private economic development environment also means continuous market opportunities and stable jobs, thus forming a virtuous closed loop of "enterprises dare to invest - stable employment - income growth - residents dare to consume".
The "China Private Economy Development Blue Book 2025" shows that private enterprises contribute about 70% of the country's technological innovation and more than 80% of new products, playing an important role in stabilizing growth, promoting transformation, and ensuring employment. In recent years, China has introduced a series of policies and measures to support the development of the private economy and promote the expansion and upgrading of consumption, creating a broader space for private enterprises to develop. As policies continue to be effective and the business environment continues to improve, private enterprises that understand young people, understand the market, and understand innovation will inject continuous vitality into the Chinese consumer market.
