Higher Annual Salary, Stronger Credentials! Yingjia Gongjiu Selects a New General Manager Who Best Understands the Market

Listing | Zhongfang Network

Review | Li Xiaoyan

On March 10, Yingjia Gongjiu (603198.SH) announced a major personnel change. The company’s General Manager Qin Hai resigned due to work adjustments. His original term was until September 8 of the same year, but he stepped down about half a year early from his core management position. After leaving, he will still serve as a director, member of the Compensation and Assessment Committee, and member of the Strategy Committee. After review by the board of directors, Yang Zhaobing, an internal veteran of sales development, was appointed as the new general manager, taking full charge of the company’s operations and management.

This personnel change comes at a critical time when Yingjia Gongjiu is facing continuous performance decline. Data shows that since Q4 2023, the company’s revenue and net profit have declined by double digits for four consecutive quarters. Performance in the first three quarters of 2025 is under significant pressure—total operating revenue was 4.516 billion yuan, down 18.09% year-over-year; net profit attributable to the parent was 1.511 billion yuan, down 24.67%; net profit after non-recurring gains and losses was 1.474 billion yuan, down 26.16%; and net cash flow from operating activities was 789 million yuan, a sharp decrease of 38.13% year-over-year. The company’s earlier set targets for 2025—76 billion yuan in revenue and 2.62 billion yuan in net profit—are far behind the progress made in the first three quarters, making the annual goal difficult to achieve.

In the context of industry deep adjustments and performance pressure, Yingjia Gongjiu has chosen to have an internal management veteran take over, demonstrating the company’s strategic commitment to “market-oriented, practical solutions to break through difficulties.” Yang Zhaobing’s background exemplifies a typical career path from grassroots to management in the Baijiu industry—born in 1976, he started as a worker in Foziling Distillery (the predecessor of Yingjia Gongjiu). He began at grassroots positions in offices in Tongling, Hefei, Xi’an, and other locations, and has served as Business Department Manager, Expansion Department Manager, Anhui Regional Manager, Executive General Manager, Assistant General Manager, and Deputy General Manager of the sales company. Since March 2014, he has been a director of the company, and from December 2020 to March 2026, he also served as General Manager of the sales company. With over 20 years rooted in frontline Baijiu sales, he has accumulated extensive experience in channel operations, market expansion, and team management.

The announcement indicates that before taking on the role of general manager, Yang Zhaobing presided over the 2025 annual summary and commendation meeting as General Manager of the sales company, and signed the 2026 target assessment responsibility letter. He has a clear understanding of the company’s current operational status and core issues. In terms of compensation, his annual salary in 2024 was 845,000 yuan, higher than Qin Hai’s 571,800 yuan at the time, reflecting the company’s high recognition and incentive for this practical management leader.

From an industry perspective, when Baijiu companies change leadership during performance adjustments, the core goal is often “precise breakthroughs and boosting confidence.” This leadership change at Yingjia Gongjiu is not just a personnel shuffle but a targeted strategic adjustment—Yang Zhaobing’s core strength lies in his deep understanding of channel logic and terminal operations in the Baijiu industry, which aligns closely with the company’s current needs to “consolidate channels and improve terminal efficiency.”

In fact, facing industry adjustments, Yingjia Gongjiu has already been actively promoting strategic transformation. The company focuses on its core positioning as “Ecological Baijiu,” continuously strengthening key products like the洞藏 series, and advancing the “Dual Core Project”: targeting core terminals by promoting channel sinking and increasing the proportion of packed outlets to optimize terminal sales through bottle-opening rates; targeting core consumers by building a digital membership platform to enhance brand stickiness; and internally driving organizational transformation by shifting assessment focus from “pressuring distributors” to “serving terminals and consumers,” aiming to improve channel health.

Regionally, the company adheres to the strategy of “intensive cultivation within the province and focused efforts outside”—in the first three quarters of 2025, there were 771 distributors within the province (up 10), and 606 outside (down 16). By shrinking inefficient external markets and consolidating resources in Anhui, the company is laying a foundation for future breakthroughs outside the province. Product-wise, the洞藏 series, representing ecological Baijiu, remains the company’s high-end core, while the Jin Yin Xing series and the Centennial Yingjia series continue to optimize product structure to meet different consumption scenarios.

Of course, the challenges facing Yingjia Gongjiu cannot be ignored. The consecutive quarterly decline in performance is influenced by external factors such as industry-wide adjustments and intensified regional competition, as well as internal issues like slowed external expansion and the need to accelerate product structure optimization. However, from a positive perspective, although operating cash flow declined year-over-year in the first three quarters, the marginal improvement in cash collection, along with increased contract liabilities, indicates that channel receivables and inventory management are gradually stabilizing, laying a foundation for future recovery and growth.

After Yang Zhaobing takes over, the primary tasks will focus on three core areas: first, stabilizing the market and improving efficiency—quickly stabilizing team confidence and channel order, continuing positive trends such as channel optimization and receivables improvement observed in the first three quarters, and curbing further performance decline; second, implementing strategy—deepening the “Dual Core Project” and organizational transformation, focusing on breakthroughs in the洞藏 high-end segment, strengthening core provincial markets, and cautiously advancing key external regions without reckless expansion; third, reshaping value—leveraging the “Ecological Baijiu” differentiated positioning, strengthening brand communication and consumer cultivation, enhancing product premiumization, and alleviating market anxiety caused by performance pressure.

From an industry experience standpoint, growth in Baijiu companies often involves cyclical fluctuations, and the practical ability of core management is crucial for navigating these cycles. Yingjia Gongjiu’s choice to promote internal talent ensures strategic continuity and enhances market execution precision—Yang Zhaobing’s frontline experience will more directly connect with terminal needs and respond swiftly to market changes, which is especially critical during industry adjustments.

For investors and the market, this personnel change signals that Yingjia Gongjiu has entered a critical stage of “practical efforts to overcome difficulties and strategic adjustments for long-term development.” In the short term, performance recovery will still take time, and the market may continue to experience volatility; in the medium to long term, as Yang Zhaobing’s team fully takes over operations and strategic transformation takes effect, the company’s channel health and brand competitiveness are expected to gradually improve, laying the groundwork for future performance rebound.

The competition in the Baijiu industry fundamentally revolves around brand strength, channel power, and organizational capability. This leadership change at Yingjia Gongjiu is not only a proactive response to current operational pressures but also a strategic layout for long-term development. As Yang Zhaobing’s team gradually implements various initiatives, whether the company can reverse the downward trend and reignite growth will be a key focus for 2026 in the Baijiu industry. For Yingjia Gongjiu, only by adhering to a market-centered approach, prioritizing products, and strengthening channels can it solidify its foundation during industry adjustments and achieve sustained progress of the “Ecological Baijiu” brand.