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Five months after his "retirement", Hema founder and former CEO Hou Yi came out again. This time, he did not continue to manage "new retail", but chose to enter the catering industry - opening an affordable seafood restaurant "Golden Night" with the first store located in Huangpu District Huiliang Life Plaza and officially opened on August 3.

However, the time when "Golden Night" attracted the attention of the industry was on August 7. Hou Yi posted information on his personal WeChat Moments, including the detailed address of the restaurant and its featured products.

At 5 pm on August 8, after a heavy rain, the temperature was slightly cooler. When the reporter arrived at "Golden Night", all seats in the store had been booked, and the consumers who arrived later chose to sit in the outdoor area.

Hou Yi, wearing a T-shirt and sports shorts, was standing at the door of the store, chatting with several friends, with a warm smile on his face and hearty laughter from time to time. His eyes were shining with vitality and light, and he was full of energy and spirit.

After greeting his friends, Hou Yi accepted an exclusive interview with the Huangpu District Media Integration Center. He said with a smile: "This is the first time I have accepted a formal interview since I retired."

"I like seafood and I still like it after retirement, but I found that there are few seafood restaurants catering to the 'silver generation' in the market, so I decided to open one myself." Hou Yi explained the original intention of creating "Golden Night Moment", "Consumption upgrade, price reduction, so that the elderly can also find a stylish social venue, this is my positioning for this brand."

The reporter observed the menu of "Golden Night" and found that the main dishes here are tiger prawns at 38 yuan for half a catty, swimming crabs at 9.9 yuan per piece, and large oysters that can be eaten raw at 58 yuan per six pieces. Almost every table must order these seafood. This price, not to mention the price after cooking, is obviously "high-end" even when compared with the retail price in the vegetable market.

At the same time, the dishes are divided into roasted, fried, steamed, staple food (porridge), braised cold dishes, desserts and drinks, with a total of 45 SKUs, with prices ranging from 6 to 129 yuan, of which items priced at 50 yuan or less account for nearly 90%.

“Is this a promotional price to attract customers, or is it the regular selling price?”

“That’s the price, and it will be the same in the future.”

In response to the reporter's questions, Hou Yi answered like this.

In fact, fresh food supply has always been Hema's advantage. As its founder, Hou Yi has solid experience and resources in the fresh food supply chain. Therefore, it is not surprising that he can lower the prices of these items.

But affordable prices do not mean lower quality. "Shanghainese people are good at eating, especially seafood. You can tell whether it is good or not after just one bite."

People who are familiar with Hou Yi know that he not only loves to eat, but also knows how to eat. There was a brush calligraphy on the door of Hou Yi’s office at the Shanghai headquarters of Hema, which read “Delicious food is the kingly way”.

When asked why the first store was located in Huiliang Life Plaza, Hou Yi said with a smile, "It was fate, and it came naturally." When the store first opened, there was no publicity. But as soon as the door opened at 5 o'clock, many elderly people in the community with silver hair came here, ordered some small dishes and seafood, and drank a beer.

"Shanghainese people like to have fun. When they see something new, they want to try it. But whether they will come a second time depends on the skills of the store owner." Hou Yi told reporters that many restaurants open at 5 o'clock, but most of those who can come for dinner during this time period are "silver-haired people", so it is crucial to attract them.

"Golden Night" abandons luxurious decoration, but strictly controls the supply chain. For example, craft beer at 9.9 yuan/liter, oysters from Zhuanghe City, Dalian, Liaoning, the best oyster producing area in China, black goat mutton skewers, etc., even the side dishes are not ambiguous at all, fruit cucumbers, Xinjiang white onions, colorful peanuts, etc., high-quality fresh products from all over the country are placed on the table here by Hou Yi. "I have eaten every dish, and most Shanghai people think it is delicious." He said confidently.

After the opening, many elderly people came here to eat and drink for several days in a row. In Hou Yi's plan, he wanted to build this place into the first "silver hair pub" in China, with an average consumption of about 40 yuan per person, and even if eating seafood, the average per person is only 60-80 yuan. "It has face and quality, who wouldn't like it?"

However, as a community store, how to attract a single customer group in the long term is a problem that "Golden Night" must solve. In this regard, Hou Yi has long had his own ideas: "Chinese people pay attention to 'eating in season'. Currently, it is swimming crabs, and then mantis shrimps and hairy crabs. We will adjust the main products at any time according to the season, so that everyone can eat fresh and affordable seafood as soon as possible."

"Golden Night" is not only popular among the elderly, but also has a strong appeal to young people. The highly cost-effective dishes and the diverse flavors of craft beer allow customers of different ages to find their own fun and resonance here. "Old people basically go home after 8 o'clock, and for young people, nightlife has just begun. We will operate until 12 o'clock, and under the premise of good cost control, this store has more possibilities."

Dianping shows that "Golden Night" currently has two stores. In addition to this first store, another one is still under preparation. When asked whether Hou Yi would open more chains in the future, he said, "The main body of this enterprise is the supply chain." The answer is obvious. He further revealed that several other stores are under renovation and will be officially opened soon.

On the day of the interview, friends came to greet Hou Yi from time to time. "After I posted on WeChat Moments, friends from all walks of life came to support me. I couldn't accommodate them all." As he was speaking, another group of people came up, "Lao Cai, hurry up, we are all waiting for you." "These are my colleagues at Hema, they made an appointment to come and see me."

Before ending the interview, the reporter asked Hou Yi one last question: "Now, do you want people to call you Lao Cai or Hou Yi?"

"I have some experience and qualifications in this industry. Now I mainly interact with young people born in the 1980s and 1990s. Everyone calls me Teacher Hou," he replied.

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