Southeast Asia sales have increased more than fourfold. What new developments are there in Guizhou Moutai's overseas expansion?

Interface News Reporter | Wu Bingcong

Interface News Editor | Ren Xuesong

It has become a consensus that Chinese Baijiu should pursue internationalization, with leading companies’ actions usually being the clearest and most direct.

On March 16, at the Guizhou Maotai 2026 International Channel Merchants Conference held in Guiyang, this leading Baijiu company disclosed its overseas market performance in 2025 and looked ahead to future development directions.

It is understood that more than 180 channel merchants from 66 countries and regions participated in this conference. During the event, Chen Hua, Party Secretary and Chairman of the Maotai Group, shared a set of growth data: firstly, in 2025, the company’s duty-free sales doubled, Southeast Asian market sales increased over fourfold, and zodiac liquor sales grew by 135.5% year-on-year.

Guizhou Maotai 2026 International Channel Merchants Conference / Photo source: provided by interviewee

Some regional and category growth was achieved on the basis of channel development. The company disclosed that Guizhou Maotai added more than 20 new channels in 2025. According to the 2024 financial report, Guizhou Maotai had 104 overseas channels by the end of the year. Adding over 20 overseas channels in just one year shows the company’s rapid pace of market expansion.

Additionally, in terms of marketing, Maotai’s overseas “6+1” new media matrix has surpassed 4.47 million followers, with over 21.83 million interactions.

Guizhou Maotai has publicly disclosed growth data related to overseas markets multiple times in recent years. In 2024, Guizhou Maotai’s overseas revenue first exceeded 5 billion yuan, and in the first half of 2025, its overseas revenue reached 2.893 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 31.29%.

The overseas expansion of Chinese Baijiu is taking place amid industry deep adjustments and slowing domestic performance growth. Currently, overseas market revenue still accounts for only a small part of the liquor business. However, positive signals of growth in overseas markets remain what Chinese Baijiu needs most right now.

Sales of Feitian Maotai at a Guizhou Maotai store in Singapore / Photo: Interface News Wu Bingcong

“Many newcomers.” Speaking about his deepest impression of participating in this conference, a senior overseas channel merchant from Southeast Asia described to Interface News. It is understood that in Singapore alone, the authorized Maotai distributors increased to six in 2025.

To sell Baijiu overseas, Guizhou Maotai has made many efforts, with expanding new channels being just one indicator.

Efforts also include rectifying the chaos of returning liquor. According to data released by the China Food and Alcohol Import and Export Chamber of Commerce’s Liquor Import and Export Branch in February 2026, China imported 362,580 kiloliters of Baijiu in 2025, a 5.3% decrease year-on-year, while import value increased by 28%. This data points to the issue of high-end Baijiu flowing back into China.

Baijiu returning to the domestic market or to well-performing overseas markets like Southeast Asia can disrupt local price systems. Instability in supply and pricing makes it easier for counterfeit products to exploit loopholes.

In November 2025, senior executives of Guizhou Maotai addressed the “returning liquor” phenomenon during the third-quarter briefing, stating that they had strengthened market control, increased rectification efforts, and suspended some channel supplies.

Interface News learned from overseas distributors that since 2025, scanning the “iMaotai” app can verify which overseas distributor supplies Feitian Maotai, making it easier for consumers to identify sources and authenticate the liquor.

At this conference, Guizhou Maotai announced it would take strong measures to maintain market order, clearly define handling standards for violations such as smuggling and returning liquor, and has completed an upgrade of the traceability system for core export products.

Interior view of Guizhou Maotai store in Hung Hom, Hong Kong / Photo: Interface News Wu Bingcong

At the international channel merchants’ conference, Guizhou Maotai also outlined future development directions: in 2026, Maotai will fully promote the market-oriented transformation of its international business from “channel-driven” to “consumer-driven.”

Huang Jie, Party Secretary and Chairman of Maotai Import & Export Company, said the company will further optimize channel layout, focusing on wholesale, online retail, offline retail, catering, and private domains, reducing levels and expanding reach, to better serve consumers.

Starting from New Year’s Day 2026, Guizhou Maotai will sell Feitian Maotai directly to consumers at an official price of 1,499 yuan via the “iMaotai” direct sales channel. This indicates that Maotai’s channel reform is gradually extending from domestic to overseas markets.

Regarding products for overseas markets, the company plans to build a product matrix with 53-degree Feitian as the “base,” and premium and cultural editions as the “apex,” emphasizing extreme scarcity and high-end branding for aged Maotai products.

For overseas consumers more familiar with lower-alcohol liquors, Maotai is also exploring the development of international versions of low-alcohol Maotai, aiming to integrate into mainstream overseas consumption markets and truly reach local consumer groups.

It is understood that Maotai’s import & export company has completed the drafting of the “2026-2030 Guizhou Maotai International Market Market-Oriented Transformation Plan.”

Post-COVID-19, cross-border trade has gradually recovered. During the National People’s Congress and Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, many industry representatives expressed concern about Baijiu’s overseas expansion, which is becoming increasingly important for top-tier brands. For example, on the same day as Guizhou Maotai, Shanxi Fenjiu held a forum with over 70 overseas distributors from 34 countries and regions.

China’s Baijiu export data directly reflects overseas performance. Interface News checked customs statistics and found that over the past three years, China’s Baijiu exports have continued to grow, reaching 16,791,860 kiloliters in 2025, a 2.5% increase year-on-year, but export value declined by 9.9%.

Chart: Interface News Wu Bingcong

While export volume increased, export value decreased, indicating that in 2025, China’s Baijiu exports followed a low-profit, high-volume trend, and market fluctuations affected the export market.

Based on customs data, the estimated export price of Chinese Baijiu in 2025 was about RMB 380.46 per liter. Calculated for typical packaging like 500ml bottles, the price is only RMB 190.23 per bottle, meaning that mainstream-priced liquors constitute a significant portion of exported Baijiu.

It should be noted that the actual retail price overseas, after adding spirits tax, logistics, distributor costs, etc., is usually higher than the export price.

From Guizhou Maotai’s latest overseas business data, it is clear that Chinese Baijiu has achieved certain results abroad, but market challenges still remain.

For Maotai, going global means building its brand strength and competing with top foreign spirits. During visits to key overseas markets like Hong Kong and Singapore in 2025, it was observed that local Baijiu prices are influenced by domestic prices. Maintaining the domestic market price system to stabilize overseas markets is also a challenge for Chinese Baijiu’s internationalization.

Against the broader background of Chinese companies expanding abroad, Baijiu enterprises are also seeing broader business opportunities overseas. According to data released by the Ministry of Commerce in January 2026, by the end of 2025, Chinese companies had established over 50,000 overseas enterprises across 190 countries and regions. In 2025, China’s foreign direct investment reached USD 174.38 billion, a 7.1% increase from the previous year, maintaining a leading position globally.

Chinese companies are bringing Baijiu drinking habits abroad. In this context, besides focusing on sales volume, liquor companies need to deepen the branding and cultural value of Baijiu to sell more high-end products and compete with foreign premium spirits.