"People Will Always Tell You That It Won't Work" - CHEERS Wines
I met Claudia Masueger, 43, from Switzerland, founder of CHEERS Wines in one of their stores, where she told me about how she was born into the wine business, what balance is to her and how you never should listen to other people's opinions.
Claudia lived in India for four years where she did a lot of a charity work, where the subject of her work was computer education. But with it being unpaid work she eventually had to return to Switzerland to find other options. So, she decided to pack two suitcases of wine samples and go to China to try her luck; and she has now been here for 7 years.
- I arrived in 2008, and I was very lucky to get the deal to provide the Swiss house with wine and beverage during the Olympics, it gave me a very good start here.
She first founded a Company called MQ wine, and a year later had a Chinese business partner for this company. But in November 2010 the business burned down. So for 4 months they were out of business, and during this time they developed CHEERS. CHEERS came to life because at that time the vine market in china was very different, the wine was overpriced and most consumption went to the government, business meetings or the military.
- My wish was that we would make it possible for normal people to afford at least one bottle of wine a month, that was the vision in the beginning. And we managed, 4 months after this fire, to open our first CHEERS store which offered a bottle of wine for 29rmb, purely imported from Spain with an awesome quality. So that really changed the wine market in Beijing.
CHEERS manage such good prices because of the network of Claudia’s family. Her father have worked his whole life in the wine business and he, in Switzerland, personally checks every product in terms of price and quality and gives it a yes or no before it comes to China.
After the first store they expanded really fast, and as a wine business CHEERS has a very different look; it is very non- traditional. There are no wooden barrels; instead they have gone for a fashionable, young, colorful and clean look, with awesome wine and awesome prices, to target the young generation. Also having a lot of parties and events to create a better contact to their customers.
- Our dream is that, when you have your normal daily busy life, we want to give people a break, bring them to the store, have them relax, have a glass of wine, don't think about all the stress outside. The goal with our customer service is that the customer feel better about themselves after they walk out the store, walk out with a smile, our mission is that CHEERS makes you smile. And this is even more important than selling wine; make people smile.
CHEERS also puts a lot of focus on education, in the sense that they have an internal educational center for their employees, where they teach customer service, wine knowledge, sale skills and even entrepreneurship, so that their own staff will be able to open their own stores in the future. Teaching them about career planning, bookkeeping and also give them the self-confidence to do this. Already having a store in Chengdu run by a former employee.
- Education is a focus for us, it is very important. Customer service is one thing we are very famous for in Beijing, we have the most awesome staff!
For the moment their own stores in Beijing are 12, along with one franchise store opening soon in south of Beijing, as well as several franchisees, with the goal of eventually having 888 stores. A goal that does not seem too far away, with requests coming in from outside of China (Vietnam, Philippines and Thailand) to open stores there as well.
- We are working on this now, so hopefully, by the end of the year, we can already see CHEERS somewhere else.
How did you come up with the name “CHEERS”?
- We had a lot of brainstorming sessions, with lots of wine, of course. (haha) And, well, CHEERS is so obvious, it is a wonderful name, and we are very proud we could even register it; I thought it never would be possible. And even to design the logo; we had 3 months and even 6 different designers trying to make the logo, and it looks so simple, but to make something awesome, it takes a lot of time. I’m really proud of it, and customers really like it, I always wear it on the street and people come up to me and talk about CHEERS.
What has been the most difficult thing about doing this business, especially in China?
- Everything is difficult! Nothing is easy and nothing you get for free, you really have to deserve it and you have to earn it! It is like climbing a mountain; there is no shortcut, you have to go through all the pain and all the hassle to reach your goal. China specifically, there is a huge cultural difference; this is not to be underestimated. And all this government administration things, which is really difficult to understand, especially as a foreigner. And to understand the Chinese style of doing business, that is a very big challenge.
Best thing about it?
- Oh God, there are so many good things! Well, the people are the best thing for me; I am a very people oriented person. And that we have found something great, people love, it has potential for a great future. We get copied a lot, two years ago we had our first copycat and now we have hundreds! Two years ago I was upset but now I think it is a “compliment.” (haha) Wine is also becoming a bigger subject, in some Chinese restaurant you can find wine, and the beer consumption is actually decreasing because the wine consumption is increasing. There is a huge interest from the young generation in wine. And they ask a lot of questions, so, for example, every Wednesday we have in every store a "mini wine school", for free, were people can taste and learn about the wine. So, yeah, so many great things! This is my life, my passion!
- The people, especially our staff, we have amazing, awesome people! Some have been with us for years, and some recently, and how they develop themselves; they come here with no self-confidence, and we develop heroes, this is for me success. If I can see people grow and for them to get excited about opening their own stores. This for me makes absolutely sense; developing people more than selling wine.
How do you find a balance in life?
- Damn… do I have a life balance? (haha) Yeah, it is very difficult, because I love this so much, for me it is not working, it is my life! Maybe it is weird that I don't need a balance… but maybe this is my balance? I do some yoga in the morning and some meditation to prepare myself for the craziness which will come, but I don't really have a hobby. Maybe balance is drinking a glass of wine once in a while..?
How do you find ambition?
- It comes from inside out; it is a natural thing, I think. When I do something it needs to be done correctly, I don't do half things; I am fully committed with all my heart and my passion.
What do you do outside of your work?
- There is no outside work, CHEERS is a full time commitment. It is all about the people; I love to talk to all the customers, I love to spend time with our staff, they are all wonderful, great people, it is all I need.
What is the next step for your business?
- Next step is to grow our franchising and our own stores in China and internationally.
Any tips for women who want to start their own business or have a dream they want to do?
- The most difficult part is to know what you want, and if you know, you have to be persistent. Because 1000 people will say "that won’t work", so you have to believe in your dreams, follow them and never give up; because it is never going to be easy. And how do you know if it is the right thing to do? Your heart will tell you. Listen to yourself, feel if it is good or people are good. Feel if you are happy, and if you are happy it is the right thing to do. In the beginning everyone told me I was crazy; “It will never work, people in China don't drink wine!” People will always tell you that it won’t work, but if people laugh and say it often, you know it is actually a good idea. That is my experience. Know what you want, be persistent, never give up and follow your dreams.
Coffee or tea?
Coffee, definitely, black, strong!
Heels or handbags?
Oh my God, none of them please! If I have to choose then definitely handbags, I don't know how women even walk in heels! It is definitely not my thing.
Sparkling champagne or heavy red wine?
Good question… it really depends on the occasion. If I have friends around and want a happy start, I definitely go for sparkling. But if I have a rendezvous, or a nice dinner with meat, I would go for heavy red wine. But if I have to choose a priority; I would go for heavy red wine.
Night out or night in?
Nigh in. I have a crazy life, so I like to be home and read a book. I am so much in contact with people all the time so I really love to have a night in.
Have a random person decide a new name for the business, or, right here right now name the business DRUNK?
Oh that is really hard, DRUNK or anything else… DRUNK is strange, I love it. I think I might go with DRUNK, and the reason is that I like to be different, and I am scared that someone will try to go for the traditional. So if random person would pick something it might be a traditional name. DRUNK is a weird name, I wouldn't really choose it, but I think it is so weird you can do something with it. I think I will go for DRUNK. (haha)