Our product, "Joy-filled Drink," is a medicinal and edible fruit tea that combines ingredients like kaempferol and GABA, aiming to help target customers alleviate emotional stress. We selected various traditional Chinese medicinal materials with calming properties (including dried tangerine peel, poria, goji berries, red dates, and dried longan) to formulate the fruit tea, and we have optimized the flavor to better suit everyone's preferences.

Due to biosafety concerns, we will not incorporate kaempferol and GABA produced by our microorganisms into our products. We plan to incorporate commercially purchased finished products of kaempferol and GABA . However, the addition of kaempferol and GABA must go through legal review, so these two ingredients have not yet been included in the current product phase. We plan to integrate them into our formula in future iterations as we progress with regulatory approval applications. We will provide all stakeholders we communicate with a detailed overview of the complete concept of "Joy-filled Drink" and seek their feedback.

During the product form determination process, we considered various formats, such as gummies, cookies, tablets, and powders. However, after repeated discussions, we realized that while these forms are creative, they are not easily integrated into people's daily lives. Through discussions with experts, interviews with the target population, and internal reflections, we recognized that beverages have already become a part of modern daily life, and almost everyone is accustomed to drinking various types of drinks. By offering our product as a beverage, we can provide more flexible customization options, such as sugar adjustments and ingredient selections, allowing consumers to tailor their experience to their needs. Therefore, we decided to confirm the product form as a beverage, which not only fits easily into people's lives but also provides a more economical and everyday emotional support solution for our target audience. This decision also ensures the acceptance and practicality of our product in the market.

In modern society, stress has become a norm in people's lives. Whether at work, school, or in daily life, many individuals find themselves under high pressure. This ongoing stress not only affects physical health but also has a profound impact on mental well-being. Prolonged exposure to high stress can easily lead to a cycle of emotional lows and anxiety, which, if not addressed in a timely manner, may ultimately develop into depression.

Currently, there are two main approaches to treating depression: medication and psychological intervention. In discussions with psychologists and psychiatrists, we learned that all antidepressants, except fluoxetine, come with warnings about the potential risk of increasing suicidal thoughts. This is because while antidepressants can alleviate depressive symptoms, they may also exacerbate them, and anti-anxiety medications can worsen anxiety symptoms. Additionally, antidepressants may lead to side effects such as weight gain, stomach pain, and insomnia. While medication can alleviate some physical symptoms, effective solutions typically require a combination with psychotherapy.

The costs of psychological therapy usually range from 1,000 to 2,000 yuan per session, lasting about one hour. Treatment typically occurs once a week, averaging 4 to 8 months, and some patients may require therapy for 2 to 3 years. These expenses far exceed the average income level in China. Furthermore, psychologists cannot meet clients privately, limiting support and comfort to formal sessions.

Faced with the side effects of medication, the high costs of psychological therapy, and insufficient daily support, we hope to provide an effective and more economical supplementary support solution through our product, "Joy-filled Drink." We aim to offer a gentler and more accessible way to provide a new avenue for emotional management for those in high-pressure situations, reducing dependence on medication and bringing more comfort and peace to their daily lives. It can also aid in the prevention of depression and support symptom control for those suffering from it. Additionally, we hope to raise awareness about depression through commercial channels, dispelling biases against patients. Our goal is not only to provide an effective emotional management product but also to advocate for the importance of mental health, promoting a correct understanding and acceptance of depression in society.

In the initial stage of the project, we positioned our target customers as people with depression. In the communication with the psychological counseling room, we realized that our products alone could not effectively treat depression. Therefore, we decided to adjust the target customer group and shift the focus to anxious people under high pressure. Our products hope to help these high-pressure people relieve their emotions and reduce their risk of developing depression, thereby preventing depression. Our products can also provide auxiliary support for patients who have already suffered from depression, helping them to better control their symptoms. This concept was affirmed and supported by Dr. Li, which strengthened our confidence in the direction of the project.

After consulting the 2022 National Depression Blue Book, we found that 86% of people with depression believe that emotional stress is the main cause of depression. When faced with negative emotions, many people choose to bury them in their hearts instead of channeling and releasing them in a timely manner. In the long run, this emotion will not only fail to be relieved, but may be aggravated and even lead to depression. [1]

Among patients with depression, women account for as high as 68%, far higher than men, and the probability of women suffering from depression is about twice that of men. Multiple studies and reports published by The Lancet show that women have been more negatively affected by social and economic factors during the epidemic, which has led to a further increase in the incidence of depression. In addition, reproductive-related hormonal changes such as menstrual cycles, pregnancy, and menopause make women more susceptible to a special type of depression known as "reproductive depression." Depression not only affects women's physical health, but also has a profound impact on their social relationships, career development, and self-worth. Due to the interweaving of multiple factors such as physiological hormone fluctuations and external pressure, women's depressive symptoms are usually more complex and require more attention and comprehensive intervention. [1]

After conducting an online survey of the target group, we found that as social pressure continues to increase, people's attention to "healing" related content has risen rapidly in the past year. More and more consumers are beginning to pay attention to the emotional value brought by products and expect to obtain actual effects on this basis. [2][3]

More than 65% of the respondents had emotional problems to varying degrees, and more than 95% of them still had negative emotions at night. Worryingly, about 15.34% of them fell asleep almost every day due to negative emotions. Emotional problems and negative emotions have become a common problem in modern society. [2][3]

In terms of gender differences, the proportion of women with emotional problems is 66.67%, which is significantly higher than that of men. Among those who spend the night with negative emotions, the proportion of women reaches 98.55%, which is also higher than that of men. This data shows that women are more susceptible to negative emotions and more likely to have emotional problems than men. [2][3]

The data shows that the main sources of emotional stress include work, money, family, and health issues. Among them, financial issues account for 29.6%. This finding makes us realize that products need to be affordable and healthy to meet the needs of more high-pressure people. We must take into account the economic affordability of this group in terms of emotional management and provide an affordable emotional regulation solution. [4]

Currently, effective measures are urgently needed to help anxious people under high pressure, especially women, relieve emotional stress and prevent potential risks of depression. Faced with such a huge demand, our products must not only be affordable and healthy, but also provide users with a daily, convenient and effective way to manage emotions. In this way, we can help them easily find emotional balance in their busy lives, reduce the negative effects of anxiety and stress, and further prevent the occurrence of depression.

(1) We will pay close attention to customer needs and develop products that meet customer expectations.

(2) Ensure that our products can be implemented in practice through communication with similar businesses

(3) To determine our current first step of business direction, we conducted business training and first step exploration

(4) Incorporate the opinions of all stakeholders involved in each stage of the project.

What we need to pay most attention to is the perspective of the target group. From the beginning of the project, we put customer needs first and improved and diversified our products.

In addition to meeting the needs, there are many issues to consider in actual implementation. In order to realize the implementation of the product, we will actively communicate with similar businesses and learn from their experience.

Whether the business model can be successful depends on whether we dare to take the first step. In addition to attending business lectures and communicating with business experts, we have also developed a small trial and error plan and have taken the first step.

At each stage of the project, we will collect opinions from target customers and related groups. Through their suggestions, we are able to design professional products and practical plans that are applicable to the real world.

We communicated with team members who have experienced depression and online depression patients, as well as classmates and white-collar workers who are under pressure. The feedback they provided allowed us to better understand the needs and pain points of our target users, and also provided impetus for the optimization and improvement of our products. These exchanges have enabled us to design products that are more in line with actual needs.

We also organized offline activities for students with depression and anxiety, hoping to help them relieve stress. This event provided them with a relaxing and soothing environment, and also gave us the opportunity to collect their opinions and feedback on our project.

In our communication with them, we learned that they were resistant to taking medicine because they did not want to be seen as "patients." In contrast, they prefer to relieve their emotions through some daily ways, such as eating delicious food, buying favorite aromatherapy, watching a happy movie, or doing appropriate exercise. During the event, we also observed that many participants would buy drinks and snacks, and unconsciously drink and eat these items during the event. This phenomenon encouraged us and further strengthened our confidence in providing help to the target population based on daily needs.

It was through these exchanges that we gradually optimized our products, evolving from the original milk tea to fruit tea, and launching tea bags and sachets. Each time we upgrade our product form and launch a new product, it is based on our understanding of user needs, ensuring that our products can better meet the needs of people with depression and anxiety.

We communicated with white-collar people in high-stress situations, and through these interactions we learned about their core concerns when choosing mood management products.

First, they are most concerned about the efficacy of the product, ensuring it can effectively relieve mood and stress. Secondly, price is one of the primary factors they consider, and cost-effectiveness has a direct impact on their decision-making. In addition, the taste of the product is also an important consideration. They hope to be able to enjoy the delicious food and gain emotional relief at the same time.

In addition, product promotion methods and packaging design also have a significant impact on their purchasing decisions. They tend to choose products that are visually appealing, have clear messaging and fit the brand image. Through these exchanges, we further clarified the directions we need to focus on in product development and marketing to better meet the needs of high-pressure white-collar people.

To this end, we have had communication with laboratory professionals to discuss how to increase the yield of kaempferol in our products. At the same time, we also explored ways to reduce production costs. On this basis, we launched a new product with added lemon, which not only makes the taste more refreshing and pleasant, but also further enhances the user experience.

We also put a lot of effort into product packaging design, hoping to visually attract consumers' attention. Our initial poster design was based on the theme of freshness, which can also attract the attention of many potential customers. Through these improvements and efforts, we hope to create a product that has both healing effects and meets market needs.

We removed tea leaves and selected a variety of Chinese medicinal herbs that have soothing effects (tangerine peel, poria cocos, wolfberry, red dates, and dried longan). We consulted the "List of Items That Are Both Food and Medicine" [5][6] and the "Regulations on the Management of the Catalog of Substances That Are Traditionally Both Food and Chinese Medicinal Materials" [7] and determined that these ingredients could be added to our fruit tea as food. Our first generation of products did not contain tea leaves, kaempferol, and GABA. Tea leaves can cause insomnia, and the addition of kaempferol and GABA needs to be reviewed.

At the beginning of the project, we conducted a business survey, which included three questions about the feasibility of our project. These questions were designed to assess market demand, consumer acceptance of new products, and potential purchase intentions.

According to the survey data, when relieving emotions or dealing with depression, the most common way chosen by participants is physical exercise, accounting for as high as 46.03%; followed by diet adjustment, accounting for 21.34%; psychological counseling is 14.23%; and drug treatment is 8.37%. Although the proportion of diet adjustment is not the highest, compared with psychological counseling and drug treatment, diet adjustment is still the most preferred option besides physical exercise.

In our communication with psychological counselors, we learned that patients with depression and anxious people often have somatization symptoms, manifested as laziness and unwillingness to exercise. For groups with more severe symptoms, a comprehensive intervention of drug therapy plus psychotherapy is a better choice, while diet adjustment is an effective auxiliary treatment option. Exercise adjustment is more suitable for people with milder symptoms, but even so, these people often involve buying favorite drinks or energy supplements during exercise.

Although there is the above analysis in theory, we also further explored the questionnaire data. Many participants are not very interested in taking medication and psychological counseling, which may be related to the high cost of counseling and drug prices, and many people find it difficult to afford these costs. In addition, the sense of stigma is also one of the reasons why many people are reluctant to receive treatment.

This phenomenon also gives us room for thinking. In the future commercialization process of the project, we may need to provide a large enough venue and launch more interesting activities to help everyone release stress and emotions. By creating a relaxing and pleasant environment, we hope to provide a non-medicalized emotional regulation channel for the target group, allowing them to effectively manage their emotions without stigma.

According to the survey data, most respondents expressed their willingness to try the new type of milk tea with kaempferol added to help improve mood or relieve depression symptoms. The specific data are as follows: 20.08% of the respondents are very willing to try, 27.62% of the respondents are relatively willing, and 22.59% of the respondents have a general attitude. In contrast, 22.59% of the respondents are not very willing, and only 7.11% of the respondents clearly stated that they are completely unwilling to try.

The reason for this data distribution may be related to the fact that we did not explain the efficacy of kaempferol in detail when distributing the questionnaire. Some respondents are not familiar with the ingredient kaempferol, so they have psychological resistance to unfamiliar additives. However, half of the respondents still expressed their willingness to try, which shows that most people have a positive attitude towards kaempferol milk tea.

Overall, although some respondents are not familiar with kaempferol, the survey results show that this product has good market potential. In the future, we can use clearer publicity to let more consumers understand the role of kaempferol and further improve their acceptance.

The data from the questionnaire survey on whether dietary adjustment can relieve depression symptoms showed that only 7.11% of the respondents believed that dietary adjustment could not relieve depression symptoms, while the majority of people approved of this approach. This result shows that although some people are skeptical about this, most people still believe that dietary adjustment plays a certain role in mood management and depression relief. This provides support for our exploration of products that assist mood regulation through diet and further verifies the feasibility of our product concept.

In the survey, we also set up two questions to understand the aspects that customers care about most when choosing products. The feedback from these two questions gave us a clearer understanding of consumers’ priorities for products, and also helped us understand what we should pay special attention to during product development.

In order to ensure the comprehensiveness of the data, we designed this question as a multiple-choice question. According to the survey data, when choosing functional drinks, the most concerned factor for respondents is "whether the ingredients are natural", accounting for 61.51%; followed by "taste", accounting for 59%; then "efficacy", "price" and "brand".

This result makes us realize that in future product development and promotion, we should give priority to the natural ingredients of drinks, which not only meets the health demands of consumers, but also enhances the market competitiveness of products. At the same time, the optimization of taste is also very important, because taste directly affects consumers' purchasing decisions.

In the multiple-choice survey on the efficacy of kaempferol milk tea, the data showed that the respondents were most concerned about its safety, accounting for as high as 82.43%; followed by side effects, accounting for 72.38%; concerns about effectiveness accounted for 36.82%; concerns about price accounted for 23.85%; and concerns about taste accounted for 23.01%.

This result shows that consumers are most concerned about safety and side effects of new functional drinks, which are also the issues that must be addressed first in the promotion of functional products. Therefore, in the subsequent product development and promotion process, we need to focus on the safety of the product and provide scientific basis and authoritative certification to eliminate consumer doubts. At the same time, in response to concerns about side effects, the product formula needs to be further improved to ensure its safety and reliability. In addition, although the attention to price and taste is relatively low, they are still important factors affecting consumers' purchasing decisions. We also need to optimize these aspects to enhance the market competitiveness of the product.

We also investigated effective methods to attract customers to help us better formulate subsequent marketing strategies.

According to the survey data, the recommendation of professionals is the most attractive factor for buyers, accounting for 64.02%; followed by recommendations from friends or family, accounting for 49.79%; followed by tasting activities, advertising, promotions and discounts.

This result shows that consumers are more inclined to rely on the advice of authoritative and trusted sources when choosing functional drinks. Therefore, in future marketing promotions, we can focus on cooperating with professionals such as industry experts and nutritionists to enhance the credibility of products through their recommendations. At the same time, word-of-mouth communication from friends and family is also crucial, indicating that the influence of social recommendations on consumer decision-making cannot be ignored. Combined with these feedbacks, we can plan tasting activities and cooperate with advertising, promotional discounts and other methods to further enhance the market exposure and attractiveness of products.

Although we have obtained certain data support through the questionnaire, the limitations of the questionnaire have gradually emerged. The main problem is that we cannot accurately focus on a specific target group, and it is also difficult to deeply understand the real feedback and needs of the respondents like one-on-one communication. Therefore, we only did this questionnaire, and the subsequent work will focus more on direct communication with target customers and experts in related fields. This will help us obtain more targeted and in-depth feedback, so as to further optimize product development and market strategies.

This is the link to our open questionnaire (https://www.wjx.cn/vm/QCLU2bc.aspx). We hope to collect more feedback through this channel to help us continuously improve the project.

After exchanges with the teachers in charge of the Chinese medicine laboratory, Chinese medicine experts and Chinese medicine researchers, we learned about the application of Chinese medicine in treating depression and soothing mood. Traditional Chinese medicine has many prescriptions that have been proven over hundreds of years to be effective in relieving psychological and emotional problems. Through these exchanges, we learned that many active ingredients of traditional Chinese medicine have also been confirmed in modern scientific research to have significant antidepressant and anti-anxiety effects.

For example, Chinese medicinal materials such as Bupleurum, licorice, and skullcap are often used to regulate liver qi and soothe mood. The active ingredients in these medicinal materials, such as flavonoids and saponins, have neuroprotective effects and can help relieve anxiety and improve mood. In addition, herbs such as Ziziphus Semen and Polygala Polygala are known for their sleep-promoting and calming properties, which can help patients get a better rest at night, thereby further reducing emotional stress during the day.

During our communication, we also learned that GABA (γ-aminobutyric acid), as an important neurotransmitter, not only has a significant effect in helping sleep, but also plays an important role in reducing anxiety and regulating emotions. . GABA helps the brain relax and reduce excessive neural activity by regulating the excitability of neurons, thereby bringing a feeling of tranquility and comfort.

It was under the impetus of these exchanges that we began to conduct in-depth research on the flavonoids in Bupleurum. These ingredients are widely used in traditional Chinese medicine and have significant antidepressant and antianxiety effects. We also began to study how to use E. coli to produce kaempferol and GABA. It is hoped that through synthetic biology methods, large-scale production of these compounds with important pharmacological effects can be achieved. These research efforts of ours have been recognized by traditional Chinese medicine researchers and experts, who believe that our direction has great potential.

We attended a seminar organized by the psychological counseling room. Through exchanges with psychiatrists, we learned that the high-risk population for depression is mainly concentrated between the ages of 20 and 40, and the proportion of female patients is relatively higher. This information provides important guidance for our subsequent market promotion and stall pilot, allowing us to more accurately locate and care for key groups with limited resources and energy.

In addition, the seminar also made us realize that our products alone are not enough as an independent treatment for depression. The treatment of depression does not only rely on drugs, but also requires comprehensive intervention in many aspects. Therefore, we adjusted the positioning and goals of the product, no longer targeting only patients with depression, but expanding it to an emotion management tool for a wide range of people in high-pressure states. Our products hope to provide people in high-pressure states with an auxiliary way to regulate emotions and help prevent the occurrence of depression. At the same time, for patients with depression, our products can also serve as an auxiliary to help them better control symptoms and provide support for daily emotional regulation.

This makes our product positioning clearer, which can not only help high-pressure people manage emotions, but also provide effective support for the prevention and symptom control of depression.

We planned to use E. coli to produce kaempferol, but in initial experiments, the yield of kaempferol was lower than expected. Such low volumes do not meet the goal we set to provide an effective and economical supplementary support solution with our products. Therefore, we sought the advice of biological experts. Following their advice, we modified the enzymes in our process to significantly increase the yield of kaempferol, bringing us one step closer to achieving our ultimate goal.

In the process of promoting product development, we consulted online and offline legal experts and paid attention to the issue of adding kaempferol and GABA to food. According to the lawyer's advice, these ingredients can be added to food, but relevant food safety standards and regulations must be strictly followed to ensure that their use as food additives does not exceed the safety range, thereby ensuring the health and safety of consumers.

We need to follow a series of food safety standards such as the "National Food Safety Standard for the Use of Food Additives" (GB 2760-2014), the "National Food Safety Standard for Food Flavors General Rules" (GB 29938-2020), and the "National Food Safety Standard for Food Flavors" (GB 30616-2020). These standards make detailed provisions on the scope of use, dosage, conditions of use and quality specifications of food additives. When we add kaempferol and GABA to our products, we must strictly control their content to ensure that they meet the conditions of use and quality standards stipulated by the state.

In order to legally add these ingredients, we need to submit detailed safety assessment materials to the health administrative department of the State Council. This includes an analysis of the safety, effectiveness and potential risks of kaempferol and GABA. Only by passing this rigorous safety assessment and obtaining administrative approval for new types of additives can we legally use these ingredients in our products.

We had an discussion about the product concept with a Chinese medicine milk tea shop owner in Shenzhen, who is also a Chinese medicine practitioner. He first affirmed our creativity and shared his entrepreneurial experience with us. According to his experience, Shenzhen consumers have a high acceptance of Chinese medicine tea drinks. However, he also pointed out that some Chinese medicine formula milk teas need medical qualifications to be legally sold. At the same time, he mentioned that male consumers are more inclined to choose health teas, and the product pricing can be relatively low.

However, he also pointed out a key problem: despite the low pricing, the purchase rate of the product is not high. In his survey, customers generally prefer to choose big brand milk tea shops. He suggested that we could consider cooperating with big brands, and it would be a rather difficult process to create a milk tea brand independently.

During the discussion, we also raised the question of whether the taste and packaging of milk tea might be factors that affect customer purchases. So we tried the drinks in the store ourselves and found that its taste was far better than most milk teas on the market, the packaging design was also very distinctive, and the price was reasonable. However, during the few hours we communicated, there were very few customers in the store, which once again confirmed his view that consumers prefer big brands.

He also mentioned that due to limited funds, the location of the store may also be a problem that leads to a lack of customers. This made us realize that in addition to the quality of the product itself and brand awareness, location selection is equally important for attracting customers. This provides us with a new direction for thinking in future brand promotion and store layout.

This exchange provides an important reference for our subsequent product promotion and brand strategy, and also allows us to more clearly understand the challenges and opportunities in the market.

We invited Mr. Zhao to give us a business lecture on project development. Before the lecture, we elaborated on our initial idea to promote our own products and open our own milk tea shop, and also asked Mr. Zhao about the key points to pay attention to in the commercialization process.

Mr. Zhao first pointed out that although we hope to open a milk tea shop independently, it may be a bit challenging for us from a practical point of view, and suggested that we consider cooperating with big brands, with their resources and experience, to promote the product landing more efficiently. When talking about the core of commercialization, Mr. Zhao emphasized that whether it is product development or market promotion, customer needs must always be the core. We need to deeply understand and clarify the main needs of customers in order to improve our solutions in a targeted manner. Mr. Zhao also mentioned that in our previous target customer interviews, one interviewee mentioned that "good smell can also bring emotional relief", which is actually a potential market demand. In this regard, Mr. Zhao suggested that we can develop some additional products related to the product, such as sachets, which can meet customer needs without consuming too much of our energy and resources.

In addition, under the guidance of Mr. Zhao, we further improved the business canvas model. This helped us to more clearly understand the key links that should be grasped in the business process, how to conduct market positioning and marketing, and how to allocate resources reasonably. This lecture not only gave us a more systematic understanding of the commercialization of the project, but also provided a clear direction for our future business path.

After communicating with Mr. Zhao, he said that we can make the materials public, hoping that these materials can help the iGEM team that wants to commercialize the project in the future.

We met with an investor who shared with us the current situation of various milk tea categories in the market and pointed out that our product did open up a new track. However, she also reminded us that there are already several big brand milk tea shops in the market, and our ideas may be quickly imitated and plagiarized by these brands. Therefore, she suggested that we must make full preparations in advance and quickly establish our own brand. Otherwise, if we cannot quickly establish brand influence, it is better to consider cooperating with big brands and becoming their sub-brands, using their resources and market channels to promote the development of products.

If we decide to create our own brand, she suggested that we must carefully choose the target market. She mentioned that we need to choose a potential city for detailed analysis, explain the reasons for our choice of the city, and study the possibility of how to become popular in this market. Finally, she said that if we can develop a richer product line and formulate a more complete market plan, she will consider further cooperation with us.

This meeting not only made us more aware of the severity of market competition, but also provided important guidance for our subsequent brand strategy, market analysis and cooperation direction with big brands.

This is the business canvas we developed for the project, which has been revised and improved many times. The business canvas details the strategic planning of the project in various key elements, covering important contents such as core partners, main activities, value propositions, customer relationships, resource channels, cost structure and revenue sources. Through clear division of roles and effective resource allocation, we hope to make the product better accepted by the target group and provide an effective and economical emotional support solution for high-stress white-collar workers and people with depression and anxiety.

Prevalence of major depression and anxiety disorders by region

Globally, the number of patients with major depression is approximately 246 million, and the number of patients with anxiety disorders is as high as 374 million. In recent years, with the continued economic downturn, the incidence of depression and anxiety has increased year by year, and more and more people are in urgent need of effective emotion regulation programs to deal with psychological stress and emotional distress. [8]

The prevalence of major depressive disorder is significantly higher in women than in men, which means that our products can provide more targeted services for the female population when designed and promoted. By developing products such as functional fruit teas, combined with natural methods of mood regulation, our products have the potential to reach hundreds of millions of people around the world, especially those looking for non-drug methods of mood management.

Drug types: fluoxetine, venlafaxine, mianserin, bupropion, trazodone, etc.

Product price: 150-300 yuan/box

Usage: tablets, dosage according to doctor's instructions

Advantages: Clinically proven to be effective for moderate to severe depression. It has a positive effect on anxiety, panic disorder, insomnia and other accompanying emotional and psychological problems.

Disadvantages: single mechanism of action, serious adverse reactions, short duration of action, and long medication cycle. Except for fluoxetine, other drugs are marked with increased suicide risk, and patients need to be treated under the strict supervision of a doctor.

Brand name: Watoo, PrimeHarmony, Vitahealth, Laif

Product price: 150-300 yuan/bottle

Usage: 1-2 tablets per day in tablet or capsule form.

Advantages: The brand has international influence, the product ingredients are transparent, and the efficacy is clear.

Disadvantages: The price is relatively high, and the oral method can easily make consumers feel like a drug, and it needs to be taken for a long time to be effective.

Product positioning: Psychotherapy is suitable for patients with moderate to severe depression or individuals with long-term psychological trauma, and is usually used as an auxiliary means of drug treatment.

Price: The cost of one-hour consultation is about 1,000-2,000 yuan

Advantages: Personalized service, psychotherapy provides one-on-one in-depth consultation and emotional support according to the specific situation of the individual.

Disadvantages: Expensive, psychotherapy usually takes a long time to be effective, which makes psychotherapy unable to become a widely accepted emotional management method for the public. The quality of psychological counseling institutions on the market is uneven, which may have a negative impact on the mental health of visitors. We encountered a bad psychological counseling agency and felt the huge psychological pressure they brought from the beginning. The counselor kept trying to force us to admit that we had psychological problems instead of listening to our troubles or helping us explore ourselves. What's more shocking is that their consultation fee is as high as 3,000 yuan/hour, giving people a feeling of taking advantage of people's psychological fragility for profit. Such an experience is not only disappointing, but also deepens our vigilance against potential chaos in the mental health service industry.

Product types: Aromatherapy, essential oils, scented candles, etc.

Product positioning: Relieve stress and anxiety through aromatherapy.

Product price: Between 50-200 yuan, depending on the brand and fragrance.

Advantages: No side effects, easy to use, and can effectively create a relaxing environment.

Disadvantages: The effect is relatively indirect and cannot directly relieve severe depression symptoms.

Product type: meditation courses, yoga courses.

Product positioning: Relieve stress and anxiety through psychological counseling and physical relaxation.

Product price: From 100 yuan to several thousand yuan, depending on the course duration and format, and the price varies in different cities.

Advantages: No side effects, suitable for long-term use, and helps improve overall physical and mental health.

Disadvantages: Long-term persistence is required, the effect varies from person to person, and it is difficult to see results quickly.

The market needs a more effective and economical auxiliary support solution to provide a new way to manage emotions for the majority of people under high pressure and patients with depression. Existing drugs, health care products, psychotherapy and aromatherapy all have their own advantages, but they also have limitations to varying degrees: drug treatment has significant effects, but is accompanied by side effects and long-term dependence; health care products, although natural, are slow to take effect. And the price is relatively high; psychotherapy is highly personalized, but expensive and difficult to popularize; although aromatherapy has no side effects, its effect is indirect and difficult to meet the needs of serious emotional problems.

Therefore, there is a need for a product that can fill this gap in the market and provide a gentle, accessible way to manage emotions that can help consumers reduce stress in their daily lives while avoiding the negative effects of medication.

1.Cooperate with big brand milk tea shops to seize the market opportunity: The team will quickly enter the market through cooperation with big brand milk tea shops, and expand market share with the help of big brand resources and channels. At the same time, respond to the national policy of encouraging innovation and entrepreneurship, enhance brand influence, and seize the opportunity in the functional fruit tea market.

2.Seek progress in stability and seek development down to earth: Although the team has technical advantages and product innovation, it also faces challenges such as insufficient funds, low visibility, lack of management experience, and imperfect sales channels. The team should remain sober and should not rush to expand due to technical advantages. It should carefully formulate development plans. By gradually solving the problems of funds, visibility and channels, the team will seek progress in stability and develop every link down to earth to ensure sustained and healthy growth.

3.Establish a sense of crisis, be prepared for danger in times of peace, and continue to innovate: In the fierce market competition, the team must always maintain a high sense of crisis, always be prepared for danger in times of peace, and continue to promote innovation in product formulas and flavors to maintain market competitiveness. By constantly updating and optimizing products, the team can attract consumers for a long time and consolidate its market position.

4.Build a multi-channel and comprehensive publicity system: The team should actively expand various publicity channels, including radio, television, Weibo, WeChat and other social media platforms, to build a comprehensive publicity system. Through extensive market exposure, brand awareness can be enhanced, laying a solid foundation for future development and further expanding market influence.

Let fruit tea become an indispensable drink in people's daily life like coffee. Coffee is mainly for refreshing, while our fruit tea is centered on relaxing the body and mind. By combining natural ingredients and Chinese medicinal materials, we hope that fruit tea can become a daily mood regulation tool for people with high stress, helping them find a moment of peace and relaxation in their busy lives. Just like coffee helps people refresh themselves, fruit tea will become a "relaxation tool" in daily life.

Our project goal is to reduce the cost of key added ingredients (such as kaempferol and GABA), and through cooperation with Chinese medicine manufacturers, further reduce the cost of other ingredients in fruit tea, thereby reducing the price of the product. Compared with health supplements such as oral liquids and medicines, we choose to present the product in the form of fruit tea, which is easier for users to accept. In daily life, we hope to reduce stress for the target population through this product and provide an effective and economical emotional support solution.

First, become a sub-brand of a big brand, and use the resources of the big brand to achieve team growth and business expansion. After completing the development of fruit tea products, the team plans to break the traditional milk tea sales model and expand into the development of customized fruit tea services and auxiliary products for enterprises. In addition, the team will launch more community activities, such as DIY fruit tea making, decompression games for high-pressure people, etc., to help the target population relieve stress and improve emotional health through various forms, thereby making positive contributions to the emotional management and mental health level of the entire society.

We chose Shenzhen as the first city for market development. Here are the reasons for our choice.

1. During our interview, we learned that Shenzhen has a very high acceptance of Chinese herbal tea. Chinese herbal tea such as Cantonese herbal tea is widely popular in Shenzhen, which provides a good market foundation for the fruit tea we introduced.

2. As a super first-tier city in China, residents in Shenzhen generally face greater life and work pressure. The high-pressure living environment makes people more inclined to seek soothing and relaxing consumption methods, and our fruit tea products are designed for this purpose, which meets market demand.

3. Shenzhen has a large and diverse population, especially young people account for an important proportion. Young people have a high acceptance of new things and are willing to try new products and concepts. Compared with other cities, young people in Shenzhen are more open to innovative products, which provides favorable conditions for the promotion of our decompression fruit tea.

Therefore, Shenzhen is not only a city with huge market potential, but its market demand is highly consistent with the characteristics of our products, which makes Shenzhen the first choice for our market development.

1. Early stage (1-2 years): actively cooperate with big brands of milk tea on the market, focus on the diversified research and development of fruit tea products, and enhance the business capabilities of the team. Plan to launch a variety of fruit tea flavors that can soothe emotions, steadily expand market share, and gradually accumulate brand resources.

2. Mid-term (3-5 years): Committed to building and enhancing brand influence. In addition to fruit tea products, increase customized services and auxiliary product development for emotional relief. By planning community activities, such as tea DIY and stress relief games, help the target population relax and promote product sales. This stage will focus on expanding the domestic market, entering first-tier and second-tier cities, and gradually building brand awareness.

3. Six years and beyond: Become a well-known domestic brand and enter the international market. At this time, the team will start the sale of fruit tea formulas and the planning of public welfare community activities, and launch a franchise model to better open up the market. At the same time, it will also actively promote the improvement of social psychological health levels and become a positive force in promoting social emotional management.

Sales staff: The annual salary of each sales staff is about 80,000-120,000 yuan. If the team is initially equipped with 5 sales staff, the annual cost is 400,000-600,000 yuan.

Research staff: The annual salary of senior researchers is about 150,000-300,000 yuan. Assuming that the team is equipped with 2 researchers, the annual cost is 300,000-600,000 yuan.

Managers: The annual salary of senior executives or core managers is usually 200,000-500,000 yuan. Assuming that 1-2 managers are equipped, the annual cost is 200,000-1 million yuan.

Total human cost (initial estimate): 900,000-2.2 million yuan/year.

Advertising expenditure: Advertising on social media is about 100,000-500,000 yuan/year, depending on the advertising coverage and frequency. Offline advertising, event promotion and other expenditures are expected to be 200,000-500,000 yuan/year.

Sales promotion: Including tasting activities, store promotions, etc., it is expected to be about 100,000-300,000 yuan per year.

Total market cost (initial estimate): 400,000-1.3 million yuan/year.

Equipment Procurement: The initial investment for production equipment for functional fruit tea is approximately 1-3 million RMB, including juice extraction machines, filling equipment, etc.

Equipment Depreciation: The depreciation period for the equipment is 5-10 years, calculated at 5%-10% of the equipment value per year, resulting in annual depreciation costs of about 100,000-300,000 RMB.

Total Factory Production Costs: Initial equipment investment of 1-3 million RMB, with annual depreciation of 100,000-300,000 RMB.

Factory, office, and offline store rents vary significantly based on city and scale. For example, in a second-tier city, factory rent is approximately 300,000-500,000 RMB/year, office rent is about 100,000-200,000 RMB/year, and offline store rent is around 100,000-300,000 RMB/year.

Total Rental Costs: Approximately 500,000-1 million RMB/year.

R&D Investment: This includes new product development, maintenance of experimental equipment, etc., amounting to about 500,000-1 million RMB/year. If continuous development of new products or improvements to existing products is planned, higher investment may be required.

Total R&D Costs: 500,000-1 million RMB/year.

Raw Materials: The procurement cost of core ingredients for functional fruit tea (such as shan nai fen, GABA, etc.) and materials like tea leaves and juice is about 3-5 RMB per cup. The raw materials needed to produce 100,000 cups would be approximately 300,000-500,000 RMB.

Packaging Costs: Depending on materials and design, the packaging cost per cup of fruit tea is about 1-2 RMB. For 100,000 cups, the cost would be 100,000-200,000 RMB.

Total Product Costs: 400,000-700,000 RMB/year.

Labor Costs: 900,000-2.2 million RMB/year

Marketing Costs: 400,000-1.3 million RMB/year

Factory Production Costs: Initial equipment investment of 1-3 million RMB, with annual depreciation of 100,000-300,000 RMB

Rental Costs: 500,000-1 million RMB/year

R&D Costs: 500,000-1 million RMB/year

Product Costs: 400,000-700,000 RMB/year

Initial Total Costs (including equipment investment): 3.7-9.2 million RMB

Annual Operating Costs (excluding equipment investment): 2.8-6.5 million RMB/year

As a high school student team entering the market, we lack experience, and our credibility is relatively low in the initial stages. Therefore, we will prioritize collaborating with major brand milk tea shops to become their sub-brands, leveraging their influence and resources to enhance our brand recognition and gain market acceptance. We plan to gradually expand our marketing channels based on this collaboration, aiming to achieve a target market share of 1% in the first year. As the team grows and our marketing strategies mature, our long-term goal is to achieve a 5% market share, gradually enhancing our brand's market position.

Considering the characteristics of our team, we have established a marketing strategy focused on "building the market as a means, guiding with win-win marketing, and aiming to enhance the brand." First, by partnering with well-known major brands as their sub-brands, we will utilize their market resources for rapid growth. Second, online, we will promote our brand through our official website, Weibo, WeChat, and other social media platforms, sharing product information and user feedback to increase consumer trust and affinity. Offline, we will organize DIY milk tea events and other interactive experiences, combining experiential marketing with event marketing to establish deep interactions with consumers, enhancing their sense of participation and positive feelings. Through these activities, we hope to encourage more people to choose our fruit tea products, allowing them to relieve stress and enjoy their experience, thereby conveying our brand's core concept of "stress relief."

In the niche market of "Stress-Relief Fruit Tea," we are establishing ourselves as an emerging force, creating a new path. In recent years, as social pressures have increased, particularly among white-collar workers, the demand for stress-relief products has surged. We aim to fill this market gap by developing fruit tea products focused on emotional relief, meeting the growing psychological needs of consumers. Additionally, our team will actively promote a "multi-industry, multi-directional development" strategy, focusing not only on enhancing the sales capacity of a single product but also on cross-industry collaborations with partners in the food processing industry, traditional Chinese medicine clinics, and others, to expand the industry chain, further capture market share, and enhance our overall competitiveness in the industry.

Although we will initially enter the market as a sub-brand of a major brand, we also place great importance on building our own brand. With a clear brand identity and high-quality product positioning, we are committed to creating a "high-quality, all-encompassing" brand effect. In the early stages, our team will actively promote a high-quality fruit tea image both online and offline, allowing consumers to perceive our professionalism and unique value. By building a positive brand reputation, we will gradually gain market trust and loyalty, achieving a win-win advantage for both brand and reputation. Our long-term goal is to attract more consumer attention and choices for our fruit tea products through brand premium effects.

To more precisely meet the needs of different target markets, our team has developed a flexible customized product sales strategy. We will design diverse fruit tea products based on the characteristics of different consumer groups to meet the varied needs of white-collar workers, students, and even businesses. Through precise market segmentation and analysis, we will better identify consumer needs and tailor solutions for them, thereby enhancing our competitive edge.

Search engine marketing is a web marketing strategy based on search engine platforms, leveraging users' reliance on and habits with search engines. By deploying precise keywords, we effectively convey our product information to target consumers. When users search for related information on stress relief or health drinks, our fruit tea products will be prominently displayed in search results, increasing brand exposure and click-through rates. By optimizing search engine ads, we can precisely target the market at the moment users are actively looking for products or solutions, enhancing brand influence.

The combination of experiential marketing and event marketing is a key method for attracting consumers. Typically, consumers are cautious about new products, so to alleviate their concerns and encourage them to try our fruit tea, we will organize a series of interactive activities, such as DIY milk tea making and games to win free drinks. These events allow consumers to experience the product firsthand while increasing engagement and opportunities for social sharing. Through trial activities, consumers can intuitively appreciate the product's quality and uniqueness, boosting their willingness to purchase. Additionally, participants often recommend our products to friends and family, leveraging their word-of-mouth to help establish a solid customer base and further expand market impact.

Word-of-mouth marketing is a promotional strategy based on consumer-driven communication. Through market demand research and analysis, we will provide products and services that meet consumer expectations, triggering positive feedback. The team will develop a detailed word-of-mouth promotion plan, encouraging consumers to share their experiences and reviews through social media interactions, user feedback, and promotional activities. When consumers form a positive impression of the product and actively spread the word, it will help us establish a trustworthy brand image in the market.

We plan to become a sub-brand of a major brand and operate independently, with an estimated total investment cost of approximately 4.5 million yuan.

1.2 million yuan will be allocated for the preparation and operation of the trial store, covering initial costs such as rent, renovations, and employee salaries.

2.1.5 million yuan will be designated for the procurement of production equipment and other materials for fruit tea, ensuring product development, production, and supply.

3.300,000 yuan will be invested in market promotion, collaborating with the major brand for joint advertising and promoting our products through multiple channels to increase brand exposure and market penetration.

4.200,000 yuan will cover travel expenses for team members, supporting business expansion, market research, and collaboration discussions in different cities.

5.500,000 yuan will serve as working capital for the team to address potential unexpected expenses during operations, ensuring flexibility to respond to market changes and operational needs.

Based on market research and cost control strategies, and considering the financial situation of our target customers, we have adopted a low-margin, high-volume strategy, with an expected gross profit margin of 15%. This strategy not only aligns the products with the demands of the target market but also provides a solid financial foundation for future expansion and sustainable operations. Through this approach, we hope to maintain significant sales volume while gradually enhancing our brand's market influence and consumer loyalty.

To provide customers with a relaxed and enjoyable shopping environment, we require the sales staff in the tea shop to maintain a friendly and enthusiastic service attitude, proactively interacting with customers to create a laid-back and welcoming atmosphere. This ambiance not only offers customers a stress-relieving experience but also conveys our fruit tea brand's core philosophy—helping customers ease their emotions and release stress through simple beverages. Additionally, we will design a comfortable in-store environment, complemented by soothing background music, to further enhance the overall customer experience and ensure they feel relaxed during each visit.

To ensure efficient communication and collaboration within the team, we will establish clear communication mechanisms to avoid increased employee stress due to information flow issues. Through well-defined responsibilities, open communication channels, and regular internal meetings, we will ensure that all team members stay updated on the latest work progress and can quickly address any potential issues.

We also prioritize the mental and physical health of our employees. The company will establish a dedicated psychological counseling department to provide regular support and guidance, helping employees alleviate work-related stress. Furthermore, we will enhance employees' sense of belonging and well-being by providing a healthy work environment and organizing team-building activities regularly.

As a team comprised of high school students, we rely on the resources of the traditional Chinese medicine laboratory and actively explore various collaboration opportunities in the early stages of our project. Our human resource policy is: "Attract suitable talent, cultivate future talent, and enhance overall quality." Based on this, the team will closely monitor common human resource management pitfalls in biotechnology companies and advance human resource management scientifically and efficiently.

Starting from corporate strategy, we will develop a comprehensive human resource plan to ensure the rational introduction and allocation of talent while focusing on employee training and development. By establishing sound systems for performance management, compensation and benefits management, and labor relations management, we aim to institutionalize and standardize human resource management, providing solid talent support for the long-term development of the company.

1.Finance and Accounting Responsible for the company's overall financial planning, creating detailed budgets, managing cost control, and effectively overseeing cash flow. The core objective of this position is to ensure the financial health and stability of the company to support sustained growth. Financial personnel will also assist management in formulating future development plans and conducting financial risk analysis, providing accurate financial data and decision-making support for company operations.

2.Marketing Specialist We seek experienced marketing professionals, particularly those familiar with the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) sector. This position will develop and execute effective brand promotion strategies and market entry plans to help the company stand out in a competitive market. The marketing specialist will assist the team in creating promotional schemes aligned with our brand philosophy through precise market analysis and consumer insights, enhancing market penetration and brand influence for our fruit tea products.

3.Legal Advisor Ensures that all company operations and products comply with relevant laws and regulations, especially in the realm of food safety. The legal advisor will provide legal consultation for the company's business activities, mitigating potential legal risks and ensuring compliance throughout all aspects of the business.

Our products are expected to help societal groups, especially those under high pressure in their work and daily lives, better cope with emotional stress. By consuming fruit tea, consumers can alleviate their emotions in daily life, reducing the occurrence of anxiety and depression, thus serving a preventative role. We can also provide daily supportive assistance for individuals with depression, helping them relieve emotional stress in a more natural way. We anticipate that enhancing emotional health will help alleviate social issues arising from anxiety and depression, such as decreased productivity and increased healthcare burdens. Additionally, promoting the concept of emotional management will contribute to creating a healthier and more harmonious social environment.

Given that the product is positioned for emotional relief, some consumers may hold overly high expectations, believing that it can significantly improve emotions or even treat depression. If the product's efficacy does not meet these expectations, it could lead to doubts about its effectiveness. Furthermore, the product might be misunderstood as a type of treatment medication, causing consumers to misjudge its effects. To avoid this, we will enhance consumer education, clearly outlining the product's intended use and functions to ensure it is used appropriately and to prevent misuse.

1.Clarifying Product Positioning and Efficacy: We will clearly communicate to consumers through packaging, promotions, and sales channels that the primary efficacy of the product is to help alleviate emotions. We will emphasize that if consumers face serious emotional issues, they should seek professional help from a doctor, avoiding any exaggeration of the product’s effects.

2.Continuous Innovation and Improvement: We will regularly innovate our products, such as developing different flavors of fruit tea to enhance product diversity. At the same time, we will collect user feedback through social media and other channels to promptly improve the products, ensuring they align with consumer needs, thus maintaining market competitiveness and user satisfaction.

Through these commercial explorations, we hope to better meet market demand, achieve sustainable development, and provide users with safe and effective health management solutions.

Form: milk tea stall, fruit tea product tasting

The primary focus group portrait: high-stress 20-40-year-old white-collar women

Reasons for group portrait:

Through interviews with psychological counseling agencies, we found that the high-risk population for depression is mainly concentrated between 20 and 40 years old, and the proportion of female patients is higher. In daily life, compared with men, women are more inclined to regulate their emotions through diet. Therefore, we positioned the main target population of the first pilot as white-collar women, because they are the main consumer group in the beverage market and have a stronger willingness to consume. Of course, we will not ignore the male white-collar group. In our country, men face greater pressure. Although they prefer to choose a way to relieve their emotions without spending money, their willingness to consume health drinks has also gradually increased in recent years. In view of the limited energy of our team members, we decided to focus on trying key groups first.

Location: Downstairs of the laboratory of Tsinghua University Research Institute

Reasons for location:

There are many companies in the building where the laboratory is located, and a large number of white-collar workers gather inside. Most of the researchers in the laboratory are around 25 years old. They face high-pressure scientific research tasks and often feel anxious.

We set up a stall downstairs in the laboratory of Tsinghua University Research Institute to promote our products. Unfortunately, no one showed interest in our products. After the stall, we returned to the classroom for reflection and discussion. Through discussion, we believe that there are several key problems: First, there is a clear gap between our team and brand in terms of popularity and credibility compared with big brands and big teams. Consumers lack trust in small brand products that have not yet established credibility, so they are unwilling to try. Second, our product design lacks sufficient appeal. Just like cooking, it can only attract customers to try when it is delicious and fragrant. We still have a lot of room for improvement in product design and formula.

Based on these problems, we proposed two solutions and promoted them simultaneously:

1. Looking for cooperation with big brands: We plan to seek cooperation with big brands and become their sub-brands, using their resources and reputation to enhance the market promotion of products and consumer trust.

2. Redesign the product: We decided to comprehensively optimize the appearance design and formula of the product, striving to be more outstanding in terms of vision, taste, etc., and enhance consumer interest and experience.

Through these two strategies, we hope to better solve the current challenges and enhance the market competitiveness of our products.

In the first promotion attempt, no one showed interest in our product, which prevented us from accurately understanding the target population's satisfaction with the taste of the product. In order to obtain more in-depth feedback, we contacted a company and invited its employees to test our product.

The results showed that the taste of our fruit tea did not meet everyone's preferences, and there were obvious differences in taste preferences. Based on this, we realized that the current single formula could not meet the diverse taste needs, so we needed to develop more flavors and formulas to provide more choices.

We will further optimize the product to make it more diversified in taste to meet the expectations and needs of different target groups.

Based on our first generation product, we optimized the formula (the product formula does not contain kaempferol and GABA at this time) and added lemon to make it taste fresher and more in line with the taste preferences of young people. After this adjustment, we tried to set up a stall for the second time, and the result was positive feedback. Some people bought our products and agreed with its taste and concept, which provided confidence and encouragement for our future product promotion and market expansion.

We conducted an in-depth analysis of ten milk tea brands and their sub-brands, and selected the brands that best matched our product concept for detailed research. On this basis, we also conducted self-analysis and deeply understood the core logic that needs to be grasped as a sub-brand.

This process allowed us to further clarify the key elements in brand positioning, market entry and target customer needs.

Maintain the core values of the parent brand while possessing unique personality and market positioning.

High-stress individuals and patients with depression. Our target audience extends beyond those with depression to include urban white-collar workers, high-pressure individuals, and freelancers. They focus on health, are willing to try health products, and seek to enhance their quality of life through these products.

Shan Nai Fen Milk Tea not only helps alleviate some symptoms for depression patients but also aids sub-healthy individuals in relieving stress, improving sleep quality, and enhancing overall life quality.

Hey Tea primarily targets young consumers, especially urbanites who pursue high quality and innovative flavors. This demographic is open to emerging beverage brands and emphasizes consumption experience.

Hey Tea positions itself as a high-quality tea beverage brand, with innovation and unique product combinations as core selling points, such as cheese-topped tea and fresh fruit tea. They strive to blend traditional tea culture with modern innovation.

1. Urban white-collar workers:

Workplace: Nayuki's Tea stores are mostly located in the core business districts and office areas of the city. These areas are home to a large number of urban white-collar workers who have a certain economic capacity and are willing to pay for high-quality tea drinks and light meals.

2. Young consumers:

This generation of young people pursues a personalized and fashionable lifestyle, is highly receptive to new things, and is willing to pay for high-quality, experiential products. They are happy to try new products, like to check in at popular online stores, and pay attention to the appearance of the product and the social attributes of the brand.

The brand uses high-quality tea, fresh fruits and dairy products, and highlights the concepts of "health" and "natural". This positioning attracts consumers who pay attention to quality.

Compared with Heytea, Nayuki's Tea places more emphasis on the concept of health, which is very consistent with our target customer group - these consumers pay attention to health, are willing to try healthy products, and hope to enjoy a higher quality of life through these products. In addition, based on the concept of health and naturalness, our products also have a unique positioning, focusing on helping patients with depression relieve symptoms, while providing stress relief support for sub-healthy people. Therefore, Nayuki's Tea is currently the most suitable brand to be a partner, which is highly consistent with our brand concept and target audience.

We submitted a cooperation application on the official website of Nayuki Tea (https://www.naixue.com/swhz), and filled in details about our consumer groups, brand positioning and style, brand worldview, cross-border cooperation marketing strategy, and resource allocation. In this process, we not only sorted out our own brand positioning and target groups more deeply, but also had a clearer understanding of the future development direction. The experience of filling out the cooperation application this time made us think more comprehensively about our brand.

We invited Mr. Zhao to give us a business lecture on project development. Under Mr. Zhao's guidance, we further improved the business canvas model. This helped us to more clearly understand the key links that should be grasped in the business process, how to carry out market positioning and marketing, and how to reasonably allocate resources. This lecture not only gave us a more systematic understanding of the commercialization of the project, but also provided a clear guiding direction for our future business path.

During the product promotion process, we deeply realized that as high school students, we still have many deficiencies in business, especially in key areas such as marketing, financial management, and brand building. Therefore, we decided to take business courses to make up for these shortcomings. Through learning, we hope to master core skills such as market analysis, financial planning, and brand positioning, further enhance the commercialization capabilities of the project, and lay the foundation for the promotion and development of subsequent products.

We attended a lecture hosted by Mr. Han, technical director of Shandong Zhongke Jiayi Bioengineering Co., Ltd. In the lecture, we learned about the specific process of how microorganisms carry out fermentation production in the factory. In addition, Mr. Han introduced us to the market price and cost structure of industrial fermentation microorganisms, and explained in detail the national laws and regulations related to industrial fermentation. This exchange gave us a more comprehensive understanding of the industrial application of microbial fermentation, and also provided valuable reference for our team's exploration in the commercial field.

We had an exchange with Mr. Gan from the food additive factory. He pointed out that if we plan to use microorganisms to produce food additives, we must pay attention to microbial control. Microbial contamination may not only lead to a decline in the quality of food additives, but also produce harmful substances, threatening the health of consumers. Therefore, in the production process of food additives, strict microbial control measures must be taken to ensure the safety and stability of the products.

Mr. Gan suggested that we establish a sound quality management system and maintain close contact with food regulatory authorities to promptly understand and master relevant microbial control policies and standards. He also suggested that we introduce advanced microbial detection technology and equipment to improve the accuracy and efficiency of detection. At the same time, by adopting automated and intelligent production equipment and technology, the impact of human factors on microbial control can be reduced, and the safety and stability of the production process can be further improved. This exchange made us more aware of the importance of microbial control in the production of food additives.

We contacted a Chinese medicine milk tea shop in Shenzhen and communicated with the owner. The owner not only shared his entrepreneurial experience, but also provided us with many practical suggestions, such as the medical qualifications required for certain Chinese medicine milk tea recipes and in what aspects we can improve. In addition, by understanding some of their recipes, we also gained inspiration for our own product development and provided ideas for our recipe innovation.

We communicated with the staff of Nayuki's Tea and learned about their product concept and the preferences of today's white-collar women and men for drinks. The staff said that people preferred milk tea in the early years, while fruit tea has become more popular in recent years. Men tend to choose iced fruit tea and pure tea, while women prefer ice-free and sugar-free fruit tea. This information not only deepened our understanding of the beverage preferences of white-collar groups, but also provided an important reference for our exploration of product sub-brand cooperation.

We interviewed nutritionist Huang, who suggested that in addition to incorporating some traditional Chinese medicinal ingredients, we could enhance the diversity of our formula by adding fruits like grapefruit. She also noted that supplementing with B vitamins can help regulate and soothe the nervous system, further enhancing the functionality of our product.

Regarding the sugar content in the fruit tea, Huang provided additional recommendations beyond our existing options for sugar regulation and fiber-rich ingredients like oats and barley. Suggested ingredients include:

1.Peach Gum and Tremella: These ingredients are mainly composed of water and gelling agents (like agar and carrageenan), low in calories and easy to digest. They are close to natural foods and can provide dietary fiber.

2.Coconut Jelly: Made from coconut water fermented by bacteria, this low-calorie food is primarily composed of fiber.

3.Grass Jelly: A smooth jelly made from grass jelly and starch, rich in dietary fiber.

4.Tapioca: While tapioca itself lacks dietary fiber, combining it with fruits and grains can provide some fiber indirectly.

These ingredients not only enhance the flavor of the fruit tea but also meet health dietary needs, making the product more suitable for various preferences.

Additionally, Huang expressed her willingness to act as our health consultant once our project is further refined and enters the commercialization phase, providing ongoing professional support. This commitment adds professional endorsement to our project and lays a foundation for future healthy development.

When we were drinking milk tea at Xichun Tea House, we found that their shop decoration was very beautiful. In addition to making milk tea, they also launched many other products, such as peripheral toys, cups, moon cakes, soft candies, etc. This gave us a lot of inspiration. In the future business expansion, we should not only pay attention to the taste of fruit tea, but also design the product packaging more beautifully to bring customers a pleasant experience.

In addition, we can not only focus on the research and development of fruit tea, but also launch other foods such as biscuits and soft candies after the business expansion, and even make tea bags, fruit tea gift boxes, etc. to meet the needs of different customers. This can not only enrich the product line, but also enhance the market competitiveness of the brand.

The packaging we designed for the fruit tea is mainly blue, which not only conveys a soothing and peaceful atmosphere, but also helps relieve the negative emotions of people under high pressure and depressed mood. This color choice is in line with the core concept of our product - to provide consumers with a gentle and pleasant emotional support through drinks. The simple and elegant packaging design can enhance the visual appeal and add a sense of high-end to our brand, which can better attract the attention of consumers.

I love you you love me

A sip of joy, so happy and free

I love you you love me

A sip of joy, so happy and free

I love you you love me

I love you you love me

Joy-filled Drink for you and me

We used AI to create a unique store song for the fruit tea shop. The tune is cheerful and lively, hoping to bring more pleasant emotional experience to our target customers. Through this energetic music, we hope not only to improve the mood of customers, but also to create a relaxed and pleasant atmosphere to better attract and retain customers. This store song will become a unique part of our brand and enhance the overall experience of customers.

We have designed our own mascot, choosing the cute image of a "koala." Since our main product is "Kaempferol," we drew inspiration from the koala. The koala symbolizes emotional stability and peace, which is exactly the core message our project aims to convey—providing emotional support for high-pressure individuals and those suffering from depression. Through this mascot, we hope to let more people feel the warmth that our project brings.

As a high school team, we need to continue deepening our knowledge in biotechnology and food science, particularly in the innovation and optimization of fruit tea formulas. Team members can participate in relevant courses or training in the future to keep up with the latest technologies and trends in the industry. Additionally, we need to enhance our project management and cross-departmental collaboration skills to ensure smooth operation at all stages.

1.Finance and Accounting: Responsible for the company's financial planning, budgeting, cost control, and cash flow management to ensure financial health.

2.Marketing Experts: Experienced marketing professionals, especially in the fast-moving consumer goods sector, who can develop and execute effective brand promotion and market entry strategies.

3.Legal Advisors: Ensure that all business operations and products comply with relevant laws and regulations, particularly in food safety.

In the early stages of our startup, we should appropriately increase salaries to attract top talent, as only by attracting high-quality individuals can we inject innovation and competitiveness into the company. Without attractive compensation and benefits, talented individuals may choose more secure or appealing opportunities elsewhere, putting us at a disadvantage in the talent competition.

1.Major Brand Milk Tea Chains: Seek collaboration with well-known milk tea brands to become their sub-brand, leveraging their market channels and brand resources to enhance product exposure and market recognition.

2.Health and Wellness Brand Partnerships: Collaborate with health food or wellness brands to launch joint products, combining resources to enter the health market and increase product credibility and appeal.

3.Traditional Chinese Medicine Laboratories and Clinics: Continue partnerships with TCM laboratories and clinics to optimize the Chinese medicine components in our products and ensure their scientific and safety aspects. This collaboration can also help establish authoritative certifications, adding value to the products.

4.Mental Health Institutions and NGOs: Partner with depression treatment institutions and mental health non-profits to promote the products as solutions for emotional management and support. This not only enhances the social impact of the products but also opens up the market in the mental health sector.

5.Universities and Research Institutions: Establish collaborations with relevant universities or research institutions to jointly research product efficacy or develop new technologies. This can endorse the products and increase market recognition.

Future efforts should be made from both internal and external perspectives. Internally, we need to strengthen the core skills of the team and recruit professional talent to address gaps; externally, we should actively seek partnerships with major brands, mental health institutions, and various other stakeholders to further expand the market and enhance product competitiveness.

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[2]https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/YGEdt7k8nm6fpTqOI7zT2A

[3]https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/BtHbw89xpfotmHHtgudH5A

[4]https://www.remarkgroup.com/zh/insights/%E8%81%8C%E5%9C%BA%E5%8E%8B%E5%8A%9B%E6%B5%81%E8%A1%8C%E7%97%85-%E5%9F%BA%E4%BA%8E%E6%B6%88%E8%B4%B9%E8%80%85%E6%95%B0%E6%8D%AE%E7%9A%84%E6%B4%9E%E5%AF%9F

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