On October 12th， according to local news reports， Zong Fuli has resigned from her positions as Chairman of Wahaha Group and other roles to fully dedicate herself to creating a new brand， “Wa Xiaozong.” This development has quickly attracted significant public attention.
Almost concurrently， her uncle， Zong Zehou， launched his own brand， “Wa Xiaozhi，” and initiated recruitment for distributors. The recruitment personnel have explicitly stated their intention to “compete in the market alongside Zong Fuli，” adding another intriguing layer to this brand transition.
This is not Zong Fuli’s first departure from Wahaha. She previously tendered her resignation in July of last year， but was persuaded to return to the group following “friendly negotiations among shareholders.”
However， this departure carries different implications. With questions arising regarding the compliance of the “Wahaha” trademark usage and the emergence of the new brand “Wa Xiaozong，” her exit appears to be an inevitable trend.
Even after stepping down from key executive positions， Zong Fuli retains a 29.4% stake inherited from her father， Zong Qinghou， making her still the second-largest shareholder in Wahaha Group.
Since returning to China in 2005 after completing her studies， Zong Fuli has amassed 20 years of experience in the food and beverage industry. She also transformed Hongsheng Group， initially a contract manufacturer for Wahaha， into an enterprise with revenues exceeding ten billion yuan， encompassing the entire beverage industry chain， including ingredient production， high-end equipment manufacturing， and printing and packaging. The contributions made during her tenure have elicited mixed reviews from within Wahaha.
According to media reports， a long-term employee who has been with Wahaha for 15 years commented， “We are generally aware of management changes， and it will certainly affect the stability of our own teams and those around us.” This employee candidly admitted that since Zong Fuli took over Wahaha， team members’ incomes have decreased， and some benefits and perks have been canceled.
With Zong Fuli’s resignation， the future adjustments to the team remain uncertain. However， the employee clearly stated， “If Wahaha can be acquired by state-owned capital， most of us employees would be willing to stay.”
It is noteworthy that “Wa Xiaozong，” which Zong Fuli is poised to fully promote， is under the management of her Hongsheng Group. Public data indicates that Hongsheng Group was established in 2003， and after Zong Fuli took charge in 2007， it transitioned to focus primarily on beverages and expanded its full-产业链 (full-industry chain) services.
Between February and May 2025， Hongsheng Beverage Group submitted dozens of trademark applications for “Wa Xiaozong，” covering multiple categories such as food， beer and beverages， and convenience foods. They also simultaneously registered related trademarks like “Zong Xiaoha” and “Wa Xiaoha，” with some applications having already passed preliminary review.
Previous reports suggested that the unsuccessful transfer of the “Wahaha” trademark might have been the trigger for Zong Fuli’s resignation.
On September 12th， a notice circulated online titled “Notification on Carrying Out Distributor Communication Work for the 2026 Sales Year.” The notice stated that since the passing of Wahaha Group’s founder， the company has been striving to resolve various historical issues. To ensure the compliance of “Wahaha” brand usage， the company has decided to adopt a new brand， “Wa Xiaozong，” starting from the 2026 sales year.
The notice further elaborated that problems have arisen with the usage of the “Wahaha” trademark. “Due to complex historical issues that cannot be effectively resolved in the near future， the company’s operations are consistently exposed to legal risks. Therefore， we are compelled to make the aforementioned arrangements. Under the current equity structure， the use of the ‘Wahaha’ trademark requires the unanimous consent of all shareholders of Wahaha Group; otherwise， no party has the right to use it.”
Recognizing that the trademark issue might be difficult to resolve promptly， Zong Fuli appears to have proactively prepared “Wa Xiaozong” as a contingency plan.
As of now， Wahaha maintains three major shareholders: state-owned capital holds 46%， Zong Fuli holds 29.4%， and the employee stock ownership association holds 24.6%.
Regarding Zong Fuli’s resignation， Lan Shili， Chairman of Dongxing Group， interpreted it as a “power struggle between state-owned and private capital to some extent.” He explained that when Zong Qinghou was alive， he could leverage his long-standing operational relationships， and the designed equity structure allowed for majority shareholder control. After Zong Qinghou’s passing， particularly with the onset of internal conflicts within Wahaha， state-owned capital has gradually begun to gain control of the company.
