That tin box was probably the starting point of everything.
It is not the kind of item that is placed on the counter of a shopping mall, showing a cold appearance and being difficult to reach. It was the scented substance that I secretly applied to my mother when I was a child. It was the small blue-green iron box on my grandma's dressing table that was always wiped extremely bright. The lid is a little difficult to open. If you pry it hard with your fingernails, it will make a "pop" sound, and the smell will quickly dissipate - it has a certain momentum, but it can give people a sense of solidity.
At that time, I didn’t know what a “classic interpretation” meant. I only knew that under that thin layer of tinfoil, there was a sense of security hidden throughout the winter.
Who dares to imagine that this small object that has been shuttled through the streets since 1931 will actually be entangled in many unclear things in the future.
What is "the old Wang Xie Tang Qian Yan"?
It was once popular, and it was really popular. It was not as popular as it is created with the help of popular searches and swiping data, but it is a situation where your mother is using it and your grandma is also using it. If the canteen at the entrance of the alley does not put a few boxes, it will feel shameless to open.
At that time, it was called "Fubeikang", and its founder was Mr. Gu Zhimin. I probably never expected that this casual name would last nearly a century.
In 1940, the first jar of Pechoin Cold Cream came out, and all the women in the ten-mile foreign market were competing for it. The three Song sisters used it, Ruan Lingyu also used it, and even the wives of foreign envoys had to entrust others to take it back as a rare item. It was a scent of old Shanghai, mixed with cheongsam, gramophone and the beauties on the calendar.
Phoenix Nirvana? More like a phoenix stuck in its neck
Then, foreign investment came. Unilever and Nivea are pouring in like a tidal wave. Old brands must either die out or seek cooperation. Pechoin chose the latter, what was the result? The joint venture was established, but its own voice disappeared. Full of frustration. I have been depressed for nearly ten years.
In 2000, it redeemed itself, which sounds very tragic, right? However, reality is not like a movie, and the days after redemption are even more difficult.
There are all the colorful new brands outside, who still recognizes your old face?
Turnaround? How can one turn around overnight?
Many people love to write cool articles online, such as content about "a certain well-established domestic product suddenly achieves a counterattack." This is absolutely ridiculous. Where does the so-called "all of a sudden" come from?
Replace it with the jar of Vaseline moisturizer from 2004, which was called "little butter" by netizens. It is also Glycerin No. 1, or Phoenix Placenta Cream. It is the astonishing myth that the annual sales volume of a single product reaches 100 million. Little by little, like an ant moving, it tenaciously carved out a place for itself on the shelf.
It has progressed in its understanding of young people. First, Jay Chou and Karen Mok were signed, then Wang Yibo was signed, and now Zhao Lusi was signed. The original small blue jar with a round sky and a square pattern was quietly transformed into the "Yanlai Baibao Lian" co-branded with the Forbidden City. To be honest, it is quite beautiful.
Smashed the "natural and non-irritating" brand?
The slogan shouted before was "herbal", which is characterized by "non-irritating". So what about now? He actually went to cooperate with Merck of Germany and started to develop "ProVTA" and a "new scientific and technological herb".
Some people scold you, saying that you have changed and that you are no longer the original Pechoin.
nonsense. Can it remain unchanged? If you don't change, you will die.
Furthermore, are the things contained in bottles and jars really just feelings? Yes, there is an element of sentiment, but it is not all sentiment. What appears more is a stubbornness that does not want to be abandoned by the times.
Look at it like this, Pinduoduo is selling Glycerin No. 1 with a price of 9.9 yuan, and at the same time, it is promoting a frame series of products worth thousands of yuan on Tmall. One face was struck, but the other pretended to be rich. His posture is slightly embarrassing, but who is not living in such a miserable state in this world?
It’s 2026, is it still okay?
Just celebrated his 95th birthday.
At ninety-five years old, it should have relied on a cane to move around. However, it is still lying on the card table, competing with a group of brand-new brands born after 2000 and 100 for its placement.
In 2025, it once again broke into the top ten rankings of Douyin beauty, and it almost dominated the list on Pinduoduo. When carrying out live broadcasts to bring goods, go to Mr. Dong and Zhu Guagua, and imitate Han Shu's series of roaring sales methods with expressions such as "uplink, flash sale, and add another order." This situation seems slightly funny, but in fact it is also slightly sad.
But this is what life is like.
There are complaints online. The complaints are about allergies, the complaints are about poor after-sales service, and the complaints are about fake goods. These complaints all exist. Which brand doesn’t have some problems?
But what I prefer to remember is that on a winter morning that was so cold that one could curl up with hands and feet, he took out the small iron box from his pocket and was warmed by the heat of his body. Dip a little with your fingertips, spread it in the palm of your hand, and apply it to your face.
That smell can withstand the coldness of the entire 1990s.
Now that the heating is sufficient and the facial cream is expensive, I have never smelled that smell again.
It's not like I haven't smelled it before. When I smell it, I can never go back to that winter.
The same goes for Pechoin, probably. It can't go back. So do we.
So, whether it is a century-old great cause or a joint creation that benefits both parties, they are all gorgeous words printed on paper. What actually exists is the tin can. After being forgotten by our generation, it can still make the children of the next generation feel that it is brand new.
It's quite difficult. But what if?
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