Located in Ziyuan Road, Yuhua District, Changsha City, the first upgraded shop of Shatian steamed stuffed buns (Shatian Baozi) opened on October 24. The stuffed buns with only four stuffings (chopped pork, smoked bean curd, gardenia with brown sugar and pickled vegetables) still attract many citizens. The fillings used are green and characteristic ingredients from Ningxiang City.  
The 42-year-old Wu Daqiu is the sixth generation inheritor of Shatian Baozi, a cultural heritage item. He began to learn to make steamed stuffed buns and manage the shop from his parents and grandparents at the age of 14. With years of experience, he founded Hunan Kangyuan Catering Co., Ltd in 2013, which was a great leap toward the success of Shatian steamed stuffed buns.  

Shatian Baozi won the title of “Hunan’s time-honored brand” and was honored with “Innovation and technology award” at Hunan Cuisine Annual Ceremony in 2020. With the advanced quick freezing technology, the newly-produced uncooked buns can keep fresh for a long time before they are steamed and sold.  

“After years of innovation, we developed this technology and now have many distributions stores,” Wu Daqiu said proudly. The fully automated production line is put into use, which can do the fermentation and dough kneading as manual labors do.

The operation of quick freezing technology greatly improves staffs’ working efficiency. “Those engaged in making and selling stuffed buns have to get up at around 2:00 a.m., which is rather wearisome. The new technology successfully addresses the acute problem,” Wu Daqiu said.

“The steamed bun is one of the staple food for breakfast for most Chinese people, so it enjoys a promising market and thus has attracted many investors like some famous convenience stores and internet giants to get into the market. Given the competitive market, we, to be honest, feel the stress but we have countermeasures,” Wu Daqiu said.

Based on its own factory and R&D team, the company has developed the quick freezing technology, which is the a strong competitive edge that can establish a complete chain for product supply and direct sales.
“Shatian steamed stuffed bun is a combination of both traditional techniques and technological innovation. Improvements will also be seen in ordering, warehousing and distribution and marketing systems,” said Wu Daqiu. Moreover, big data and algorithm will gradually be applied in the company’s operation and promotion.

Shatian steamed stuffed bun originated from Shatian Village and now grows into a well-known brand in Ningxiang, Changsha, and other cities in Hunan Province. According to Wu Daqiu, the company is seeking further marketing strategies based on big data while improving services and building interactive platforms.