Introduction: Why Does Haidilao Boast Such a High Number of Repeat Customers?

 

In today’s highly homogenized hot pot market, the reason customers keep coming back is no longer just "delicious food". Have you ever noticed this phenomenon? Whether it’s a comforting solo dinner after work or a birthday celebration with a group of friends, Haidilao is many people’s top choice. It is neither the cheapest nor the one with the most diverse dishes, yet it ranks among the hot pot brands with the highest customer retention rate and stickiness.

 

Why are customers willing to choose Haidilao time and again? Because every meal here is more than just "having food"—it is an emotional experience of being "cared for" and "understood". From free nail services and toys for kids to holiday gifts and staff bidding farewell by addressing customers by their names, Haidilao leverages systematic experience design to turn an ordinary dining experience into a memorable, shareable and revisit-worthy "service theater".

 

Based on the Experience Strategy and Management Model, this paper systematically analyzes how Haidilao uses the experience-driven strategic model and experience-driven wheel to create customer experiences characterized by high premium, high repurchase rate and high reputation, thereby reconstructing the value logic of the catering industry.

 

 

Brand Promise: Service Is the Product, Experience Is the Brand

 

Haidilao’s brand promise is not just lip service, but is deeply embedded in every single customer touchpoint. At the core of its brand lies the commitment to "serving every customer with heartfelt care". This philosophy stems from founder Zhang Yong’s early hands-on practice of "compensating for the taste with exceptional service", and has evolved into the brand DNA that sets Haidilao apart from its industry peers.

 

The brand value of Haidilao is not merely reflected in the hot pot itself, but in the construction of an overall perception of "being cared for": whether it is the thoughtful refreshments and nail services provided during the wait in the store, or the warm gestures of staff offering a helping hand and small gifts when customers leave, the brand image has gradually transformed from "a place with delicious hot pot" to "a warm and welcoming service destination". This has fostered a "perceptual asset of experience" that resonates deeply with customers.

 

This promise translates into a core value proposition: "Beyond hot pot, delivering care that exceeds customers’ expectations."

 

 

Experience Strategy: Making Every Bite of Hot Pot an "Emotional Highlight"

 

Haidilao’s experience strategy is clearly focused on "end-to-end care" and "creating memorable moments at critical junctures". Its experience strategy is built on three core pillars:

 

- Front-of-house Experience to Enhance Perceived Value: Through thoughtful touches such as complimentary snacks, nail services and a play area for children in the waiting zone, waiting time is transformed into the opening phase of the customer experience, building up customers’ anticipation.

 

- Refined Management of Service Processes: At every service stage—from ordering and food delivery to soup refills and takeaway packaging—staff adhere to standardized procedures and an expectation-surpassing response mechanism.

 

- Emotional Triggers Embedded at Key Touchpoints: For instance, the initiative to offer greetings, desserts and small gifts to customers celebrating birthdays or anniversaries creates an emotional connection between the brand and its customers.

 

This kind of experience not only satisfies basic needs, but also systematically shapes peak experiences—the most memorable and shareable highlights throughout the customer journey.

 

 

Design of Critical Moments: Systematic Construction of Emotional Peaks

 

1.Waiting Stage — The Surprise Begins in Anticipation

The complimentary drinks, snacks, nail services, shoe shines and a kids’ play area in the waiting zone are the earliest and most acclaimed experience innovations of Haidilao. They transform the originally anxiety-inducing "queue time" into an enjoyable "waiting experience", setting a positive emotional tone for the entire customer journey. The experience innovation at this stage warms up customers emotionally even before they make a purchase, thereby reducing their price sensitivity and enhancing brand favorability.

 

2.Dining Stage — Service as Theatrical Performance

Every staff member is granted a high degree of autonomy to proactively create tailored experiences based on customer needs. For example, providing a "companion doll" for solo diners, preparing cartoon aprons and tableware for children, and offering unconditional replacements or even complimentary drinks when customers accidentally spill their dishes… This kind of personalized and warm service becomes storytelling material shared among customers, generating high-frequency content for social media platforms.

 

3.Post-Dining Stage — Emotional Closure and Loyalty

LoopSending off customers with greetings, holding the door open, presenting small gifts, and addressing customers by their surnames are standard practices for Haidilao’s closing experience. This warm conclusion significantly strengthens overall customer satisfaction and boosts their willingness to recommend the brand to others, serving as a key link in forming the experience flywheel of "repurchase — word-of-mouth — new customer acquisition".

 

Case Example: A customer who was unable to dine due to a cold was offered hot water and ginger soup by the staff. The staff also helped the customer’s friends pack takeaway food, along with a pack of tissues and a handwritten blessing card. Later, the customer wrote a long recommendation post on Xiaohongshu, which received tens of thousands of likes.

 

 

Action Mechanisms: Organizational Capabilities Underpinning Experience Innovation

 

1.A Culture of Service Empowerment

Haidilao employees are given a high degree of autonomy to resolve customer issues. They do not need to report to superiors level by level, but can directly offer compensations, gifts or solutions to customers. This enables more agile service responses and a substantial increase in customer satisfaction.

 

2.Training Mechanisms to Strengthen Value Consensus

New employees are required to undergo training on the core values of "customer first" and "exceeding expectations". Meanwhile, through scenario simulation drills, they improve their adaptability and ability to recognize customers’ emotional needs.

 

3.Organizational Structure Supporting Innovation Replication

Through its regional partnership system, dividend incentive mechanism and employee promotion framework, Haidilao effectively links "experience innovation" with "personal growth". This turns the optimization of customer experience into a self-driven initiative of frontline employees, rather than a one-way demand imposed by the management.

 

 

 

Experience Management System: A Data-Driven, Continuously Optimized Experience Operation Mechanism

In recent years, through technical collaborations and internal system iterations, Haidilao has gradually established a data-driven experience management mechanism. Its characteristics are reflected in the following aspects:

 

- Full-cycle digital customer journey management: AI systems are leveraged to identify customer preferences and optimize experience processes such as ordering, recommendation and queuing.

 

- Real-time satisfaction tracking and feedback mechanism: Through feedback channels including online reviews and rating systems, the brand captures real-time insights into customer experiences and drives targeted improvements.

 

- Personalized service and operational intelligent recommendation: Data platforms are used to generate member profiles and gain preference insights, facilitating precision marketing and customized service scenarios.

 

- Closed-loop management of customer feedback: Based on collected feedback, the brand conducts issue tracking, service rectification and employee incentive assessment, forming a closed loop of "experience data — action response — optimization and enhancement".

 

Though not officially named an "Experience Management Platform", this practice constitutes an experience-centric, data-driven operational ecosystem, supporting Haidilao in consistently delivering warm and consistent experience value.

 

 

Conclusion: Experience Is More Than Excellent Service — It Is a New Engine for Sustainable Growth

 

Haidilao’s success stems not only from its "beyond-expectation" service details, but more importantly from its systematic strategic management centered on customer experience.From brand promise and employee incentives to critical experience design and experience data governance, Haidilao has built an experience value chain that prioritizes customer feelings and drives the brand’s long-term growth.

 

For the catering industry, experience is no longer an embellishment, but a strategic starting point. By establishing their own critical moment systems, service mechanisms and brand experience propositions, every catering brand can forge its own path to success akin to Haidilao’s.