The transition of power at Wahaha, once China’s undisputed beverage king, has entered a turbulent new phase. A sweeping management reshuffle at Hongsheng Group, the entity controlled by heiress Kelly Zong (Zong Fuli), has seen the departure of nearly all her top lieutenants. This mass exodus includes the heads of administration, sales, legal, and production, signaling a total collapse of the inner circle that was supposed to bridge the gap between the era of the late founder Zong Qinghou and his daughter’s modernizing vision.
Among the most notable departures is Ye Yaqiong, the Director of the President’s Office and a twenty-year veteran of the Wahaha system. Ye was widely regarded as Zong’s right hand, having been promoted rapidly as Zong Fuli consolidated power following her father’s passing in early 2024. The fact that such a core loyalist—alongside other key figures like sales general manager Wu Tingyan and legal chief Zhou Zhuoying—has exited suggests a profound rupture in the company’s strategic direction.
The vacancies are being filled not by industry heavyweights, but by a cohort of grassroots employees promoted from within the lower ranks of Hongsheng. While this move allows Zong to bypass the pushback of the 'old guard,' it leaves the group with a significant deficit in institutional memory and high-level management experience. This 'soloist' approach to leadership appears to be Zong’s response to the friction she encountered during her brief attempt to break away from the Wahaha brand altogether.
This friction reached a fever pitch in late 2025 during the ill-fated 'Waxiaozong' rebranding attempt. After briefly resigning from her roles at Wahaha Group amidst a power struggle with legacy shareholders, Zong returned but found her hand-picked executive team increasingly unstable. The subsequent investigation of production director Yan Xuefeng and the resignation of former chairwoman Zhu Lidan illustrate a leadership structure under immense internal stress, where the boundary between the legacy Wahaha empire and Zong’s Hongsheng vehicle remains a site of constant conflict.
By centralizing all strategic decision-making and direct oversight of the marketing and sales departments, Zong Fuli is doubling down on a 'break and rebuild' philosophy. However, the beverage industry in China is currently a theater of brutal price wars and shifting consumer tastes. Attempting to navigate this landscape while simultaneously purging the veterans who manage the company’s sprawling distribution networks is a high-stakes gamble that could either revitalize the brand or accelerate its decline.