Bai Jingting's GOODBAI New Store and Collaboration Strategy: Business Logic Analysis

Recently, a huge construction hoarding quietly rose along Yanqing Lane in Shanghai, belonging to the brand GOODEES WORLD. This is the national first store of a sub-line under GOODBAI, the brand owned by well-known actor Bai Jingting. Nearby are his coffee shop, clothing store, and 24-hour vending machine.

Two months ago, GOODBAI also opened a pop-up space here, with Bai Jingting's giant poster attracting countless visitors. Therefore, Yanqing Road was once called "Bai Jingting Pain Street." Many celebrities do brands, but in terms of business ecosystem, channel construction, and expansion pace, Bai Jingting is arguably one of the best businessmen in the Chinese entertainment industry.

The five-bay small villa along Yanqing Road is GOODBAI's first physical store in China. Founded in 2021, GOODBAI is a clothing and lifestyle brand created by Bai Jingting. In 2023, when the GOODBAI store opened, it sparked queues and scalping; some queued for nearly 7 hours.

Even three years later, on an ordinary weekday afternoon, the store is bustling with customers selecting, trying on, and taking photos.

The store design is vintage and minimalist, with dove motifs everywhere. GOODBAI covers clothes, shoes, hats, bags, and accessories. Compared to other celebrity streetwear brands, GOODBAI's pricing is not too high, ranging from ¥39 to ¥2,900. For example, most short-sleeved T-shirts cost ¥199, shoes range from ¥159-¥799, and canvas bags, hats, jewelry, etc., are mostly tens to two or three hundred yuan.

One of GOODBAI's most popular products is the Wanderer shoes, priced at ¥459, ranking 9th on Tmall's sportswear repurchase list, ahead of which are products from Adidas, FILA, Anta, ASICS, and Xtep. This ranking somewhat reflects GOODBAI's influence.

GOODEES WORLD also has a dedicated section in the store. This sub-line originates from its original IP, the furry ball image on the hoarding. Unlike the main GOODBAI's sportswear style, GOODEES WORLD is positioned as "cute, warm, healing," with products including shoes, clothes, phone cases, plush keychains, and hair accessories. On the Tmall flagship store, its ¥129 zodiac plush keychain has sold over 7,000 units. In the vending machine on Yanqing Road, the ¥99 baseball cap keychain has sold out.

Since its inception, GOODBAI and its sub-lines have released collaborations with brands like Salomon, Diptyque, New Era, Levi's, BABY-G, Holiland, and Line Friends minini. These include the hottest new mid-market favorites, national brands, streetwear labels, etc., covering a wide range.

From Apparel to Coffee and Lifestyle: Channel and Scene Building

Besides apparel and IP derivatives, Bai Jingting's business empire also includes coffee and bakery. Near the GOODBAI store on Yanqing Road is Bai Jingting's coffee shop, with coffee priced ¥28-¥48, similar to other Shanghai specialty coffee shops. In 2024, its "GOODEES Great Satisfaction" cookies at ¥21 for two pieces sparked online controversy.

Beyond Yanqing Road, GOODBAI has two other physical stores in Chengdu and Aranya, and has opened pop-up/slow shops in Beijing, Paris, and Seoul. In addition to its own online and offline channels, GOODBAI has entered some multi-brand stores like Musinsa, known as "Korea's Uniqlo." From selling clothes, coffee, to IP derivatives, Bai Jingting constructs a lifestyle consumption ecosystem around young people.

Advantages and Risks of Celebrity Brands: Traffic Tactics and Reputation Constraints

Many celebrities in the entertainment industry start brands. Edison Chen has CLOT, Jackson Wang started TEAM WANG, Daniel Wu sells coffee, and Hua Chenyu launched his own daily chemical brand this year. Why do celebrities love creating brands?

Bai Jingting once said in a Bazaar Men interview that Maugham compared the feeling of fame to someone giving you a string of pearls. Bai often thinks, "Can I find another string of pearls?" GOODBAI and other brands are his second string of pearls, born out of a sense of security.

Celebrity brands have natural traffic advantages. Their rise process is similar to emerging fashion brands: using social media seeding, pop-up stores, opening first stores in core business districts. However, celebrities and their friends are walking seeding machines; many celebrities have been seen wearing GOODBAI products in public.

But celebrity brands often fall into controversy about "shearing leeks" or quietly fade away. Meanwhile, because the brand is deeply tied to the celebrity, it risks shared glory or decline.

GOODBAI has also faced negative publicity over quality issues. In 2024, the Shanghai Market Supervision Bureau reported one of its denim jackets had pH values not meeting national mandatory standards. In 2025, a ¥599 GOODBAI sweater was reported to have glue peel-off, leaving a pattern on a car seat. The brand's affiliated company issued an apology, recalled related batches, and promised rectification.

Professional Team Support and Category Expansion: From Athleisure to Outdoor

Notably, GOODBAI's affiliated company, Zhetinghao (Shanghai) Brand Management Co., Ltd., is owned 41% by Bai Jingting, 29% by Shangguan Zhe, and 10% by Li Yong. Shangguan Zhe's brand has shown at London Fashion Week, while Li Yong has years of deep experience in the apparel industry. Therefore, Bai Jingting brought in industry professionals, providing expertise in design, production, and supply chain.

As an individual, Bai Jingting is a well-known sneakerhead in the entertainment circle, loving multiple sports. He is also a brand ambassador for sports and outdoor brands like New Era and Salomon. With the trend towards diversified sports needs, GOODBAI has also developed segmented clothing series for football (916 express) and tennis (polomove).

Besides the athleisure-focused GOODBAI, Bai Jingting's affiliated companies also own teenteens for young women, women's fashion brand Ayrae, and trendy outdoor brand 30C. For example, 30C chooses a trendy style to enter the outdoor sector, fitting current outdoor consumption needs and its design strengths. 30C has already opened a store on Xiaohongshu, with Bai Jingting's same-style vest sold out in many sizes.

In fact, from the athleisure stylish shoes, trendy IP plush toys, to outdoor sectors, each of Bai Jingting's steps generally aligns with fashion trends. From this perspective, Boss Bai's business success relies on much more than luck and traffic.

From the series of collaborations mentioned, some brands already have relationships with Bai Jingting as a celebrity. The worst outcome for a celebrity brand is to become just fan merchandise. How to move beyond the fan economy to a broader market may be what Bai's brands are doing and will continue to do long-term.

As Bai Jingting said, "Even without me as a person, consumers still recognize it, and many people will still like it and think it's good-looking. That's my ultimate goal."