China’s biggest dumpling IPO is here. Yuanji Food has gone through the listing hearing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, and Yuanji Dumplings Cloud is about to ring the bell—creating the first dumplings and wontons IPO on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
A bowl of dumplings sells out to 4,700 stores. The founder, Yuan Lianghong, a post-1990s native of Hunan, started in 2012 by renting a 5-square-meter stall in a Guangzhou market. Today there are 4,773 stores, with only 23 company-owned; the rest are franchised.
Money comes from franchisees. About 95% of Yuanji’s revenue comes from selling fillings, wrappers, and seasonings to franchisees and profiting from the supply-chain price difference. Revenues were 2.026 billion yuan, 2.561 billion yuan, and 2.795 billion yuan from 2023 to 2025. The first five months were 1.306 billion yuan, up about 40% year over year. Net profits were 167 million yuan, 142 million yuan, and 199 million yuan; the first five months were 157 million yuan, up 175%. Valuation is 3.5 billion yuan. Grain and Oils (Golden Dragon Fish) and Sinotrans Development have participated as strategic investors.
Single-store performance is under pressure. Daily GMV fell from RMB 5,394 to RMB 4,627, and the average price per order dropped from RMB 26.1 to RMB 22.5. As stores expand, they shift toward lower-tier cities—first-tier representation declined from 58.1% to 47.2% for stores in tier-three and below. Expansion is fast, and quality control issues are catching up—by the end of 2024, consumers reportedly found earthworms in wonton noodles.
The bigger backdrop is a freezing period for consumption-related IPOs. This year, more than a hundred companies listed on Hong Kong’s stock exchange; tech makes up more than half, while not a single catering-related one went public. The prospectuses of Qian Dama and Banou were invalidated in succession. Lao Pu Gold, Bubble Mart, and Mixue all fell from their peaks. Jiuguojiu’s stock price truly went from “nine dollars to nine dollars.”
Dumplings can ring the bell, but when it comes to consumer sentiment—whether it’s hot or cold—the market is clearer than the steam rising from a pot.#Circle与Tether冻结Bitget黑客钱包 $QNT
