Hong Kong stocks' new-style tea beverage companies deliver impressive results, accelerating their push into the lower-tier markets

Securities Times Reporter Wang Jun

In 2025, the new-style tea beverage industry delivered a bright annual report card amid market stock competition and consumption upgrades.

Recently, Hong Kong-listed companies Mixue Group, Auntie Shanghainese, and Guming released their 2025 annual reports, while Tea Baidao also announced its earnings forecast for 2025, with several companies achieving double growth in revenue and net profit. Mixue Group’s revenue exceeded 33 billion yuan, with net profit attributable to the parent approaching 6 billion yuan, making it the most profitable new tea beverage company.

In 2025, the new tea beverage sector experienced a wave of IPOs, with Guming, Mixue Group, and Auntie Shanghainese all listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Prior to this, Naixue’s Tea and Tea Baidao had already listed there in 2021 and 2024, respectively. Against the backdrop of slowing industry growth and increasing market segmentation, how can new-style tea beverages achieve high-quality growth?

Revenue and Net Profit Both Increase

On March 25, Guming, a new tea beverage brand, released its 2025 annual performance report: total revenue of approximately 12.914 billion yuan, up 46.9% year-over-year; net profit attributable to shareholders of the parent company was 3.109 billion yuan, up 110.3%.

Prior to this, Mixue Group and Auntie Shanghainese also announced their 2025 results, both showing significant increases in revenue and profit. Mixue’s annual report indicated that in 2025, the company achieved revenue of 33.56 billion yuan, up 35.2%; net profit attributable to the parent was 5.887 billion yuan, up 32.7%. Auntie Shanghainese reported revenue of 4.466 billion yuan, up 36.0%, and net profit of 501 million yuan, up 52.4%.

Amid fierce competition in the freshly made tea drink sector, leading brands continue to grow strongly. Mixue’s annual report states that the company’s performance growth was mainly due to increased income from product and equipment sales, followed by revenue from franchise and related services. Data shows that in 2025, sales from products and equipment reached 32.766 billion yuan, up 35.3%; franchise and related services earned 794 million yuan, up 28.0%. “The increase is mainly due to the expansion of our store network,” Mixue said in the financial report. As of December 31, 2025, the company had built a global store network of about 60,000 locations.

Auntie Shanghainese owns three major brands: Auntie Shanghainese, Tea Waterfall, and Hu Coffee. As of December 31, 2025, the total number of stores was 11,449, a 24.8% increase from 9,176 at the end of 2024. The company stated that while accelerating expansion, it follows the principle of “some move forward, some retreat,” actively closing underperforming or lease-expired stores to optimize layout and improve overall service quality and store profitability.

Tea Baidao also released an earlier earnings forecast, estimating an adjusted net profit of 792 million to 852 million yuan in 2025, a year-over-year increase of 22.79% to 32.09%. The company believes that the growth in adjusted net profit mainly benefits from continuous improvement in core operations.

Channel Penetration Accelerates

From the operational strategies of these new-style tea brands, channel penetration has become key to rapid brand dissemination and market infiltration.

Mixue’s annual report shows that by the end of 2025, the company’s mainland China stores exceeded 55,300, with nearly 42,700 located in second- and third-tier cities and below, accounting for over 77%. Compared to 2024, the number of stores increased by nearly 13,800 in 2025, with 11,200 of those in second- and third-tier cities and below. Mixue states that its store network covers 31 provinces and over 300 prefecture-level cities across mainland China, spanning all tiers of cities. “The breadth and depth of our store network distinguish us from other local fresh beverage brands,” the company said.

Auntie Shanghainese’s stores are also mainly in second- and third-tier cities and below. By the end of 2025, the number of stores in these cities reached 8,357, accounting for 73%. The store count increased by 2,273 from the end of 2024, with 1,764 more stores in second- and third-tier cities and below.

According to research by Zhuoshi Consulting, the market for freshly made tea drinks in third- and lower-tier cities in China, based on total transaction volume, is the largest and fastest-growing segment from 2023 to 2028, with huge growth potential in the future.

iMedia Research analyst believes that the consumption upgrade trend in second- and third-tier cities is clear, and lower operating costs make these areas core battlegrounds for new tea brands and key drivers of industry growth.

How to Further Break Through?

It should be noted that the new tea beverage industry has shifted from the initial rapid expansion and fierce market share competition “land grab” phase to a new stage focused on refined operations and stock competition.

Data from iiMedia Research shows that in 2024, China’s new-style tea market reached 354.72 billion yuan. As the market becomes increasingly saturated, brands are entering a stock competition phase. It is expected that the Chinese new tea market will maintain modest but steady growth in the coming years, potentially surpassing 400 billion yuan by 2028.

Against this backdrop, achieving high-quality growth has become an urgent challenge for the industry. Mixue Group’s annual report states that in response to changing market conditions and potential challenges, the company will adhere to the value proposition of “high quality and affordable prices,” continue expanding its store network in China to consolidate its leading position in the domestic fresh beverage industry, and further develop Southeast Asian markets while exploring other regions to build a globally influential food and beverage brand.

Auntie Shanghainese also said it will implement phased, orderly store expansion strategies, continuously improve store profitability and investment returns, closely monitor consumer trends and industry dynamics, accelerate layout in the coffee category, innovate consumption scenarios and sales models to activate diverse consumer demands. Additionally, the company will deepen its multi-brand strategy, strengthen cooperation with high-quality suppliers domestically and abroad, increase investment in information technology and digitalization, ensuring efficient and compliant operations.

iMedia analyst believes that the new tea industry is shifting from “scale expansion” to “value upgrading,” with health and personalization becoming core consumer demands. Companies need to respond to consumers’ health and quality needs through product innovation, forming a demand-driven product iteration logic. Meanwhile, going global is an important direction for expanding growth boundaries, not only providing new growth space for companies but also promoting the globalization of Chinese new-style tea culture.

(Edited by: Zhang Yang HN080)