New Stock News | Guoquan Food submits its second application to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange Main Board, with revenue exceeding 2 billion yuan in the first four months of 2023.

According to the Zhitong Finance APP, it was revealed by the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on October 4th that Guoquan Food (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. (Guoquan Food) has submitted an application for listing on the main board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, with Huatai International and CICC as joint sponsors. It is reported that the company had previously submitted an application for listing on the main board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on April 3, 2023.

The prospectus shows that Guoquan Food is a leading and rapidly growing brand of home-cooked meal products in China. The company provides instant, hot, cookable, and pre-packaged ingredients, with a focus on home hot pot and barbecue products. As of April 30, 2023, the company's product portfolio includes eight categories, including hot pot products, barbecue products, beverages, single-serving meals, instant cooking meal kits, fresh food, Western cuisine, and snacks, totaling 710 SKUs. Approximately 95% of the products sold nationwide by the company are under its own brand "Guoquan Food Hui". As of April 30, 2023, the company has established a network of 9,844 brand stores in China, including 9,838 franchise stores and six self-operated stores.

According to Frost Sullivan's data, in 2022, Guoquan Food ranked first among all retailers in China in terms of retail sales of home-cooked meal products, with a market share of 3.0% in China. Home-cooked meal products include instant food, hot food, cookable food, and ready-to-eat food. As the fastest-growing segment in China's home-cooked meal market, the market size of home-cooked meal products in 2022 was RMB 367.3 billion, accounting for 6.5% of China's home-cooked meal market in 2022. According to Frost Sullivan's data, in 2022, Guoquan Food is the largest family hot pot and barbecue brand in China in terms of retail sales.

In addition, according to Frost Sullivan's data, as of December 31, 2022, Guoquan Food has established the largest retail store network for one-stop home-cooked meal products in China. With this store network, it has accumulated over 100 million orders in 2022 alone, providing online and offline shopping experiences.

Guoquan Food has established a store network mainly consisting of franchise stores. Under the franchise business model, the company's majority of revenue comes from selling its products to franchisees, who open and operate franchise stores under the company's brand and sell the company's products to consumers. In addition, as of April 30, 2023, Guoquan Food has six self-operated stores, which serve as a model for franchise stores and as a pilot for innovative store operation management strategies, marketing activities, digital tools, and new decoration styles before introducing them to franchise stores. In terms of finance, the company achieved revenues of RMB 2.965 billion, RMB 3.958 billion, RMB 7.173 billion, and RMB 2.078 billion for the four months ending on April 30, 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023, respectively. During the same period, the company incurred losses of RMB 43.292 million, RMB 461 million, and achieved profits of RMB 241 million and RMB 120 million.

According to the IPO prospectus of Guoquan Food, the company's extensive store network mainly consists of franchised stores operated by franchisees. The performance of these franchise stores has a significant impact on the company's operational performance. The company may not be able to control or effectively supervise the operation of these franchise stores or maintain its existing relationship with franchisees.