GUMING's revenue in the first half of the year increased by 41.2% year-on-year, and net profit grew by 42.4%, showing the effectiveness of its expansion strategy in lower-tier markets | Financial Report Insights

In the first half of the year, GUMING achieved strong growth in core profitability through rapid expansion in the sinking market and improved store operational efficiency. The number of stores reached 11,179, a year-on-year increase of 17.5%; both single-store GMV and daily average cups sold increased, indicating improved operational efficiency.

On the 26th, the Chinese ready-to-drink tea company GUMING released its first interim performance report since going public:

• The company's revenue in the first half of the year was 5.663 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 41.2%;
• Net profit was 1.626 billion yuan, a substantial increase of 119.8%, mainly benefiting from a 557 million yuan gain from the fair value change of financial liabilities;
• Adjusted profit increased by 42.4% year-on-year to 1.09 billion yuan;
• Gross profit was 1.786 billion yuan, an increase of 41.0%.

Adjusted Profit Highlights Core Business Resilience

The financial report shows that for the six months ending June 30, 2025, the company's profit was 1.626 billion yuan, which included a gain of 557 million yuan from “the fair value change of financial liabilities measured at fair value with changes recognized in profit or loss for the period.”

According to the announcement, this gain is mainly related to the decline in the valuation of convertible redeemable preferred shares issued before the company went public, and it is a one-time non-cash accounting treatment. After going public, since the preferred shares automatically converted into common shares, the company expects not to record such gains again.

After excluding this gain and 16.18 million yuan of listing expenses, GUMING's adjusted profit for the first half of the year was 1.086 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 42.4%. Its adjusted profit margin also slightly increased from 19.0% in the same period last year to 19.2%, indicating that while rapidly expanding, the core business's profitability remained stable and resilient.

Accelerated Store Expansion and Improved Single-Store Efficiency

GUMING's growth is primarily driven by its large franchise network. As of June 30, 2025, the total number of GUMING stores reached 11,179, an increase of 17.5% from 9,516 stores in the same period last year. Notably, its pace of expansion significantly accelerated in the first half of this year, with 1,570 new stores opened during the period, more than double the 765 stores opened in the same period last year.

The company's "regional densification" strategy, which aims to achieve a high-density store layout in target provinces, has been particularly effective in the sinking market. By the end of the reporting period, the proportion of stores located in second-tier cities and below increased from 79% to 81%. GUMING stated that these markets represent significant untapped potential.

As the number of stores increased, the operational efficiency of single stores also improved. In the first half of the year, the total merchandise sales (GMV) of the GUMING system reached 14.09 billion yuan, with the daily average GMV per store increasing from 6,200 yuan in the same period last year to 7,600 yuan. The daily average cups sold per store also increased from 374 cups to 439 cups

Supply Chain and Product Innovation Build a Moat

As of the end of the reporting period, the company operates 22 warehouses in China, with a total construction area of approximately 230,000 square meters, and has a self-operated fleet consisting of 362 transport vehicles. The precise cold chain storage and logistics infrastructure enable it to provide cold chain delivery services to approximately 98% of its stores with a two-day delivery cycle. The announcement disclosed that in the first half of the year, the delivery cost from warehouse to store accounted for less than 1% of the total GMV.

On the product side, GUMING continues to innovate to maintain its appeal to consumers. In the first half of the year, a total of 52 new products were launched, and the coffee category was vigorously expanded, with over 8,000 stores equipped with coffee machines. As of June 30, 2025, the number of registered members on its mini-program reached approximately 178 million, with about 50 million active members per quarter