The leading players in the freshly made tea beverage market are entering a critical phase of divergent development. On one hand, brands like Auntea Jenny and Guming are actively pursuing store network expansion and market penetration into lower-tier cities. On the other hand, NAYUKI (2150.HK), once hailed as the "first stock of new tea beverages," experienced a net reduction in its store count for the first time in 2025. According to the company's recent 2025 performance announcement, it reported a net decrease of 152 stores for the full year. Consequently, revenue fell to 4.331 billion yuan, a decline of 12% year-over-year.
The industry's focus has shifted from pure scale expansion to "intensive and meticulous operations," with exploring a second growth curve becoming a consensus. It has been observed that after long adhering to a company-operated model, NAYUKI began franchising in 2023. However, the overall progress has been slow, and the contribution to performance remains relatively limited. Furthermore, the bottled beverage business, once a major hope, has been operating at a loss, with its revenue performance also falling short of expectations.
Store optimization was a significant factor pressuring NAYUKI's revenue in 2025. By the end of 2025, the total number of NAYUKI stores had decreased to 1,646, a net reduction of 152 stores compared to the previous year. Specifically, the number of company-operated stores, which form the core of the network, contracted to 1,288, a net decrease of 165 for the year. Although franchised stores saw slight growth, it was insufficient to offset the reduction in company-operated stores. This marks the first annual net decrease in total store count since the company began disclosing annual reports in 2021. NAYUKI explained that this was primarily due to optimization measures taken for most underperforming stores, with plans to complete the optimization of remaining stores in 2026. This suggests that the store count will remain under short-term pressure in 2026.
In contrast, leading players like Guming and Auntea Jenny continued rapid expansion in 2025. Guming achieved revenue of 12.914 billion yuan, a year-over-year increase of 46.9%, with its total store count reaching 13,554, a net increase of 3,640 stores. Auntea Jenny also surpassed the 10,000-store threshold for the first time, reaching a total of 11,449 stores, with revenue growing 36.0% year-over-year to 4.466 billion yuan.
This divergence in expansion strategies among leading companies reflects fundamental differences in operating models and market positioning. NAYUKI has long adhered to a company-operated, "heavy-asset" model, with company-operated stores accounting for over 78% of the total by the end of 2025. While this model benefits quality control and consistent brand experience, each store bears high costs for rent, renovation, equipment, and labor. When the per-store profitability model is under pressure, these fixed costs become a significant burden, limiting expansion flexibility. Conversely, brands like Guming and Auntea Jenny, which utilize a franchise model, effectively transfer store opening costs and operational risks to franchisees, allowing the companies themselves to focus on brand building and supply chain services.
Additionally, NAYUKI initially entered the market with a premium positioning centered on "tea beverages + soft European bread," with an average order value once exceeding 40 yuan. Its store network was heavily concentrated in first-tier and new first-tier cities. However, intensified industry competition and changing consumer trends forced NAYUKI to engage in price competition. The average order value for company-operated stores dropped from 41.6 yuan in 2021 to 24.4 yuan in 2025. Although the price reduction strategy led to a 15.7% increase in average daily orders per store, it also diluted the premium brand image cultivated over years.
Analyzing the store closures in 2025 reveals that 111 of the shuttered company-operated stores were in first-tier and new first-tier cities, accounting for 67.27% of the total. These regions, once the brand's core strongholds, are precisely the markets facing the highest cost pressures and most intense consumer diversion.
Overall, in 2025, while NAYUKI significantly narrowed its adjusted net loss from 919 million yuan to 240 million yuan through store optimization—a reduction of 73.8%—profitability pressures remain substantial.
In terms of product performance, NAYUKI's freshly made tea beverage category generated revenue of 3.352 billion yuan in 2025, remaining largely flat compared to the previous year. However, revenue from the bakery products segment, the company's second-largest category, fell by 33.33% year-over-year to 352 million yuan.
Bakery products have been important since NAYUKI's founding, but their performance has consistently fallen short of expectations since 2022, with revenue declining annually from 940 million yuan in 2021 to 352 million yuan in 2025. The decline in this category is attributed to multiple factors: the optimization of the store network led to the closure of many larger stores equipped with bakery sections; the freshly made bakery model results in high labor and rental costs, with gross margins significantly lower than those for tea beverages; and increased competition from affordable bakery brands has diverted customers.
Notably, in 2024, NAYUKI's founder, Peng Xin, stated that bakery products would be as important as tea beverages by 2025. Despite launching 54 new bakery products throughout the year, the company was unable to reverse the declining revenue trend for this category.
The bottled beverage segment, another area of high expectations, also faced pressure in 2025, generating revenue of 179 million yuan, a decrease of approximately 38.91% year-over-year. This segment was seen as a key attempt to expand into retail channels, but its products have struggled to compete effectively in a market dominated by major beverage giants. Management admitted during the 2025 interim results briefing that the bottled beverage business had "been a drag, suffering significant annual losses," and announced a strategic reset, shifting towards a co-creation model with large platforms like Sam's Club to develop differentiated products with short shelf lives and health attributes. While this business achieved breakeven in August 2025, it still faced operational pressure for the full year.
Against the backdrop of sluggish growth in secondary businesses, NAYUKI has also turned its attention to the franchise model. The company officially began franchising in July 2023, aiming to unlock incremental growth through a lighter asset expansion approach. However, after two years, progress in franchising has been slow.
By the end of 2025, NAYUKI had 358 franchised stores, accounting for less than 22% of the total store count, with a net increase of only 13 stores for the entire year, indicating a significantly slower expansion pace compared to peers. The revenue structure remains dominated by company-operated stores, and the franchise business is unlikely to become a performance pillar in the short term. Compared to franchise-driven brands like Guming, Auntea Jenny, and Mixue Bingcheng, NAYUKI's higher initial investment threshold, strict location criteria, and demanding supply chain control requirements have somewhat dampened franchisee expansion enthusiasm. The company stated in its performance announcement that as the franchise business continues to develop, it will provide more financial details about the franchise operations at an appropriate time.
As of the end of 2025, NAYUKI held cash and cash equivalents totaling 2.658 billion yuan. For a listed company experiencing a market capitalization decline, this cash reserve is a fundamental support for maintaining market confidence. However, capital markets are concerned not only with the cash on hand but also with the efficiency of its use and the expectation of returns. The narrative of reducing losses through store closures was realized in 2025, but the story of growth remains unclear. With franchise expansion struggling to gain momentum, the bottled beverage business barely breaking even, and bakery product revenue continuing to shrink, NAYUKI needs to demonstrate to investors where future growth will come from after this period of adjustment.