Luckin Coffee’s 20,000^th store in Beijing, China | Photo credit: Luckin Coffee

China’s largest coffee chain Luckin Coffee has nearly doubled its store footprint over the last 12 months to reach 20,000 outlets. 
 

The value-focused operator reached the milestone with a new site in Beijing – just 13 months after reaching 10,000 stores. 

“Luckin Coffee’s growth and development have been fuelled by the support of more than 230 million customers and the dedication of 110,000 Luckin employees. Looking ahead, we will continue to strive towards becoming an outstanding, world-class coffee brand that lasts for centuries,” said Guo Jinyi, Chairman and CEO, Luckin Coffee.

The announcement, shared on Luckin Coffee’s social media pages, means the chain has opened 1,442 stores since its first quarter ending 31 March 2024 – significantly less than the 2,340 launched in that previous three-month period.

Outlet growth is, however, more in line with the 1,485 net new stores opened in the quarter ending 30 June 2023. 

Luckin Coffee’s nimble store footprint – heavily comprised of delivery and pick-up only locations – has enabled it to rapidly increase its market share in China, where it currently has more outlets than its closest competitors combined. US coffee giant Starbucks and fast-growing Cotti Coffee both reached 7,000 stores in China earlier this year. 

To support its growing store network, Luckin Coffee commenced operations at a new 570,000sq ft roasting facility in Suzhou City, Jiangsu, in April 2024. With an production capacity of 30,000 tons, Luckin says the roastery is the largest of its kind in China. 

In a further boost for its supply chain, the company signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (ApexBrasil) in June 2024 to purchase 120,000 tons of coffee from the South American country over the next two years in a deal worth approximately $500m.   

Alongside its vast domestic store network, Luckin Coffee also operates 32 stores in Singapore, its only international market to-date. However, the business is reportedly set to sign a master franchise agreement this month to enter Malaysia. 

Despite posting 41% year-on-year sales growth in the first quarter of 2024 to reach RMB 6.3bn ($869.5m), the coffee chain’s total revenues in the period dipped below the RMB 7.2bn ($987m) and RMB 7bn ($995.1m) achieved in the previous two quarters. 

The fall in sales also contributed to a RMB 65.1m ($9m) operating loss – Luckin Coffee’s first in two years.