image credit: Bamboo Works
Key Takeaways:
The company's revenues rose 6% last year while net profit more than doubled after a move to extend a franchise levy to more of its stores
The 160-year-old brand, specializing in prescription spectacles and premium vision-care services, faces a challenge from low-cost retailers
Around 160 years ago, a Chinese merchant who started out selling spectacles from a roadside stall realized that rising literacy rates would boost demand for eyeglasses.
The business founded by Mao Sifa has survived to this day and is now eyeing up a listing on the Hong Kong stock market, looking to expand its store network, promote its vision services and invest in optical processing facilities.
Typically, eyewear stores derive most of their profits from mark-ups on frames and lenses, with eye checks acting as a sales incentive. But Zhejiang Maoyuanchang Eyewear Co. Ltd. places more value on professional eye exams and lens fitting, to charge a service premium.
According to the IPO application, its chain comprises 78 self-operated stores and 194 franchised stores. The self-run shops are the main income source, at about 74% of revenue, while online channels account for just 0.7%. As for products, prescription spectacles make up nearly 80% of revenue, underscoring the company's focus on optometry services.
The business remains largely a regional enterprise, highly concentrated in Zhejiang, where the firm began, and Gansu province. Based on 2024 offline sales, it ...
