- Shares of China’s Luckin Coffee Inc surged 47% in their market debut on Friday, indicating strong investor demand for the self-declared challenger to Starbucks Corp in the Asian country.
Luckin has 2,370 stores in China and plans to open 2,500 more this year to go past Seattle-based Starbucks that has long dominated China’s coffee scene and has over 3,600 stores in the country. Luckin’s innovation on how consumers enjoy a cup of coffee sets it apart, said Zephirin Group analyst Lenny Zephirin in a note. “We believe this will continue to support above-industry growth in the coming years.”
Since inception in June, 2017, the company has been in the red, with net loss to shareholders at $475.4 million and total revenue of $125.27 million last year. For the first three months of this year, it posted a net loss of $85.3 million.