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Selling coffee machines for 80,000 yuan each generates nearly 500 million yuan in annual revenue. 'A 47-year-old female entrepreneur from Shunde' aims to take Gemilai public via an IPO

Coffee drinking brewed an IPO!

Author: Liu Junqun

Editor: Liu Qinwen

For modern urbanites, a morning cup of Americano or latte is gradually evolving from a 'life-saver' into a lifestyle ritual. As the trend of coffee consumption rises, the home coffee machine market has become a new hotspot in consumer markets.

Precisely capitalizing on this consumer trend,recently, 'the leading domestic coffee machine maker,' Gemilai Holdings Limited (hereinafter referred to as 'Gemilai') submitted its 'Prospectus' to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, embarking on a new journey in the capital markets.

Its rapid rise owes much to nearly 500 million views across Douyin and Xiaohongshu, providing strong support. But what remains lesser-known is that behind the high growth lies a striking contrast:Marketing expenses have been increasing significantly year by year, while investment in R&D has continued to shrink.Nowadays, this coffee machine loved by young people, can it successfully go public?

Selling 720,000 coffee machines and grinders in a year

Generating nearly 500 million yuan in revenue, preparing for an IPO

Today, more and more consumers are no longer willing to wait in long lines at coffee shops for a latte. Instead, they prefer to personally unlock the full brewing experience from grinding beans, extracting flavors, to creating latte art. This 'home brewing' trend sweeping through urban households has also heated up the home coffee machine market.

Gemilai is a domestic dark horse in this sector, becoming the starting point of the 'coffee corner' for countless Chinese families. The 'Prospectus' shows that Gemilai's products cover home use, dual-use for home and commercial purposes, as well as fully commercial scenarios.With over 100 SKUs, cumulative sales exceeding 2 million units, exporting to more than 60 countries and regions worldwide, serving over 400,000 users.The product portfolio includes four main categories: home espresso machines, dual-use home and commercial espresso machines, commercial espresso machines, and grinders.

In terms of revenue structure, home and dual-use home and commercial espresso machines account for the largest share. In the first nine months of 2025, home espresso machine revenue was 170 million yuan, accounting for 37.8%; dual-use home and commercial espresso machine revenue was 136 million yuan, accounting for 30.3%; commercial espresso machine revenue was 74.26 million yuan, accounting for 16.5%; grinder revenue was 47.14 million yuan, accounting for 10.5%.

Source: 'Prospectus'

In terms of price range, Gemilai has built a complete matrix from entry-level to high-end.

Home espresso machine product seriesThe entry-level 'Owl Family' retails for 2,599 to 3,299 yuan, targeting the entry-level semi-automatic espresso machine market; the mid-range 'Cloud Elephant Family' starts at 4,399 yuan, equipped with a boiler system; the high-end 'White Whale Family' ranges from 7,599 to 10,999 yuan, focusing on the premium home-use market.

Moreover,Home and commercial dual-use espresso machine product seriesThe 'Double Pupil Family,' starting at 5,999 yuan, is the product line with the strongest cross-scenario adaptability; the 'Silver Shark Family,' priced between 8,199 and 10,999 yuan, targets high-performance, multi-purpose solutions suitable for advanced home use and light commercial scenarios.

In the Taobao 'Gemilai Official Flagship Store,' the highest-priced product is the Gemilai 3207A Sky Mirror commercial coffee machine (professional dual-head semi-automatic espresso grinder with steam function).The unit price reaches 78,399 yuan.

The best-selling product is the 'G3145B Double Pupil Home and Commercial Dual-Use Semi-Automatic Grinder Coffee Machine (Constant Temperature Milk Frothing),' priced at 4,499 yuan per unit, with sales exceeding 9,000 units. Some consumers commented: 'Fast preheating, rich crema, strong steam, and quick customer service responses.' Another buyer mentioned: 'The store also arranged in-home training, and the results were very satisfactory.'

Image source: Taobao

This product matrix has also driven sales growth.In 2024, the company sold 153,000 home-use espresso machines at an average price of 1,265 yuan, representing a 19.5% increase in sales compared to 2023, with the average price surging by 62%; home and commercial dual-use coffee machine sales reached 48,000 units at an average price of 3,303 yuan, with sales growing by 50% year-on-year and the average price increasing by 7.3%.

Overall, the company's total product sales increased from 491,000 units in 2023 to 721,000 units in 2024, a growth of 46.8%; in the first nine months of 2025, sales reached 671,000 units, maintaining strong momentum.

Strong sales have driven revenue growth. From 2023 to 2024, Gemilai’s revenue soared from 308 million yuan to 498 million yuan, a staggering 61.7% increase; net profit more than doubled from 22 million yuan to 40 million yuan, with growth reaching 81.8%. This momentum remained robust into 2025.In just the first nine months, revenue reached 449 million yuan, almost matching the total for the entire year of 2024; net profit surged to 54 million yuan, already surpassing the level of the whole of last year.

In terms of industry position, Gemilai has firmly taken the leading position. According to 'Frost & Sullivan' data, in terms of revenue, the company is the second-largest coffee machine brand in China and the largest domestic one, with a market share of approximately 7.5% in 2024; in the niche segment of semi-automatic espresso machines, it holds a 16% share, also ranking first without question.

Proprietary brands account for over 80%

Marketing expenses exceed R&D expenses

In terms of business model, Gemilai adopts a dual-driven approach of 'proprietary brands + ODM,' with the proportion of proprietary brands continuously increasing.

Specifically, revenue from the proprietary brand 'Gemilai' increased from 213 million yuan in 2023 to 374 million yuan in the first nine months of 2025, with its share rising from 69.2% to 83.3%. Correspondingly, the ODM business provides customized design and manufacturing services to domestic and overseas customers, with the revenue share of this business dropping from 30.8% to 17.6%, further solidifying the dominant position of proprietary brands.

Source: 'Prospectus'

Behind Gemilai's explosive performance lies its capture of online traffic.

The company keenly seized the dividends of e-commerce and content platforms. In 2025 alone, the cumulative views of Gemilai brand topics on Douyin and Xiaohongshu platforms approached 500 million, ranking first among domestic coffee machine brands. Traffic directly translated into sales.From 2023 to the first nine months of 2025, the company's online revenue increased from 127 million yuan to 262 million yuan, with its share skyrocketing from 41.4% to 58.3%.The company's semi-automatic coffee machines have consistently ranked among the top five bestsellers on platforms such as Tmall, JD.com, and Douyin.

However, the rapid growth of online channels cannot be separated from continuous marketing investment.From the first nine months of 2023 to 2025, sales and marketing expenses increased from 62.18 million yuan to 94.85 million yuan, with a year-on-year increase of 75.7% in 2024, accounting for 13.31% to 14.92% of revenue.In contrast, R&D expenses decreased from 20.66 million yuan to 16.85 million yuan.

From the expenditure structure, sales and marketing investments mainly flowed into two major areas: advertising promotions and personnel salaries and benefits.

Among these, marketing and promotional expenses were 41.211 million yuan in 2023, accounting for 66.3% of sales and marketing expenses; this expenditure increased to 74.484 million yuan in 2024, with the proportion rising to 68.2%. In terms of sales personnel salaries and benefits, it was 16.684 million yuan in 2023, accounting for 26.8% of sales and marketing expenses; in 2024, it rose to 29.151 million yuan, representing 26.7%.

Source: 'Prospectus'

The company stated that the increase in sales and marketing expenses is mainly due to business expansion. To promote the brand and boost sales, the company has intensified its online and offline promotional efforts, leading to an increase in marketing, promotional, and travel expenses. The rise in e-commerce sales is also a significant factor: platforms like Tmall and JD.com charge service and promotional fees based on transaction volume, which increases as sales grow; meanwhile, the company has also increased its spending on traffic acquisition and platform advertising. The rise in salaries and benefits is mainly due to an increase in sales staff and higher compensation levels.

However, Senior Researcher Jiang Han of the Pangoal Institution cautioned thatexcessive reliance on marketing while neglecting R&D may lead to a brand image built more on 'traffic' and 'promotions' rather than 'technology' and 'quality'.

Regarding this IPO fundraising, Gelimai plans to use the funds to expand production capacity, advance digitalization, intensify brand marketing, enhance R&D capabilities, build information systems, and replenish working capital to prepare for future development.

A 47-year-old female entrepreneur from Shunde at the helm

Sharing the capital feast with the 'FIYTA Group'

The story of GemCore begins at a turning point in China’s coffee machine manufacturing industry.

Around 2010, Shunde, known as the 'Capital of Home Appliances,' was at a crossroads of industrial transformation. At that time, GemCore’s predecessor, 'CoreMax Electric,' keenly realized that relying solely on OEM exports was no longer sustainable, and a shift toward independent design or even building its own brand was necessary.

In 2012, when coffee culture had yet to be widely embraced domestically, GemCore launched its first home coffee machine equipped with a 58mm commercial extraction system, precisely addressing the core needs of professional coffee enthusiasts. Over the following decade, the company rapidly expanded overseas, ventured into the commercial sector, built its own factory, and gradually established an end-to-end supply chain capability from components to complete machines.

Image source: Canned Image Library

The actual controller of the company isXie Jianping, a 47-year-old female entrepreneur from Shunde, who holds approximately 47.24% of the company through entities like GemCore.The prospectus provides a brief background on the current chairperson of the board: Xie Jianping has served as executive director since the company's founding in 2011, officially becoming a director in July 2025, and was appointed as executive director and chairperson of the board in January 2026.

It is worth noting that,A team of seasoned professionals from the 'FIYTA Group,' with deep industry backgrounds, has now joined GemCore's management.FIYTA Precision Technology Co., Ltd. (referred to as 'FIYTA,' stock code 000026.SZ), founded in Shenzhen in 1987, was the first listed company in China's watchmaking industry and has long been dedicated to precision manufacturing.

Ye Shusheng, the CEO overseeing the group’s overall operations, was already a battle-hardened veteran of listed companies before joining GemCore. In addition to his experience at FIYTA, he has managed finance, operations, and strategic planning for several enterprises, including Shenzhen Metro and Tempus International.

Executive Vice President Zhang Chunlai is a 'sales veteran' who emerged from FIYTA. Previously, he worked his way up from Regional General Manager to Group Marketing Vice President at FIYTA over 16 years. Now, he is responsible for reshaping the sales system of Gemilai.

Image source: Canned Image Library

Vice President Zhu Yinglin is also a talent nurtured by FIYTA's manufacturing system. Over nearly 14 years at FIYTA, he held various engineering and manufacturing roles such as Manager of Engineering Technology Department, Manager of Assembly Department, Deputy General Manager of R&D and Quality Department, and Deputy General Manager of Manufacturing Department. Today, he directly applies his experience in precision manufacturing controls to Gemilai's coffee machine production.

In addition, Assistant President Liang Jia, who previously served as Assistant General Manager, Manager, and Engineer at FIYTA's subsidiary companies, now primarily oversees Gemilai's quality control processes. Ouyang Zhuangjie, head of e-commerce and overseas sales, has deep expertise in digital branding and multi-channel operations after years working in FIYTA’s e-commerce division and watch retail channels.

In terms of equity alignment,CEO Ye Shusheng and Vice President Zhu Wenjing hold stakes of 9.3% and 7.41%, respectively, ensuring that the core management team is deeply tied to the company’s development. This professional management foundation has also earned Gemilai recognition in the capital markets. In the latest equity transfer in March 2025, the per-share cost was approximately RMB 1.28, corresponding to a valuation of RMB 1.3 billion.

Today, Gemilai is knocking on the doors of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, evolving from a small factory in Shunde to a leading domestic coffee machine manufacturer. From contract manufacturing for overseas markets to establishing its own brand, it has brewed a vivid example of China's manufacturing transformation and upgrading over twelve years.This long-brewing 'IPO coffee' is now ready to face the ultimate test of the capital markets. Feel free to leave comments and discuss below.

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