Will Yonghui Close All Super Species Stores Outside Fuzhou?

Rumors have been circulating online recently that YH Super Species supermarket may close all of its stores outside of Fuzhou, a claim that has been officially denied by Yonghui. However, these rumors may contain an element of truth, as the Yonghui Life App no longer displays YH Super Species supermarket locations in Hangzhou, Chengdu, Guangzhou and other major Chinese cities. YH Super Species is registered in Fujian under Yonghui Yunchuang Science and Technology Co. Ltd., and its official account has not been updated since Sept. 18, 2020.

Initial Growth

On Jan. 1, 2017, Yonghui began opening its YH Super Species supermarkets. The first store opened in Fuzhou, pioneering a high-end supermarket + fresh food + online-to-offline business model. This new location offered shopping, dining and food delivery services. Each YH Super Species location is partitioned into different sections, depending on the type of food being sold. Similar to Hema Fresh, shoppers at YH Super Species stores can have their purchased goods cooked by Super Species chefs and enjoy the resulting meal without leaving the store. In 2017, a total of 26 YH Super Species supermarkets were in operation across China.

However, just two years later in June 2019, it was announced that YH Super Species stores in Beijing would begin adjusting operations. Stores were to downsize and several of the food stalls within the supermarkets would be closed.

Further Setbacks

On July 4, 2019, it was announced that Shanghai’s first YH Super Species location in the Wujiaochang Wanda Plaza would be closing. This marked the first instance of a YH Super Species supermarket closure. This particular location opened in November 2017, meaning that the store had been in operation for less than two years. Despite this setback, YH Super Species did not halt further expansion efforts that year. According to some sources, at its height YH Super Species had over 80 locations in operation, but at present only 23 are displayed on the Yonghui Life App.

According to a Jiemian Global news report on Feb. 25, an insider of YH Super Species supermarket stated that the company will close all of its locations outside of Fuzhou, but a concrete closure date has not yet been established. In response, an official spokesperson from Yonghui denied the claims made by Jiemian Global, instead stating some YH Super Species supermarkets were merely undergoing regular operational adjustments.

Yonghui Group Businesses

Established in 2001, Yonghui Group is an offline retail giant divided into four core businesses: Yunchao, Yunchuang, Yonghui Fresh Food and YH Financial Service. Official figures from the Yonghui Supermarket website indicate that there are currently 1,023 operational Yonghui Group locations across China. Yunchao is a traditional offline supermarket business, with red, green and gold label stores that cater to low-, middle- and high-end consumers, respectively. Yunchuang primarily explores new retail opportunities, including Yonghui member stores, the Yonghui Life App and YH Super Species supermarkets. Yonghui Fresh Food is a central food processing business, distributing fresh products and offering logistical services, providing fresh products to not only Yonghui supermarkets but also other stores, restaurants and dining facilities. YH Financial Service primarily focuses on activities in the finance sector. In December 2017, Tencent began investing in YH Super Species. On Jan. 29, 2018, Tencent acquired a 15% stake in Yonghui Yunchuang Science and Technology Co. Ltd., becoming its second largest stakeholder.

This article was translated from Chinese. Read the original article.