Source | Blue Shark Consumption ID | lanshaxiaofei

In 2024, Ye Guofu was selected for Forbes China's Best CEO list, alongside his fellow Hubei native Lei Jun, founder of Xiaomi. This founder, who started in consumer goods, now stands on the same stage as top internet players. Under Ye's leadership, Miniso successfully listed on the US stock market in 2020, making 12 co-founding employees instant billionaires and 40 employees millionaires. In 2022, Ye led Miniso to a main board listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. According to the 2024 financial report released recently, Miniso's total revenue reached 17 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 22.8%, with gross margin climbing to a record 44.9%. Adjusted net profit was 2.72 billion yuan, up 15.4% year-on-year, with a net margin of 16.0%. Behind this achievement, Miniso's global store count has reached 7,780, with a net addition of 1,219 stores in the year, far exceeding the initial target. But this is not Ye's ultimate goal. On September 23 last year, Miniso spent a huge sum (6.27 billion yuan) to acquire 29.4% of Yonghui Superstores' equity, becoming its largest shareholder. On March 17, 2025, Yonghui Superstores held elections for its sixth board of directors, and Ye Guofu served as the leader of the reform group. (Yonghui Superstores · 2025 Annual Supplier Conference) On March 29, Yonghui Superstores held its 2025 annual global supplier conference in Xuchang. Ye Guofu delivered a speech, stating that the Pangdonglai model is the only way out for Chinese supermarkets, and also expressed his "sincerity" to suppliers: within three years, incubate 100 super single products with an annual sales of 100 million yuan together with suppliers. He also said he would establish long-term, in-depth cooperation with core suppliers. The first batch will lock in 200 core major suppliers, personally screened by him, ensuring he meets with their chairmen at least once a year, and he will meet them personally. Ye Guofu is becoming the new helmsman of Yonghui Superstores.

The Man Who "Rescued" Yonghui Superstores

On September 23, 2024, Miniso announced it would acquire 29.40% of Yonghui Superstores' equity for 6.27 billion yuan, becoming its largest shareholder, setting a record for the highest single acquisition in China's physical retail sector in recent years. According to Miniso's financial report, the acquisition of Yonghui was completed in the first quarter of 2025. Previously, Yonghui Superstores had undergone a long period of "new retail" store expansion—according to Yonghui's financial reports: in 2017, Yonghui added 133 Bravo stores, 172 Yonghui Life stores, and 27 Super Species stores. In 2018, Yonghui opened 135 new stores and signed contracts for 165 new stores. In 2019, it opened 205 new stores and signed contracts for 244 new stores. As of the end of 2019, the supermarket business had entered 24 provinces and cities, with 911 stores in the supermarket format. However, starting in 2021, Yonghui Superstores fell into a long-term loss "quagmire": from 2021 to 2023, Yonghui's revenue declined for three consecutive years, from a peak of 93.2 billion yuan in 2020 to 78.6 billion yuan in 2023. At the same time, net profit also recorded losses for three consecutive years, with net losses of 3.944 billion yuan, 2.763 billion yuan, and 1.329 billion yuan respectively, totaling a cumulative loss of 8 billion yuan over three years. In 2024, Yonghui's performance did not improve—according to its performance forecast, Yonghui Superstores is expected to continue losing 1.4 billion yuan in net profit in 2024. How did such a Yonghui Superstores catch Ye Guofu's eye? When acquiring shares in Yonghui, Ye Guofu admitted that the reason for investing in Yonghui was the endorsement of "Pangdonglai's assistance," saying, "What is superior to the American model is China's Pangdonglai." Ye is confident in the "Pangdonglai version" of Yonghui, stating, "If we continue down this path, Yonghui can be reborn and create a new benchmark in the future." (Pangdonglai) In the past year or two, Pangdonglai has formed a strong brand halo with its "ultimate service" label, becoming a phenomenal enterprise in the retail sector. Yonghui also intends to convert Pangdonglai's "trust assets" built on social media into its own traffic entrance—in the promotional content for renovated stores, it emphasizes the introduction of Pangdonglai's private brand sections, such as DL laundry detergent, DL oatmeal, and Jiangmi strips, as well as details like "product structure reaching over 90% of Pangdonglai's." Unlike Miniso's trendy accessories category, Yonghui Superstores operates categories related to people's livelihoods, serving a broader consumer base. It is worth noting that the Pangdonglai model has proven that supermarkets can also thrive. According to a former Pangdonglai executive, although Pangdonglai's department stores are also selling well as rumored online, the bulk of Pangdonglai's revenue still comes from supermarkets. Most supermarkets in China are primarily regional, sticking to their original territories. Take Pangdonglai as an example: since its establishment, it has developed only in Xuchang and Xinxiang, with no plans for external expansion. This means Pangdonglai's radiation radius is extremely limited. It is worth noting that Yonghui Superstores may be the most nationalized brand. "Nationalized Yonghui" plus "Pangdonglai-style reform" suggests a new possibility: China will see a physical retail giant comparable to Walmart or Costco.

Seizing the Day

In July 2024, Ye Guofu published an open letter titled "Passion from the Heart Is Above All," revealing that he spends more than 200 days a year on business trips by plane, and after landing, he goes straight back to the company. After completing the acquisition of 29.40% of Yonghui Superstores' equity, Ye quickly intervened in Yonghui's operations and management. On March 17, Yonghui Superstores held its sixth board meeting and the first extraordinary shareholders' meeting of 2025. Ye Guofu served as the leader of the reform group. Previously, during Li Songfeng's tenure as CEO, only about 41 stores were renovated in nine months. After Ye took control, he planned to renovate about 200 stores in 2025 and complete the adjustment of all existing stores by 2026. Alongside the renovations, Ye also planned to close stores to "reduce burden." On March 18, Yonghui Superstores announced it would transfer 12 stores in Heilongjiang and Jilin provinces to Biyoute Group, a regional retail leader in Northeast China. This move aligns with the store closure plan and also provides cash flow support for subsequent renovations. (According to Yonghui's Q1-Q3 2024 report, from January to September 2024, Yonghui's net cash flow was -2.011 billion yuan, down 156.97% year-on-year. With Yonghui's high debt ratio of 87.1%, external financing is relatively difficult.) In addition to continuing to promote the "organizational reform" of learning from Pangdonglai's model, Ye also stated at the extraordinary shareholders' meeting on March 17 that the reform group would also promote "organizational reform" and "supply chain reform." For Yonghui's transformation, Ye proposed the "433" reform plan, which is "four modernizations, three forces, three changes," covering internationalization, modernization, professionalization, and specialization; learning ability, execution ability, and creativity; organizational reform, operational reform, and supply chain reform. (Ye Guofu) At the Miniso 2024 financial report conference call held on the afternoon of March 21, Ye said, "A quarter of Yonghui's revenue comes from (Miniso's specialty) daily necessities, most of which are third-party brands with low gross margins. We can assist Yonghui in vigorously developing private brands, improving gross margins, and increasing Yonghui's core competitiveness." In addition, Ye is also vigorously promoting direct sourcing at net prices and private brands, eliminating middlemen, retaining first-tier brands and specialty products, and improving product operational capabilities. On March 29, at Yonghui's 2025 annual global supplier conference, Ye stated that he would establish long-term, in-depth cooperation with core suppliers. Creating super single products with core suppliers is the focus of Ye's supply chain reform. He said that only core super single products can create core value. The three-year goal is to incubate 100 single products with annual sales of 100 million yuan together with suppliers. In terms of private brand development, in 2025, Yonghui plans to launch 60 new products and incubate at least 10 super strategic single products exceeding 100 million yuan. Through supply chain ecosystem construction, it is expected that within 3 to 5 years, private brands will account for 40% of Yonghui's overall sales. Supply chain reform is the biggest change under Ye Guofu's leadership of Yonghui Superstores. This seems to "echo" the viewpoint Ye once proposed at the 2018 China Enterprise Leaders Annual Meeting: retail is divided into the first half and the second half; the first half is channel-centric, and the second half is product-centric. In the second half of retail, can Ye Guofu lead Yonghui Superstores to break through? This battle may also determine the birth of China's physical retail king. Let's wait and see~