Chinese Fresh Food Chain Qiandama Weighs Hong Kong IPO

(Bloomberg) -- Chinese fresh food chain operator Qiandama is considering an initial public offering in Hong Kong as soon as this year, according to people familiar with the matter.

The Guangzhou-based company had discussed a share sale with potential advisers, said the people, who asked not to be identified as the information is private. An offering could raise about $400 million to $500 million, one of the people said.

Qiandama is also planning to raise about 2 billion yuan ($305 million) in a pre-IPO funding round that could value the firm at as much as 25 billion yuan, the people said.

Deliberations are ongoing and details of the fundraising plans including size and timeline could still change, the people said. A representative for Qiandama didn’t immediately respond to a written request for comment.

Qiandama, established in 2012, sells products including vegetables, fruits, fresh meat and eggs through its franchised stores, according to its website. The company is well-known for its slogan “never sells overnight meat” and offers discounts toward the end of each day to clear stocks. It opened its first overseas outlet in Hong Kong in 2018 and started expanding beyond southern China the following year. The firm posted revenue of over 7 billion yuan in 2019 and operates more than 2,000 stores as of July 2020.

GenBridge Capital, which counts JD.com Inc. among investors, has participated in several of Qiandama’s funding rounds. The fresh food retailer raised nearly 1 billion yuan in a series D funding round in December 2019 led by investors including private equity firm CoStone Capital and Taikang Life Insurance Co.

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With assistance from Bloomberg