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Rise of the Chinese F&B chains: How Chagee, Mixue and Haidilao are conquering South-east Asia
F&B players from China are like tech firms – cost-efficient and data-driven. Can local firms match this model?
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Singapore and Malaysia now have the highest concentration of Chinese food and beverage brands.
PHOTOS: ST FILE, AFP
Mark Greeven
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What began as a trickle of milk tea and hotpot outlets has become a flood. Chinese food and beverage brands – names like Mixue, Haidilao and Chagee – are expanding across South-east Asia at some of the fastest rates on record.
But what is remarkable about these companies is not just their breakneck pace of growth. They are changing the rules of the game, introducing technology-enabled business models that are raising the bar for incumbent businesses in markets from Singapore to Vietnam.
