China’s biggest pub chain Helen’s has opened its first outlet in Singapore at Orchard Sentral. Singapore is always the top pick as the island nation is home to a large number of people from China who are the captive audience for Helen’s. The local Singaporeans are also attracted to new concepts and are wiling to give Helen’s a go.
In China’s Helen’s is known for meeting young generation’s demand for affordable alcoholic drinks, quality services and social ambience. According to the company’s 2022 annual report, Helen’s branded products accounted for 76% of total revenue in 2022, down slightly from 78% in 2021.
Its IPO prospectus mentions that Helen’s bottled beers are under RMB10 per bottle, which gives it significantly pricing advantages over similar products in the market.
Naturally, Helen’s will be promoting its own products in Singapore, which we feel will expose consumers to the concept of low alcoholic milk beer. Own brand products offer a higher margin compared to third party beverages. Helen’s is expected to promote its own branded drinks including Helen’s Milk Beer (SGD 5.9), which has a 0.3% ABV. The drink features 5 types of lactic acid bacteria to give it a unique sour-sweet flavour.
