Good News on Listing | Frost & Sullivan Assists TTE International Holdings Limited in Successful US Listing (NASDAQ:HDL)

Thematic Foods International Holdings Limited (hereinafter referred to as "Thematic Foods") successfully listed on May 17, 2024. The company issued 2.6927 million ADSs in a primary public offering. Each ADS represents 10 common shares of the company, and the ADS price was set at $19.56 per share. The total amount of the primary offering is approximately $52.67 million.

During this US listing process, Frost & Sullivan mainly undertook the following tasks: helping the issuer accurately and objectively understand its positioning in the target market, using objective market data to discover, support, and highlight the issuer's competitive advantages, assisting the issuer, investment banks, and other intermediaries in completing the writing of relevant parts of the prospectus (such as overview, competitive advantages and strategy, industry overview, business, and other important chapters), helping the issuer complete communication with the SEC and investors, assisting investors to quickly understand the market ecosystem and competitive landscape, and assisting the issuer in completing feedback on various SEC issues related to the industry.

The company is a leading Chinese cuisine enterprise in the international market;

The company's brand has become a global cultural phenomenon and an ambassador for spreading traditional Chinese cooking;

The company has strong local expertise and international operational capabilities;

The company's tested management philosophy ensures that it can achieve continuous international expansion;
The company has an experienced management team and a strong corporate culture;

According to the Frost & Sullivan report:

Based on its 2022 revenue, the company ranks third as the largest Chinese cuisine brand in the international market.

Chinese cuisine is one of the most popular types of cuisine internationally. Initially, Chinese cuisine was brought overseas by early Chinese immigrants. Since the late 20th century, Chinese cuisine brands have begun to expand into major overseas markets such as Southeast Asia, North America, East Asia, Europe, and Australia. Today, it has spread to more than 130 countries. However, despite its popularity, few Chinese cuisines have achieved global brand recognition and scale while maintaining consistent high standards of service and quality. Due to the challenges of integrating into local culture, adapting to local tastes and eating habits, and meeting local regulatory requirements, only a few Chinese chain restaurants operate internationally. In 2022, Chinese cuisine brands with more than 10 restaurants in the international market and those operating in two or more countries accounted for only 13.0% and less than 5.0% of the Chinese cuisine market in terms of number of restaurants, respectively. Recently, Chinese chain restaurants have gradually increased their efforts in standardization, localization, and brand building to expand globally.

As COVID-19 is gradually under control, the international catering service market experienced a brief decline in 2020 and began to recover in 2021, reaching $3072.3 billion in 2022. It is expected that the international catering service market will continue to grow steadily and reach $4012.1 billion by 2027, with a compound annual growth rate of 5.5% from 2022 to 2027. The following chart shows the historical and forecast market size of the international catering service market.

The percentage of the Chinese cuisine market in the international market has been steadily increasing, rising from 9.9% in 2019 to an estimated 11.1% by 2026. This is mainly due to the growing acceptance of Chinese cuisine in the international market as Chinese culture becomes increasingly popular, coupled with the continuous innovation of Chinese cuisines to adapt to local customers. The growth rate of the Chinese cuisine market in the international market will exceed that of the international catering service market, increasing from $306.1 billion in 2022 to $445.2 billion in 2027, with a compound annual growth rate of 7.8%. The following chart shows the historical and forecast market size of Chinese cuisine in the international catering service market.

Hotpot is one of the most representative styles of Chinese cuisine, with a history of over 1,700 years. Hotpot is cooked slowly on a pot bottom at the table. When the pot boils, ingredients are added to the pot and cooked on the table. Common hotpot dishes include a variety of selectable ingredients such as slices of meat, fresh vegetables, tofu, wontons, and seafood. After the ingredients are cooked, customers usually dip them in small condiments to enhance the flavor.

Compared with other types of Chinese cuisine, hotpot restaurants typically do not require many skilled chefs and can prepare the pot bottom in advance, making it easier to expand output and standardize. In addition, hotpot is generally more popular among foreign customers because of its wide variety of ingredients and flavors, which can be customized according to customer preferences. Hotpot is a communal dining format designed for sharing, and many foreign customers are willing to invite friends and family to share with them.

Hotpot is one of the most popular categories of Chinese cuisine in the international market, accounting for 11.2% of the international Chinese cuisine market in terms of restaurant revenue in 2022. Affected by the pandemic, the market size of hotpot restaurants in the international market experienced a brief decline in 2020 and began to recover in 2021, reaching $34.3 billion in 2022. The number of hotpot restaurants in the international market is expected to increase from 139,000 in 2022 to 179,000 in 2027. Due to the increasing number of hotpot restaurants, their popularity is growing and they are becoming easier to attract local customers through localization, as well as their high scalability and standardization, the growth rate of hotpot restaurants in the international market is expected to exceed that of other Chinese cuisines, reaching $50.5 billion in 2027, with a compound annual growth rate of 8.0%. The following chart illustrates the historical and forecast market size of the international hotpot restaurant market.

Currently, Chinese cuisine is mainly concentrated in areas with a large immigrant population, such as Southeast Asia, East Asia, and North America. These regions account for the vast majority of the total international Chinese cuisine market. Over the past decade, the economies of these countries have generally grown steadily, resulting in positive per capita disposable income. Therefore, consumers in the international market tend to pursue higher-quality food, better and more comfortable dining environments, and different cultural experiences. The following chart outlines the market size of Chinese cuisine and hotpot restaurants in target markets.

Frost & Sullivan has rich research experience in the catering and food industries, assisting well-known enterprises to successfully list on capital markets. Recent successful listing cases include: Tea Bazaar (2555.HK), Lancang Ancient Tea (6911.HK), Dekang Agriculture and Animal Husbandry (2419.HK), Pot Circle (2517.HK), Davis Commodities (NASDAQ:DTCK), Zhenjiao Lidu (6979.HK), Dasi Co., Ltd. (1405.HK), Baiyuan Orchard (2411.HK), Zhengwei (2147.HK), Weilong (9985.HK), Shuangcai Zhuang (2321.HK), Youran Animal Husbandry (9858.HK), Jiulongwang (1927.HK), Yumart (9987.HK), Nongfu Spring (9633.HK), Fengxiang Food (9977.HK), Simore (6969.HK), China Feihai (6186.HK), China National Tobacco Corporation International (6055.HK), Youpin 360 (2360.HK), Wugu Flour Mill (1837.HK), Baby Tree (1761.HK), Haidilao (6862.HK), Yongsheng Agriculture (8609.HK), Longhui Holdings (1007.HK), Xinrong International (1587.HK), Yiyuan Liquor Industry (8146.HK), Jierong International (2119.HK), Bingshi International (1705.HK), Nippon Confectionery (1475.HK), Asian Grocery (8413.HK), Chowking Duck (1458.HK), COFCO Meat (1610.HK), Yihai International (1579.HK), Zhongdi Dairy (1492.HK), Dali Foods (3799.HK), Manor Ranch (1533.HK), Wanzhou International (0288.HK), etc.