Helens Chinese Trademark Invalid: Market Cap Drops Over 90%, 'First Bistro for Youth' Loses Steam

Have you been to Helen's? Known as the 'first bistro for young people,' Helens recently lost its Chinese name. Three Chinese trademarks—'Helens,' 'Helens Bistro,' and 'Helens Yue Da Pai Dang'—were finally ruled invalid by the court.

Founded in 2009, Helens first opened in Wudaokou, Beijing. Founder Xu Bingzhong said early on that the business mainly targeted foreigners, like overseas students. Perhaps for this reason, Helens initially used English trademarks like 'Helen's' and applied for a batch of related English trademarks in 2013. However, its core Chinese trademarks were not registered until 2018, laying the groundwork for later disputes.

According to Jiemian News, the trademark dispute mainly arose between Chengdu Helen Bin Fen Hotel Co., Ltd. and Helens. The former registered two 'Helen' trademarks in 2016 under Class 43 for restaurant and bar services, and filed invalidation requests against the 'Helens' trademark on May 23, 2023, and against 'Helens Bistro' and 'Helens Yue Da Pai Dang' on August 7, 2024, claiming the disputed marks were similar to the cited marks and could cause confusion among the public.

After a three-year battle, on the evening of June 25, Helens announced that its three Chinese trademarks were finally ruled invalid by the court. The announcement noted that based on current assessment, the dispute has no material impact on the group's overall business, daily operations, or financial condition, as the group can continue using uncontested trademarks in its daily business.

Blue Whale News reporters found that as of now, Helens offline stores and online communications still use the Chinese name 'Helens' and related expressions. The impact has not yet affected specific stores, but the capital market is more sensitive.

After the news, the stock price opened lower on June 26, at one point falling over 6%. By the close of trading that day, Helens shares had fallen to HK$1.58. Helens' market cap once reached HK$30 billion in the year of its listing, but now stands at only HK$2 billion, a decline of over 90%.

'The First Bistro for Youth' Is No Longer Young

Helens' earliest stores were located near university districts, with a customer base mainly of foreigners and international students. Later, founder Xu Bingzhong changed direction, positioning Helens as a 'free offline communication space for young people' and opened the market with 'extreme cost-effectiveness': bottled beer all priced under 10 yuan, cocktails slightly more expensive at a bit over 20 yuan.

The 'youth + cost-effectiveness' model proved replicable. By the end of 2021, Helens had 782 stores, and in the same year, it went public on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange under the halo of 'the largest chain bistro in China.'

According to Helens' 2021 prospectus, revenue from 2018 to 2020 was 115 million yuan, 565 million yuan, and 818 million yuan respectively; net profit was 9.734 million yuan, 79.136 million yuan, and 70.072 million yuan. The prospectus showed that self-owned drinks contributed over 60% of drink revenue, with gross margins above 70%; through factory direct sourcing and economies of scale, the company also obtained relatively favorable purchase prices for third-party brand drinks.

The advantage lay in scale. At the same time, Helens' aggressive expansion faced soaring store costs, combined with factors like the pandemic, leading to a net loss of 230 million yuan in 2021; the net loss expanded to 1.601 billion yuan the following year. After cumulative losses exceeded 1.8 billion yuan, Helens began closing stores: by the end of 2023, it had 479 bistros, 288 fewer than a year earlier, a reduction of over 40% from the peak of over 850.

In this process, Helens initiated a strategic transformation: from a wholly-owned direct operation model to opening franchise stores, i.e., the 'Hi Beer Partner' plan. Initially, the minimum capital investment threshold was 600,000 yuan; by 2024, the investment threshold for new store types dropped to around 400,000 yuan, reflecting the pressure to expand and improve operations.

Bistros Everywhere: Helens' Business Is Hard

The transformation measures brought some results. According to the 2025 financial report, Helens' full-year revenue was 540 million yuan, down 28.3% year-on-year; net profit attributable to parent was 33.954 million yuan, turning a profit. The proportion of self-owned drink revenue and gross margin improved year-on-year, with store-level gross margin increasing to 73.77%, overall operations improving compared to last year.

But real pressure remains: Helens' per-store daily sales declined. In 2025, same-store daily sales for directly-operated and franchised stores averaged 8,500 yuan, down over 18% year-on-year; average daily sales for individual partner stores were only 4,100 yuan, with all store types experiencing declines. In the trillion-dollar catering sector where per-store daily revenue often exceeds tens of thousands, Helens' main franchise model earns relatively little; moreover, nearly 70% of Helens' stores are in third-tier and below cities, putting objective pressure on profitability.

On the other hand, there are more and more places for young people to drink, and low prices have become less attractive. According to Zhaimen Canyan, over 38,000 new bistros opened in the past year. From Homebars, craft beer pubs, Livehouse-style venues to various bistros, consumption scenes are diversifying.

Bistros operating 'food + wine' have risen strongly. Among them, the Huan Shi brand, which operates 'food + wine,' has developed strong momentum, and its parent company Jiwu Siwei submitted a prospectus to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in January this year. Currently, Huan Shi has over 100 stores in China, and the company's revenue surpassed 1 billion yuan in 2024.

Unlike Helens, which opens markets with low prices and scale, Huan Shi takes a different route: more atmospheric environment, higher pricing, per capita consumption over 100 yuan. On social platforms, netizens often describe Huan Shi as 'beautiful food.' The prospectus discloses that in the first nine months of 2025, its per-store daily sales averaged 29,880 yuan.

Huan Shi extends operating hours to over 18 hours by offering brunch, afternoon tea, dinner, and night drinks, improving per-store efficiency and operating performance. Disclosed information shows that in the first nine months of 2025, drinks and beverages contributed about 45% of revenue, of which 85% were alcoholic drinks; during the same period, Huan Shi's overall gross margin remained stable at 68.7%, above the industry average.

However, Huan Shi also has challenges. High store costs also squeeze profits, and consumer complaints about food taste and quality can affect brand reputation.

China Food Industry analyst Zhu Danpeng believes that, like the coffee market, low-, mid-, and high-end brands each have their market. The same applies to bistros. Bistros are increasingly popular among the younger generation, and the sector is in a period of rapid expansion, but overall concentration is low. Perhaps after another 5 years, with capital promotion and consumption dividend support, a leading brand and a clearer competitive landscape will emerge.

Product pricing is not the only factor affecting brand trends. Zhu Danpeng said that the hardcore factors for bistro business development are mainly brand effect, scale effect, fan effect, supply chain completeness, and per-store operational capability. Since each store is in a different location, strategies should be differentiated. For Helens, how to run each store well may be the biggest challenge.