What Laiyifen does

Laiyifen (来伊份, Shanghai Laiyifen Co., Ltd., 上海来伊份股份有限公司) is a Shanghai-headquartered, publicly listed (Shanghai Stock Exchange: 603777.SH) fresh snack retailer founded in 2000 and operating for 25 years in the Chinese consumer market. The company sells a curated assortment of premium snacks — 14 core categories and 1,000+ SKUs sourced from approximately 20 countries — through 3,000-3,600 company-owned and franchise specialty stores nationwide, complemented by daily in-store replenishment. Its go-to-motion is hybrid direct-to-consumer across physical retail, its own e-commerce site, Tmall, JD.com, a mobile app (来伊份APP), and Weibo, serving health-conscious middle-class Chinese consumers for daily snacking, gift boxes, and membership-driven purchases under the Yi Dian Ka (伊点卡) loyalty program.

Underlying the retail business is a multi-module technology stack that includes a Java-based Open API Platform (developer.laiyifen.com) exposing REST endpoints for order, user, coupon, cloud-store, IM, and same-city services with HMAC-SHA1 signed authentication; the 养馋记 (Yang Chan Ji) supplier management module for product master data, inventory sync, and delivery scheduling; the 云店 (Cloud Store) system; and the 同城生活 (Community Lifestyle) platform supporting card verification for self-service equipment. Laiyifen monetizes through one-time retail sales (physical stores, Tmall, JD.com, own site), franchise and merchant settlement fees (sales commission plus platform deposits) on the 商家入驻 marketplace, and authorized distributor wholesale under a 1M+ RMB capital requirement. Founder Yu Ruifen serves as co-founder and president, with Xu Saihua as CFO and director.

Name

Laiyifen

Legal name

上海来伊份股份有限公司 (Shanghai Laiyifen Co., Ltd.)

Website

https://laiyifen.com

Company type

Public

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

5,001–10,000 employees

Short description

Laiyifen is a Shanghai-based, publicly listed Chinese fresh snack retailer operating 3,000+ specialty stores and online channels (Tmall, JD.com, app), serving middle-class Chinese consumers with 1,000+ SKUs sourced from 20 countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Fresh Snack Retail

NAICS

Specialty Food Retailers (4452), Other Specialty Food Retailers (44529)

SIC

Retail-Variety Stores (5331)

akta.pro primary industry

Natural Specialty Food Stores (Gluten-Free, Vegan, Keto, Allergy-Friendly) (CRAHAEAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Better-for-You / Functional Snacks (Low Sugar, Keto, Probiotic, Fortified) (CRADABAM)

Keywords

• Fresh snack retail
• Specialty food stores
• Snack distribution
• Franchise operations
• E-commerce snacks

Headquarters

HQ city

Shanghai

HQ country

China

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Retail Snack Sales: Physical retail store sales of fresh snacks through 3000+ specialty stores in China. Daily delivery of products across 14 core categories with 1000+ SKUs sourced from 20 countries.
2. E-commerce Sales: Online sales through official website, Tmall flagship store, and JD.com store. Direct-to-consumer online snack sales with home delivery.
3. Franchise & Merchant Settlement: Franchise fees from store partners and merchant settlement platform fees including sales commissions and platform deposits from merchants on the Laiyifen mall platform.
4. Distributor Sales: Wholesale distribution of snacks through authorized distributors with 1 million+ fluid capital requirement and 5+ years retail/distribution experience.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Laiyifen operates a nationwide fresh-snack retail chain of 3,600+ specialty stores in China, offering 1,000+ SKUs across 14 core snack categories sourced seasonally from 20 countries, with 12 signature single products. Sales are supported by an integrated online-offline model including a mobile app, Tmall/JD.com storefronts, a franchise program, an authorized distributor network, and a B2B open API platform.

Product overview

Laiyifen is a fresh snack retail platform headquartered in Shanghai, operating as a unified platform-plus-modules architecture. The core offering is the Laiyifen retail chain of 3,000+ specialty stores offering premium snacks from 20 countries, supported by the 来伊份APP mobile application, 智慧零售 smart retail services, and the 来伊份开放平台 developer portal for B2B partner integrations. The company also operates the 养馋记 supplier management module and the 来伊份商家入驻平台 merchant marketplace platform. Product portfolio includes 14 core categories with over 1,000 SKUs, featuring 12 signature products (伊天益袋, 扭伊牛, 开焗, 鳕智多, 饥本要素, 如意肠, 芒太后, 来吃鸭, 脆爷, 嗨吃无骨, 百年好核, 居司令), alongside the 伊点卡 loyalty program.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• 养馋记: A sub-brand/platform of Laiyifen focused on fresh product supply management, including product data synchronization, delivery scheduling, and supplier management interfaces.

Products and services

• Laiyifen Fresh Snack Retail Chain (来伊份) Nationwide chain of 3,600+ specialty stores selling fresh snacks across 14 categories and 1,000+ SKUs sourced from 20 countries, with daily delivery. Targets Chinese consumers seeking fresh, premium snack options and gift boxes.
• Laiyifen Mobile App (来伊份APP) Mobile application for online snack shopping, membership management (伊点卡 loyalty point card), exclusive deals, and in-store services for Chinese consumers.
• Laiyifen Smart Retail Services (智慧零售) Smart retail service module offering group purchase discounts, multi-category gift boxes, and the 伊点卡 (Yi Dian Ka) membership point card system for consumers and corporate gifting customers.
• Laiyifen Open Platform (来伊份开放平台)

Quantifiable outcome

• 3600+ specialty stores across China
• +2 more outcomes

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Zhiji Academy (知行学院)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 June 2026Laiyifen has entered into a cooperation agreement with Zhiji Academy to establish a practical base for industry-education integration. Students from Zhiji College will engage directly in Laiyifen's frontline business scenarios, participating in new product development, supply chain management, and digital operations. The initiative aims to help students translate professional theory into practical skills while potentially building a talent pipeline for the company.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• PepsiCo (Frito-Lay): Global snack giant with extensive salty snack portfolio (Lay's, Doritos) and growing presence in China. Comparable in snack category breadth, but operates as a broad incumbent rather than a specialty retailer.
• Want Want China Holdings (旺旺): Large, diversified Chinese snack and beverage conglomerate with broad portfolio across rice crackers, candies, and dairy snacks. Comparable consumer demographic and mass-market snack positioning, but operates as a broad incumbent rather than a specialty retail chain.
• Mondelez International: Global snacks incumbent (Oreo, Cadbury, Toblerone) competing in cookies, chocolate, and biscuits — categories overlapping with Laiyifen's premium snack assortment. Provides a benchmark for international CPG-snack economics and scale.

Direct peers

• Be & Cheery (百草味): Major Chinese snack brand and online retailer with a wide assortment of nuts, dried fruits, and baked snacks. Competes directly with Laiyifen in the same snack categories and on the same e-commerce platforms.
• Three Squirrels (三只松鼠): Leading Chinese branded snack retailer with overlapping premium snack assortment across nuts, baked goods, and meat snacks. Directly competes with Laiyifen in both e-commerce (Tmall, JD) and physical retail, with a more digitally native brand identity.
• Qiaqia Food (洽洽食品): Listed Chinese snack manufacturer/brand focused on sunflower seeds and tree nuts, with growing retail distribution. Comparable in premium nut-snack positioning and Chinese consumer demographic, though more brand-led and less retail-chain-led than Laiyifen.
• Bestore (良品铺子): High-end Chinese specialty snack retail chain with a comparable omni-channel model (stores + e-commerce). Closely comparable in product breadth (~1,000 SKUs), premium positioning, and target customer of health-conscious middle-class consumers.
• Haoxiangni (好想你): Chinese listed snack company specializing in red dates and premium healthy snacks. Comparable in health-oriented positioning, specialty retail experience, and target consumer of health-conscious middle-class Chinese buyers.

Others

• Pop Mart: Chinese specialty retail chain with comparable scale (1,000+ stores) and urban consumer demographic, but in collectible toys rather than snacks. Relevant for benchmarking specialty-store retail economics in China.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/lyfenchina

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments3 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Laiyifen