Mixue: How a 3,000 Yuan Shaved Ice Stall Became the World’s Largest Fast-Food Chain

Introduction : The Snow King Who Outpaced McDonald’s

In March 2025, while the world was watching Silicon Valley tech IPOs, a different kind of corporate giant quietly stole the spotlight from the usual Western titans. A bubble tea and ice cream brand from central China — Mixue Ice Cream & Tea (蜜雪冰城) — had just debuted on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, raising over HK$3.45 billion (US $444 million). Investors clamored for shares, pushing the valuation past US $10 billion on day one.

But it wasn’t just the IPO that shocked the world. By the end of 2024, Mixue had already overtaken McDonald’s and Starbucks to become the largest fast-food chain in the world by store count. With 46,000+ outlets across China, Southeast Asia, and even Australia, the Snow King mascot now represents the most ubiquitous food brand on the planet.

What’s more remarkable: it all started in 1997 with a 3,000 yuan loan (~US $360) from a grandmother to her grandson, who wanted to sell shaved ice to college students.

This is the story of how Mixue rose from humble beginnings to become the most expansive fast-food chain ever built — a case study in affordability, franchising, and cultural timing.

Part I: Humble Beginnings in Henan (1997–2000s)

The founder, Zhang Hongchao, was a struggling university student in Zhengzhou, Henan Province. In June 1997, he borrowed 3,000 yuan from his grandmother to start a small shaved-ice stall near campus.

The early years were anything but smooth. Zhang experimented with different concepts — at one point trying tanghulu (candied hawthorn skewers) in Hefei — but multiple ventures collapsed. By his own account, he came close to bankruptcy more than once.

Yet Zhang persisted. In 1999, he opened a second stall, this time branding it “Mixue Bingcheng” (Honey Snow Ice City). He also created the now-famous Snow King mascot — a smiling, Santa-like ice cream character that has since become an icon across Asia.

The formula was simple: cheap, refreshing, cheerful. By the early 2000s, Zhang realized he had discovered a mass-market opportunity if he could scale it. And scale it he did.

Part II: Cracking the Code of Affordability

Mixue’s genius lies in its radical affordability. In a country where Starbucks charged the equivalent of US $4–5 for a latte, Mixue sold a cone of soft-serve ice cream for just 1 yuan (about US $0.15). Bubble teas, lemonades, and fruit drinks were usually under US $1.

Zhang often repeated his mission:

“Let people around the world eat well and drink well for just two American dollars.”

By stripping away premium pricing and positioning itself as “everyday accessible indulgence,” Mixue became a comfort brand for students, workers, and families in China’s lower-tier cities — the places multinational giants often ignored.

Add to that a catchy jingle and the Snow King’s upbeat image, and Mixue embedded itself in Chinese pop culture.

Part III: The Franchising Model That Changed Everything

Instead of growing through company-owned stores like Starbucks, Mixue expanded via an aggressive franchising model:

99% of stores are franchised.
Franchisees pay a relatively low entry cost — about 210,000 yuan (~US $29,000).
Mixue earns most of its revenue not from royalties, but from selling ingredients, packaging, and equipment directly to franchisees.

This clever model made Mixue less of a restaurant operator and more of a supply-chain business with a retail front. Franchisees take on most of the operational risk, while Mixue ensures quality control and profits on every cup of tea sold.

The result? Explosive expansion at low corporate cost.

Part IV: Store-Count Supremacy

By 2021, Mixue had around 20,000 stores. By 2024, that number more than doubled to 45,000+, surpassing both McDonald’s (~43,000) and Starbucks (~38,000) in outlet count.

As of August 2025, Mixue operates over 46,000 stores worldwide, with about 41,000 inside China and the rest spread across Southeast Asia, South Korea, Japan, Australia, and even forays into Europe.

For context:

McDonald’s average revenue per store: ~$620,000.
Mixue average revenue per store: ~$76,000.

McDonald’s still leads in profitability per outlet, but Mixue’s strategy isn’t about high unit economics — it’s about ubiquity and scale.

Part V: Financial Performance & IPO Success

Mixue’s meteoric rise is reflected in its books:

Revenue 2024: RMB 24.8 billion (~US $3.4 billion).
Net income 2024: RMB 4.45 billion (~US $630 million).
Operating income: RMB 5.81 billion.
IPO (March 2025, HKEX): Raised HK$3.45 billion (~US $444 million).
Market Cap (mid-2025): ~HK$200 billion (~US $25 billion).

In 2023, Mixue sold 7.4 billion drinks worldwide, almost double Starbucks’ estimated 4 billion beverages that same year.

For a company built on $0.15 ice creams and $1 teas, these numbers stunned global investors.

Part VI: Why Mixue Resonates

Several factors explain why Mixue struck a cultural and economic chord:

Affordability in a slowing economy
– As China’s economy slowed and middle-class spending tightened, Mixue’s low prices offered guilt-free treats.
Entrepreneurial dreams
– Thousands of small-town families could afford a Mixue franchise, creating jobs and fueling local economies.
Tier-3 and Tier-4 city strategy
– While Western brands chased Shanghai and Beijing, Mixue dominated overlooked markets where competition was thin.
Cultural branding
– The Snow King mascot, paired with cheerful jingles, gave Mixue a wholesome, almost cartoon-like appeal.

Part VII: Challenges & Criticism

Despite its runaway success, Mixue isn’t without problems:

Food safety scandals — reports of expired ingredients in some outlets damaged public trust.
Child labor fines — some franchisees were caught employing underage workers.
Franchisee struggles — saturation in cities has led to store cannibalization, with average per-store sales declining ~5% in 2024.
Global challenges — entering Western markets will require adapting recipes, pricing, and branding to new consumer expectations.

Part VIII: Mixue vs. McDonald’s, Starbucks & Beyond

Metric	Mixue (2024)	McDonald’s (2024)	Starbucks (2024)
Stores	~46,000	~43,000	~38,000
Revenue	~$3.4B	~$25.9B	~$36B
Avg. per store	~$76K	~$620K	~$950K
Model	Franchise-supply	Franchise + corporate	Mostly corporate

Mixue has scale dominance, but McDonald’s and Starbucks retain revenue dominance. Still, if Mixue can maintain its growth, its network effects and supply-chain leverage may close the gap over time.

Part IX: The Road Ahead

Mixue’s ambitions don’t stop at Asia. Reports indicate the company is exploring entry into the U.S. market, where ultra-affordable bubble tea could upend premium chains.

The question is: will Americans embrace $1 bubble teas with the same enthusiasm as Chinese students? Or will cultural and logistical differences blunt its edge?

Either way, Mixue has already secured its place in history as the world’s largest fast-food chain by outlets. Its journey — from a grandmother’s loan to a 25-billion-dollar empire — is one of the most striking case studies in modern business.

Conclusion: Lessons from Mixue

Mixue’s rise underscores several timeless lessons:

Affordability scales faster than luxury in emerging markets.
Franchising and supply-chain integration can create exponential growth with minimal capital.
Culture matters — mascots, jingles, and relatability can be as powerful as product quality.
Even in a world dominated by Western brands, local champions can outscale the giants.

Mixue isn’t just an ice cream and tea shop — it’s a mirror of shifting global consumption, entrepreneurship, and aspiration. And it’s only just beginning.