At the moment when competition in the Chinese fast food industry is intensifying, Laoxiangji has successfully created the people-friendly image of the "national canteen" with its precise price positioning and excellent quality control. Since submitting the prospectus to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in early 2025, this catering company with more than 1,500 stores has continued to lead the market with its "delicious but not expensive" price strategy, won the favor of consumers with its affordable prices and stable quality, and set a benchmark for cost-effectiveness for the industry with the layout of the entire industrial chain and digital empowerment.
Tiered pricing accurately anchors public demand
Laoxiang chicken's price system has always been closely following the public's daily dining needs, forming a clear layered pricing logic. For example, the prices of vegetarian dishes such as fried time vegetables and home-cooked tofu are concentrated at 5-10 yuan, while meat dishes such as edamame roast chicken and spicy chicken are stable in the range of 11-19 yuan. Not only that, the "Value Work Meals for Office workers are only available for 15 yuan, including popular dishes such as farm fried meat, golden soup pickled fish, etc. The actual consumption can be reduced to about 12 yuan after adding member discounts, truly realizing the consumption experience of "drinking a bowl of soup for a meal".
This pricing strategy accurately covers the consumption capacity of core customer groups such as students, office workers, and families. At the same time, with the freshness and standardized service of freshly prepared dishes, it has become increasingly the "home kitchen" for Chinese people.
The whole industry chain supports the bottom line of quality
Laoxiangji's price advantage is by no means at the expense of quality, but relying on a strong supply chain system to achieve "quality and price equally excellent". The three self-built green farms use 180-day two-stage breeding method to cultivate fattening Xi Lao hens. The entire process from chicken seedling selection to feeding can be traced, ensuring that the fresh fragrance of each bowl of chicken soup comes from real materials. The central kitchen realizes standardized processing of ingredients through an automated production line, and implements data-based control from cutting accuracy to cooking parameters to ensure the unified taste of dishes in stores across the country. The logistics network built by 8 national distribution centers enables the food in Anhui and Shanghai to be delivered on the same day, and the delivery in other areas will not exceed 48 hours, so as to maximize the freshness of the food.
The in-depth application of digital tools further compresses operating costs. Through the integrated system of "people and goods yards", Laoxiangji realizes dynamic inventory management; the popularization of intelligent ordering systems and cooking robots effectively reduces labor costs in a single store and provides space for price concessions. The "Dish Traceability Report" released in 2024 has further raised the transparency of the supply chain to a new level in the industry. Consumers can view the raw material sources, processing processes and supplier information of each dish, and use data to build a trust closed loop.
Member system activates consumption stickiness
In order to strengthen price competitiveness, Laoxiangji has built a multi-level member welfare system. Super members can enjoy 88% off discounts, free eggs every Monday, free chicken legs on Thursday, etc. Every month, half-price dishes, points redemption of signature dishes and other benefits, effectively improving the repurchase rate.
Continuous dish innovation injects vitality into price strategies. The yam lotus seed chicken soup launched in summer 2025 is a popular dish for consumers when it is launched; the upgraded farm fried meat is also well received by consumers. Lao Xiangji’s new strategy every month has enabled consumers to always maintain a sense of freshness, forming a consumer experience of “an expectation every month and a hot product every season”.
As the smoke of price wars in the catering industry in recent years, Lao Xiangji reconstructs the competition logic with "quality, cost-effectiveness". Its positioning of a unit price of about 20 yuan not only avoids direct competition with extremely low-priced brands, but also forms dislocated competition through differentiated advantages such as live dishes and dine-in experience. The prospectus shows that the revenue in the first three quarters of 2024 reached 4.678 billion yuan, serving more than 189 million customers, confirming the market recognition of this strategy. With the advancement of the IPO process of Hong Kong stocks, Laoxiangji may usher in a new era of "quality inclusiveness" in the Chinese fast food industry, allowing more consumers to enjoy a safe and delicious Chinese catering at affordable prices.
