Helens Chinese Trademark Ruled Invalid, Market Cap Down Over 90%

Have you been to Helen's? Recently, three Chinese trademarks - "Helensi," "Helensi Xiaojiuguan," and "Helensi Yueda Paidang" - were ruled invalid by final court judgment.

Beyond "losing its Chinese name," Helens faces the greater pressure of being gradually abandoned by the younger generation it once targeted as "young people's first bar."

Helens' Trademark Battle: Chinese Trademark Finalized Invalid

Helens was founded in 2009, with its first store in Beijing's Wudaokou area. Founder Xu Bingzhong said in an interview that early days focused on the foreign market, including overseas students.

According to reports, Helens first used English trademarks like "Helen's" and applied for a batch in 2013. The core Chinese trademark wasn't registered until 2018, laying the foundation for later disputes.

The trademark dispute primarily involves Chengdu Helen Bisheng Hotel Co., Ltd. and Helens. The former successfully registered two "Helen" trademarks in 2016 (Class 43: restaurant, bar services) and filed invalidation requests against "Helensi" in May 2023 and against "Helensi Xiaojiuguan" and "Helensi Yueda Paidang" in August 2024.

They argue that the disputed trademarks are similar to the cited "Helen" trademarks for similar services, likely causing confusion among relevant consumers.

After a three-year conflict, on the evening of June 25, Helens announced the three Chinese trademarks were ruled invalid by final court judgment. The company states that based on current assessment, the dispute has no significant impact on the group's overall business, daily operations, or financial condition, and that it can continue using uncontested trademarks in daily operations.

As of now, Helens' offline stores and online communications still use the Chinese name "Helensi" and related expressions. The impact has not yet affected specific stores, but capital markets are more sensitive.

Capital Market Reaction: Stock Falls, Market Cap Shrinks Over 90%

After the announcement, the stock opened lower on June 26, falling over 6% intraday. The stock closed at HK$1.58.

Helens' market cap once reached HK$30 billion when listed; currently it is only HK$2 billion, shrinking over 90%.

"Young" Plus "Cost-Effective" Strategy: Expansion and Losses Coexist

Helens' early stores were concentrated around university campuses, with main customers being foreigners and international students. Later, Xu Bingzhong repositioned Helens as "offline free communication space for young people," emphasizing "extreme cost-effectiveness." Bottled beer sells for under ¥10, cocktails slightly more at around ¥20+.

This model was replicated. According to data, by end of 2021, Helens had 782 stores and was listed in Hong Kong that year with the aura of "China's largest chain bar."

Helens' prospectus shows 2018-2020 revenue of ¥115 million, ¥565 million, and ¥818 million respectively; net profits of ¥9.734 million, ¥79.136 million, and ¥70.072 million.

Despite low drink prices, it maintained profitability. The prospectus reveals in-house drinks have gross margins over 70%, contributing over 60% of beverage revenue. Through factory-direct procurement and economies of scale, Helens obtained favorable purchase prices for third-party brand drinks.

Scale was one advantage. But rapid expansion also brought soaring opening costs. Compounded by pandemic factors, net loss in 2021 reached ¥230 million; the following year, net loss expanded to ¥1.601 billion.

After accumulated losses exceeded ¥1.8 billion, Helens began closing stores. Financial data shows by end of 2023, it had 479 pubs, 288 fewer than a year earlier, a reduction of over 40% from the peak of over 850 stores.

Meanwhile, Helens initiated a strategic shift from fully direct-operated to franchising, i.e., the "Happy Beer Partner" program. Initially, the minimum investment threshold for the plan was ¥600,000; by 2024, it had been lowered to around ¥400,000.

Intensified Industry Competition: Store and Same-Store Sales Under Pressure

From the 2025 annual report, Helens' full-year revenue was ¥540 million, down 28.3% year-on-year; net profit attributable to parent was ¥33.954 million, turning profitable. In-house beverage revenue share and gross margin improved year-on-year, with store-level contribution gross margin rising to 73.77%, showing overall improvement.

However, Helens still faces declining average daily sales per store. In 2025, same-store average daily sales for direct-operated and franchised stores were ¥8,500, down over 18% year-on-year; average daily sales for individual partner stores were only ¥4,100, with all store types seeing declines.

In the food and beverage track where per-store daily revenue often exceeds ¥10,000, Helens' main franchise store type has low returns. Additionally, nearly 70% of Helens' stores are in third-tier and below cities, putting pressure on profitability.

On the other hand, young people have more drinking venue options, and low prices are becoming less attractive. Data from Zhaimen Canyan shows over 38,000 new bars opened in the past year, from Homebars and craft beer bars to Livehouse-style bars and various bistros, with consumer scenarios becoming increasingly diversified.

Among them, bistro operations offering "food + drink" have risen strongly. One notable player, "Mirage," from parent company Jiwu Thinking, submitted an IPO prospectus to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange this January. Mirage currently has over 100 stores in China, with 2024 revenue exceeding ¥1 billion.

Unlike Helens' low-price, scale-driven approach, Mirage follows a different path: emphasizes atmosphere, higher pricing, and per capita consumption over ¥100. The prospectus shows average daily sales per store in the first nine months of 2025 were ¥29,880.

Mirage extends operating hours to over 18 hours by offering brunch, afternoon tea, dinner, and late-night drinks, improving per-store efficiency. In the first nine months of 2025, drinks and beverages contributed about 45% of revenue, with 85% being alcoholic. During the same period, Mirage's overall gross margin remained stable at 68.7%, above industry average.

However, Mirage also faces challenges: high store costs squeezing profits, and consumer complaints about food taste and quality potentially affecting brand reputation.

Chinese food industry analyst Zhu Danpeng believes that, like the coffee track, low, mid, and high-end brands each have their market. The bar format is in a high-speed expansion phase but overall concentration is not high. Perhaps after about five more years, with capital support and consumption dividends, the market will see leading brands and clearer competitive patterns.

He says product pricing is not the only key. The "hardcore factors" determining future bar business development are mainly brand effect, scale effect, fan effect, supply chain completeness, and per-store operational capability. Since each location is different, strategies should also be differentiated.

For Helens and similar operators, running every store well is the biggest challenge.