China’s largest all-day restaurant bar chain, COMMUNE, has filed for an initial public offering in Hong Kong, betting that a hybrid model can continue to deliver growth even as the country’s bar industry struggles with weakening demand and rising costs.
COMMUNE’s parent company, Jiwusiwei Limited, recently submitted a listing application to the main board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, marking the formal entry of the fast-growing bar-and-dining brand into the capital markets.
Founded in 2016 and headquartered in the southern city of Zhuhai, COMMUNE positions itself as a “dine-and-drink bar”, combining food, alcohol and spatial design to create a consumption format that sits between a traditional restaurant and a bar. The concept targets multiple social occasions, aiming to redefine how urban consumers eat, drink and gather.
According to its prospectus, COMMUNE is now the largest dine-and-drink bar brand in China by scale. As of Sept. 30, 2025, it operated 112 directly managed outlets across 40 cities, including 109 stores under the COMMUNE brand. Its network comprises two formats: standard outlets and higher-end “Select” stores.
Public information from China’s leading restaurant review platform shows a product mix that reflects the brand’s hybrid positioning. On the food side, COMMUNE offers Western-style casual fare such as burgers, fries, fried chicken and pizza. On the drinks side, it sells draught beer and cocktails alongside bottled beer, wine and spirits, resulting in a broad SKU range. The brand has also launched several proprietary beer products and uses aggressive promotions — including a three-hour draught beer group-buy voucher priced at RMB 63 (about US$8.75) — to drive foot traffic and reinforce its value-for-money image.
COMMUNE is not the first bar brand in China to turn to public markets. In 2021, small-bar chain Helen’s listed in Hong Kong, at one point reaching a market capitalisation of more than HK$30 billion as it expanded rapidly to 583 outlets worldwide. That momentum has since reversed. Helen’s current market value stands at about HK$1.15 billion, down more than 90% from its peak. In the first half of 2025, the company reported a 34% year-on-year revenue decline and a nearly 28% drop in net profit.
Against that backdrop, COMMUNE’s recent performance stands out. The company’s revenue rose from RMB 845 million (about US$117 million) in 2023 to RMB 1.074 billion (about US$149 million) in 2024, an increase of 27.1%. In the first nine months of 2025, revenue reached RMB 872 million (about US$121 million), up from RMB 764 million a year earlier. Profitability also improved, with profit climbing from RMB 54 million in 2024 to nearly RMB 67 million in the first nine months of 2025, already surpassing the previous full-year result.
Market research firm Frost & Sullivan said COMMUNE ranked first among China’s bar-restaurant brands by revenue for three consecutive years from 2022 to 2024, with a market share of 7.8% in 2024.
China’s bar industry has come under sustained pressure in recent years as consumer spending softens and operating costs — particularly rent and labour — continue to rise. COMMUNE’s competitive edge lies in reinforcing both sides of its business. By covering multiple consumption windows, from brunch and afternoon tea to dinner and late-night drinking, the brand aims to improve revenue per square metre and smooth demand across the day.
Food accounts for a slightly larger share of revenue than beverages, at 54.0% versus 44.8%, according to the prospectus. Drinks, however, deliver significantly higher margins, with a gross margin of 76.5%, compared with 66.4% for food — a structure that has supported overall profitability.
COMMUNE has attracted institutional backing, including from Hillhouse Capital. Founder and chairman Tang Weitang remains the controlling shareholder. Before the IPO, Hillhouse and Dayone Capital were the two main external investors, holding 9.63% and 1.71% respectively.
The company plans to use IPO proceeds primarily to expand its store network, strengthen its direct-operated model and upgrade store designs. While the strategy points to further scaling, dine-and-drink bars are generally harder to replicate than standardised restaurant formats, given their heavier reliance on site selection, staffing and atmosphere.
Competition is also intensifying. Beyond established players such as Hutaoli, restaurant groups including Dimdouduk and Weijia Liangpi have begun moving into the same “day dining, night drinking” space. As consumer spending remains under pressure, whether COMMUNE can build a durable brand moat — and maintain profitability while expanding — will be closely watched by investors.
