Luckin Coffee, known as "China's Starbucks", has set up a new technology company in Hainan with a registered capital of RMB 10 million ($1.5 million).
The company's legal representative is Luckin Coffee chairman and CEO Guo Jinyi, and the business scope includes food business, food Internet sales, catering services, computer software, and hardware and auxiliary equipment wholesale, copyright agent, technical services, technology development, technology consulting, technology exchange, data provider Tianyancha's information shows.
Luckin Coffee plans to award up to 222,769,232 shares of Class A common stock to employees and directors, according to a recent filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
On January 18, Luckin Coffee announced that it opened a retail partner recruitment program and accepted franchise applications.
Luckin Coffee does not charge a franchise fee for partners, although franchisees will be required to pay an upfront investment fee provided by Luckin Coffee in an amount between RMB 350,000 - RMB 370,000. This includes renovation costs of RMB 110,000 - RMB 130,000, production equipment of approximately RMB 190,000, and a deposit of RMB 50,000.
As of November 30, 2020, Luckin Coffee's stores in China are reduced from 4,507 to 3,898. By 2023, Luckin Coffee hopes to have between 4,800 and 6,900 self-operated stores.
Luckin Coffee's stock was delisted from the Nasdaq for falsifying financial and operational data.
On December 17 last year, the SEC said Luckin Coffee agreed to pay a $180 million fine in a settlement against the financial fraud charges.
Luckin Coffee shares traded on the US OTC market went up by 1.3 percent pre-market Wednesday.