The Luckin Coffee IPO: What You Need To Know

A young coffee chain is trying to become the “Starbucks of China,” and it wants to give your income a little kick.

The IPO

Luckin Coffee Inc. will issue 30 million shares on the Nasdaq under ticker LK, according to the firm’s F-1 filing. Priced between $15 and $17, the offering represents 88 percent of outstanding shares and is expected to bring in about $586.5 million.

The lead underwriters include Credit Suisse, Morgan Stanley, CICC and Haitong International.

The company qualifies as an emerging growth company under the U.S. JOBS Act, which exempts management from certain SEC disclosure requirements.

The Company

Luckin Coffee is China’s second-largest coffee chain. It began with a trial store 18 months ago and now operates 2,370 shops across 28 cities. About 91 percent of its sites are pick-up stores, which have limited seating and generally support on-the-go orders.

Luckin boasts the gold medal brew from the 2018 IIAC International Coffee Tasting Competition.

It differentiates itself from market competitors with digital orders and on-demand delivery. Its mobile apps digitalize the entire transaction process to eliminate the cashier interaction. As of March 31, Luckin had recorded more than 16.8 million customers with a 54-percent repurchase rate.

The Finances

In 2018, management recorded revenue of RMB 840.7 million with a net loss of RMB 1.619 million. The previous year saw revenue of RMB 250,000 and a loss of RMB 56.37 million.

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