The big scoop: lemon tea chain Ningji to revamp Haagen-Dazs’ struggling China business
General Mills is offloading the ice cream brand’s mainland China stores, as foreign businesses revamp models amid heated domestic competition
Minneapolis-based General Mills said on Monday that it had signed a definitive agreement with an investor consortium including Ningji, a start-up lemon tea chain in China with more than 3,000 signed stores nationwide.
The deal was expected to close by year-end, subject to regulatory approvals and other customary conditions, with financial details undisclosed, the statement said.
“Having long operated in China and harvested early market gains, Haagen-Dazs now struggles with its mid-quality, high-price formula amid weaker consumer confidence, spending power and appetite driven by macroeconomic uncertainties,” said Zhu Danpeng, an independent food and beverage analyst in Guangzhou, southern Guangdong province.
Haagen-Dazs had nearly 200 stores on the mainland, less than half its 2019 peak, according to domestic catering analytics firm Canyan Data.