Laopu Gold embracing Chinese culture for success

Laopu Gold Co, the fast-rising Chinese heritage gold jewelry brand, is shaking up the global luxury scene with a stock price that has surged more than 22-fold since its June 2024 debut and a market value of HK$152.2 billion ($19.39 billion).

Trading at HK$881 from an IPO price of HK$40.5 on the Hong Kong stock exchange, Laopu is increasingly being valued among Hong Kong's hottest consumer stocks, such as Mixue and Pop Mart.

Unlike traditional gold retailers such as Chow Tai Fook, Laopu Gold combines gold's value-preserving function with a bold design rooted in Chinese cultural heritage.

That strategy is paying off. The company's 2024 revenue soared 167.5 percent year-on-year to 8.51 billion yuan ($1.18 billion), while net profit surged 253.9 percent to 1.47 billion yuan.

Laopu's unique position in the Chinese market has drawn attention not just from investors but from global luxury titans.

Johann Rupert, chairman and former CEO of Richemont, which owns Cartier and Van Cleef and Arpels, said the rise of Laopu underscores how jewelry remains a deeply local, culturally driven segment.

Jewelry is inherently a non-branded market, Rupert said recently. Laopu's success in turning cultural heritage into a brand is a valid path, and it means other local players can succeed too.

Though LVMH declined to directly address Laopu, Stephane Bianchi, the group's managing director, said last month that domestic jewelry brands in China are seeing "explosive growth", as Chinese consumers shift attention toward local labels.

Laopu has captured the zeitgeist of Chinese luxury consumption by blending tradition with ambition.

According to its prospectus, most of its products are priced between 10,000 yuan and 50,000 yuan — positioning the brand to appeal to China's rising middle-income consumers.

Kathy Shi, a Shanghai native, said of the frenzy of Laopu stores during a recent shopping trip with two friends in Macao: "We went in just to pick up two necklaces quickly — but before we knew it, three hours had passed.

"One thing is clear: Chinese consumers are no longer just followers of Western luxury — they're building a luxury ecosystem of their own."

In contrast to international luxury brands, Laopu's products offer high perceived value rooted in the worth of gold.

"The underlying logic of consumption is still based on the value preservation and high-end nature of gold, which is the foundation of the brand's high sales," said Zhou Ting, dean of the Yaok Institute.

With only 36 stores in operation in 15 cities by the end of 2024, Laopu has earned a reputation as a "single-store king".

Offline revenue for the year reached 8.53 billion yuan, translating to an average of 328 million yuan per store in 2024 — far surpassing industry norms. Its flagship store in Beijing's SKP Mall reportedly drives a significant share of the capital's total gold sales.

Chairman and founder Xu Gaoming set a big target for April — 1 billion yuan in annual sales per store. He also announced a policy to shut down any location generating less than 500 million yuan in revenue.

Beyond the numbers, Laopu is riding a broader wave. According to Frost & Sullivan, China's heritage gold jewelry market grew from 13 billion yuan in 2018 to 157.3 billion yuan in 2023 — a compound annual growth rate of 64.6 percent — and is projected to exceed 421 billion yuan by 2028.

Laopu held a 2 percent share of this market by revenue in 2023, along with 0.6 percent of the overall gold jewelry sector.

The momentum may continue. Citigroup, in a research note, maintained a "buy" rating on Laopu, citing the narrowing price premium between Laopu's designs and the mass market due to higher gold prices. It forecasts triple-digit same-store sales growth through the second half of 2025 and raised its target price from HK$979 to HK$1,084.