Chinese beverage giant Mixue Group, owner of the Mixue Bingcheng tea and ice-cream chain, is rapidly building a new position in China’s beer market. Its controlled beer brand Fresh Beer Fulujia offers freshly tapped beer from as little as CNY 5.90 (USD 0.82) per 500 ml, putting the price of a draft beer close to that of a cup of milk tea or lemonade.
Rather than installing beer taps across Mixue Bingcheng’s vast network of tea and ice-cream shops, the group is expanding through a separate chain of compact Fresh Beer Fulujia outlets. The concept applies many of the principles that helped make Chinese tea-drink chains successful: low prices, small stores, extensive franchising, standardized products and convenient takeaway sales. Fulujia also benefits from delivery services and sells larger quantities intended for meals and social gatherings.
The pace of expansion has been remarkable. Fulujia had only slightly more than 200 stores at the beginning of 2025, passed 1,000 locations in July that year and exceeded 2,000 in February 2026. By the end of July 2026, the network had grown to more than 3,400 outlets, making it an increasingly significant new force in Chinese beer retail.
The format could challenge traditional beer distribution through restaurants, supermarkets and nightlife venues. Fulujia particularly appeals to younger consumers and supplements conventional fresh beer with fruit-, tea- and other flavored variants. Its combination of low prices, freshly tapped products and easily accessible neighborhood outlets brings beer closer to the retail model already established by China’s booming tea and coffee chains.
The strategic foundation was laid in autumn 2025. On September 30, Mixue Group agreed to acquire a controlling 53% interest in Fulujia for a total consideration of CNY 296.8 million (approximately USD 41.3 million). The transaction was completed on December 1, 2025. At that point, Fulujia already operated 1,354 franchised outlets and 20 directly operated stores.
The deal also attracted attention because Fulujia’s former controlling shareholder Tian Haixia is the wife of Mixue co-founder and then-CEO Zhang Hongfu. Before the transaction, Tian directly held 60.05% of Fulujia and also controlled an investment vehicle owning another 20.41%. Despite the close ownership and supply-chain links, the companies had previously maintained that they operated independently. Zhang stepped down as Mixue Group’s CEO in March 2026 and now serves as co-chairman.
The beer expansion gives Mixue another potentially large growth platform beyond its core non-alcoholic beverage business. With roughly 60,000 locations across its broader network and more outlets than McDonald’s or Starbucks, the group has already demonstrated how aggressively it can scale inexpensive beverage concepts. Fulujia now provides an early indication of whether the same franchise machinery can also transform the way beer is bought and consumed in China.
