When Yang Guo Fu visited a store in Düsseldorf, Germany, earlier this year, the restaurant was already packed at lunchtime. Unable to find a seat, he ultimately had to finish a bowl of Malatang standing on the street.

Scenes like this are becoming increasingly common in cities around the world. In markets such as Germany, Japan, and the UK, Malatang is no longer simply a taste of home for Chinese students and overseas Chinese communities. It is also becoming a Chinese dining concept that local consumers are willing to queue up to try. Some Chinese tourists even deliberately take photos of local Yang Guo Fu Malatang stores and post them on social media, expressing surprise: “I didn’t expect to see so many people queuing overseas.”

Behind this is a shift in the way Chinese food brands expand internationally.

For a long time, Chinese restaurants overseas relied largely on Chinese communities, as well as couples and small-scale entrepreneurs, to drive their expansion. Today, as supply chains and the operational capabilities of Chinese restaurant brands continue to mature, going global is no longer simply about opening stores. It means fully implementing an established business model and brand system in overseas markets.

Yang Guo Fu Malatang is a typical example of this shift.

In fact, this was not a going-global story designed from the outset. Around 2017, Yang Guo Fu’s overseas stores largely came from spontaneous attempts by Chinese students, overseas Chinese, and franchisees. Today, Yang Guo Fu Malatang has entered more than 20 countries and regions worldwide, with nearly 7,000 stores in total, including nearly 200 overseas stores. By comparison, as of the end of the third quarter of 2025, Haidilao had 126 overseas stores, although its individual stores, investment requirements, and operating model are significantly more asset-intensive.

Yang Guo Fu’s goal for its overseas business is to reach 10,000 stores. Clearly, this goal is still only at its starting point.

The international expansion of Malatang differs from that of coffee and tea beverages. Coffee and tea drinks have stronger cultural universality, with relatively low consumer education costs. Compared with Chinese dining formats such as dumplings and hot pot, which were recognized by overseas markets earlier, Malatang remains a new category for most local consumers.

This is the real challenge Yang Guo Fu must confront in pursuing its overseas “10,000-store” goal: Can Malatang evolve from a Chinese fast-food concept that relies on Chinese consumers and local consumers seeking new experiences into a scalable chain restaurant model that can be consistently replicated overseas?

To discuss this topic, Yang Guo Fu spoke with Jiemian News in an exclusive interview.

Benchmarking Against Ramen

The popularity of Yang Guo Fu Malatang overseas is not simply because foreigners have suddenly fallen in love with Malatang. Rather, the model offers an entirely new experience from the perspective of foreign consumers. Many overseas customers are accustomed to choosing a set meal and taking it directly to their table. At Yang Guo Fu Malatang, however, many are experiencing for the first time the process of selecting their own ingredients and choosing different soup bases.

Yang Guo Fu Malatang is positioned in Europe as more than simply “fast food”; it benchmarks itself against “light dining” concepts such as Japanese ramen.

In Japan, for example, Malatang first taps into the demand for small portions and flexible self-selection. Wang Na, who lives in Tokyo’s Okubo district, told Jiemian News that when she visits a nearby Yang Guo Fu Malatang restaurant at lunchtime, roughly two-thirds of the customers are Japanese, with young women making up a particularly large proportion. “Japanese girls can take one strand of rice noodles and just one leaf of each type of green vegetable,” she said.

Ping Junjie, General Manager of the European Region at Yangguofu, told Jiemian News that, in the eyes of European consumers, Japanese ramen represents a high-quality, standardized Asian dining concept with a certain degree of cultural premium. Benchmarking against ramen allows Yang Guo Fu Malatang to quickly enter the €15–25 price range and move away from the stereotype of traditional Chinese fast food as “cheap.” Currently, a meal at McDonald’s or KFC in Europe costs around €10.

Jiemian News: You recently visited stores across Europe. What was your biggest impression?

Yang Guo Fu: There were many things I didn’t expect. In the beginning, I started making Malatang simply to make a living and support my family. Later, we expanded overseas—something I had never imagined back then. This time, when I visited several cities in Germany, I saw that 60% to 70% of the customers in some stores were foreign consumers. When they walk in, they are curious because they have never seen a model where you take your own bowl, select your own ingredients, and choose your own flavor. And they eat very cleanly—the soup is basically finished every time.

Jiemian News: Yang Guo Fu began expanding overseas around 2017. How did it initially happen?

Yang Guo Fu: At first, it was more of a passive form of international expansion. For example, some Chinese students, overseas Chinese, or people who had lived abroad for many years wanted to start a business, so they brought Yang Guo Fu to their local markets. At that time, headquarters was not as deeply involved as it is today. We mainly provided the brand and products.

As a result, many of the early stores were developed through franchisees’ own trial and error. In markets such as South Korea, Japan, Germany, and France, people with local restaurant industry experience became involved from the beginning. They understood the local market and believed that Yang Guo Fu’s business model could work there.

Jiemian News: Why did they believe the Malatang format was suitable for overseas markets?

Yang Guo Fu: Because Chinese people often eat a table full of dishes together, while foreigners often have an individual serving. They can select dozens of ingredients themselves, and what they make becomes their own individual meal. This dining scenario and format are particularly suitable for them. So later I came to realize that Malatang’s acceptance overseas is not just about the taste. The format itself is also well suited to them.

From Passive Expansion to Proactive Growth

In June 2024, Yang Xingyu, the son of Yang Guo Fu, became Chairman of Yangguofu, taking responsibility for the Group’s overall operations and international expansion. Yang Guo Fu has shifted more of his focus back to the factory, products, and raw materials, strengthening the Group’s backend supply chain capabilities. As of November 2025, the number of Yang Guo Fu Malatang stores overseas had grown by 70% year on year, while the compound annual growth rate of overseas stores over the past three years was close to 100%.

Behind this is a strategic shift for Yang Guo Fu Malatang—from “passive international expansion” to “proactive expansion.”

Ping Junjie also acknowledged that Yang Guo Fu’s early overseas expansion relied primarily on Chinese students, overseas Chinese, and local franchisees to test the market. Franchisees understood local markets and could find the first wave of customers, but expanding from dozens of stores to hundreds or even thousands requires far more than the capabilities of individual franchisees.

Jiemian News: When did your overseas expansion become more proactive and strategically planned?

Yang Guo Fu: The change has been quite significant over the past two years. Our overseas headquarters is now in Singapore, and we have management and service teams of dozens of people in Europe and the UK. They help franchisees with site selection, trade area analysis, supply chain, logistics, and other forms of operational support. In the past, we relied more on the capabilities of individual franchisees. Now, headquarters and regional teams work together.

Jiemian News: Why do you think the timing has become right over the past two years?

Yang Guo Fu: In the beginning, we only had one herbal bone broth flavor, and many things were also produced by third parties. After our Chengdu factory began operations in 2018, our products, soup bases, and flavors gradually became more stable. We subsequently developed flavors such as tomato, Tom Yum, golden broth, and fish maw chicken.

Another factor is that we have increasingly realized that what many overseas markets lack is not Chinese food itself, but a Chinese restaurant model that can operate consistently and scale sustainably. We are now developing different products and strategies for different markets. We have the products, we have the supply chain, and our teams are gradually being built up as well.

Jiemian News: From entering a new market to developing a stable model, what are the key stages you typically go through?

Yang Guo Fu: Generally, there are three stages. The first is developing and validating hypotheses. Whether in Asia-Pacific, Europe, or North America, our overseas teams stay deeply engaged in local markets for the long term. We do not just look at foot traffic and available locations; we also study local dining habits. For example, do people prefer to eat fast food alone, or do they prefer to share meals with others? How high is their actual tolerance for spicy flavors?

The second stage is refining and optimizing the model. During the first three months after a new store opens, we adjust the SKU structure, service, and other aspects based on daily operating data, making small, rapid improvements.

The third stage is standardization and scaled expansion. Once the individual store’s profitability model and table turnover rate reach expectations, we establish standardized processes and leverage digital management systems and supply chain support to replicate successful practices across a region.

Jiemian News: Where is usually the most difficult part?

Yang Guo Fu: I think it is local laws and regulations. Take the United States, for example. There are more than 40 states, and each state has its own laws. Before opening a store overseas, you have to make sure all the legal documentation is properly prepared. In addition, the pace of opening stores varies from country to country. In some regions, the timelines for property acquisition and renovation are particularly long. It is quite different from opening stores in China.

Jiemian News: How do you and your son, Yang Xingyu, divide responsibilities now?

Yang Guo Fu: He is mainly responsible for Group management now. He focuses more on the front end, including markets, organization, and overseas operations. I continue to focus more on the factory, products, and raw materials. Overseas expansion is no longer just about opening individual stores. This division of responsibilities is actually about making sure we manage both the front end and the backend.

Jiemian News: Do you have any disagreements when it comes to international expansion?

Yang Guo Fu: There are no major disagreements. He comes to me for advice and draws on my experience. I don’t speak English, while younger people can interact with each other more easily and communicate with franchisees more conveniently.

Jiemian News: Are you satisfied with his performance?

Yang Guo Fu: I think he has done very well. He is also willing to learn on his own. His English was actually quite average before, but he worked on it himself and improved.

Pursuing 10,000 Stores: Learning from McDonald’s and Starbucks First

For Yang Guo Fu, the understanding of international expansion, factories, and branding that exists today was not there from the beginning. The Chinese restaurant business that eventually made its way onto European streets actually started from a street stall in Northeast China.

Around 2000, Yang Guo Fu and his wife sold grilled sausages and squid from a street stall in Harbin. In 2003, he opened his first Malatang restaurant in Harbin, after which the brand quickly expanded into surrounding counties and towns. It took seven years for the total number of franchised stores to exceed 1,000.

Inside Yangguofu’s Chengdu factory, Yang Guo Fu still keeps the pot he used when he first developed Malatang. This experience is significant because, over the past 20 years, he has essentially transformed a street-side snack into a scalable chain restaurant model.

Today, overseas markets are placing higher demands on this capability.

Yang Guo Fu wants to open 10,000 stores overseas. The prerequisite for achieving this goal is a global chain restaurant model that can be replicated across markets.

This is also why Yang Guo Fu repeatedly mentioned McDonald’s and Starbucks during the interview. The former represents extremely strong standardization and management capabilities, while the latter represents the ability to build brand culture beyond standardization. For Yang Guo Fu, the real test of its overseas 10,000-store ambition is not the speed at which stores can be opened, but whether it can develop all of these capabilities simultaneously.

Jiemian News: You currently have 200 overseas stores. What is the next step?

Yang Guo Fu: At present, we have nearly 200 stores across more than 20 countries and regions overseas, and we are gradually building brand awareness. Going forward, on the one hand, we will leverage our supply chain advantages and use centralized production to lower the technical barriers for overseas partners. On the other hand, we need to focus on brand marketing activities and make the brand synonymous with the Malatang category.

Going further, we may establish factories in Europe and Southeast Asia. This will allow us to serve our franchisees more effectively.

Jiemian News: What about the scale you are aiming for?

Yang Guo Fu: My plan is for “20,000 stores”—10,000 in China and 10,000 overseas. But there is currently no specific timeline.

Jiemian News: Among restaurant brands, which ones do you admire or learn from?

Yang Guo Fu: McDonald’s and Starbucks. When McDonald’s and Starbucks first came to China, people queued for them too. Today, Yang Guo Fu stores also have long queues in many overseas countries. I think that shows the model works.

Their management and systematic development are worth learning from. Because when a chain restaurant grows, these are ultimately what matter. It is not enough for one store to perform well; the question is how you can replicate that success consistently.

Jiemian News: So your increasing focus on the factory is based on the same logic?

Yang Guo Fu: Exactly. The factory is essentially about standardizing the most difficult parts first. Things like soup bases, seasonings, and flavor consistency—if the backend is not stable, opening more stores on the front end is useless. I actually started traveling around the world to study equipment as early as 2014 or 2015.

The CJ CheilJedang factory in South Korea, the parent company of Bibigo, gave me a lot of inspiration. When I first walked in, I was shocked—there were hardly any people in the factory. They later told me that this was Industry 4.0. At that time, I thought that we would also need to build a factory like this in the future. Later, I visited equipment manufacturers and laboratories in Germany, the Netherlands, Japan, Switzerland, and the United States. We began construction in Chengdu in 2016, and the factory officially went into operation on September 6, 2018.

Jiemian News: But you later mentioned Starbucks again. It sounds like what you want to learn is not just standardization.

Yang Guo Fu: Right. Starbucks gives me a different impression. They tell you where the coffee beans come from and how they are blended, allowing you to understand that what you are drinking is not simply a cup of coffee—it represents a culture. In the future, we should not only offer flavors such as spicy, tomato, Tom Yum, and fish maw chicken. We also need to let more people understand where these flavors come from and how they are developed.

Jiemian News: Looking further ahead, what kind of company do you hope Yang Guo Fu will become?

Yang Guo Fu: We still need to learn from the industry leaders who came before us. Large restaurant companies such as McDonald’s, KFC, and Starbucks have many things worth learning from, whether in organizational structure, management, or product systems. We will continue to improve step by step and gradually catch up.