The past year-plus witnessed an unprecedented subsidy war across China's food delivery sector. In early 2025, JD.com's delivery platform made a high-profile entry, prompting incumbents like Meituan, Ele.me, and Taobao to respond in kind, rapidly driving up delivery penetration rates while compressing average order values industry-wide. Consumers grew accustomed to comparing prices and using coupons for every order. Entering the first half of 2026, with subsidies gradually receding and regulatory scrutiny intensifying, the industry entered a digestion and adjustment phase. It is against this backdrop that DPC Dash (01405) delivered interim results that highlight its resilience: revenue grew 20.8% year-on-year to RMB 3.134 billion, sustaining double-digit growth for multiple consecutive years; net profit climbed 22.9% year-on-year, outpacing revenue growth. The store network expanded to 1,550 locations across 75 cities, the membership base surpassed 41.9 million, and same-store transaction growth (SSTG) remained positive for the 22nd consecutive quarter. Despite short-term fluctuations in certain metrics caused by the subsidy war, the core picture revealed by the financial report remains clear — the company's organic growth momentum is robust, and its brand moat continues to widen. Short-term pricing disruptions do not alter the long-term positive fundamentals.

Consistently Strong Profitability, Notable Cost Optimization Gains

In the first half of 2026, DPC Dash achieved steady growth in both revenue and profit. During the period, the company generated revenue of RMB 3.134 billion, up 20.8% year-on-year, not only continuing its multi-year streak of double-digit growth but also surpassing the RMB 3 billion mark for the first time in a half-year period. Profitability performance was equally commendable. Net profit reached RMB 81.05 million, surging 22.9% year-on-year, with profit growth outpacing revenue growth and demonstrating steadily improving profitability. Adjusted net profit amounted to RMB 98.15 million, up 7.4% year-on-year, while adjusted EBITDA came in at RMB 351 million, an 8.6% increase from the prior-year period. At the store level, store-level EBITDA recorded RMB 544 million, growing 8.3% year-on-year, indicating a stable per-store profit model that continues to generate steady cash flow. With the continuous release of economies of scale, the group's overall expense control has also shown results, with total expenses as a percentage of revenue declining from 8.1% to 7.5%. The company is lowering ingredient and packaging costs through scaled procurement while flexibly optimizing labor structures at the store level, positioning cost efficiency for further improvement.

Store Network Accelerates Expansion in Depth and Breadth, Supply Chain Builds Long-Term Foundations

During the reporting period, DPC Dash adhered to its strategy of going deeper in existing markets and broader in new ones, significantly enhancing both store density and city coverage. As of June 30, 2026, the company had entered 75 cities in mainland China with a total of 1,550 stores. As of August 14, 96% of the full-year store opening target had been secured, demonstrating exceptional execution efficiency and market expansion capability. In the first half of 2026, despite the impact of the delivery platform subsidy war that dragged average ticket price (ATP) lower and resulted in same-store sales growth (SSSG) of -4.8%, overall transaction volume surged 33.7% year-on-year, with same-store transaction growth (SSTG) reaching 7.1% — positive for the 22nd consecutive quarter. This underscores that consumer demand for the brand has not weakened due to external pricing disruptions, but rather shows extremely high user loyalty and repurchase intention. Performance in new markets remains outstanding. A total of 27 new cities were entered between the end of 2025 and the first half of 2026. As of June 30, 2026, these 27 cities had cumulatively opened 93 new stores, with average daily sales (ADS) per store reaching RMB 28,230 in the first half of 2026. The weighted payback period is estimated at just 14.8 months, demonstrating excellent return on investment efficiency. Additionally, the first-day sales at the Dalian and Harbin flagship stores successively broke Domino's global system records for single-store, single-day sales, underscoring the brand's recognition and appeal. Notably, the decline in average daily sales (ADS) in certain markets during the first half stems from two factors: in core cities, the company actively advanced its deepening strategy by densifying store layouts, which in the short term diluted sales at existing stores but will help increase market share and solidify regional competitive barriers over the long term; in new markets, newly opened stores transitioned from initial opening-day spikes to normalized operations, and the high base effect led to year-on-year ADS declines. However, as of the latest disclosure date, same-store transaction growth (SSTG) in new cities has turned positive, indicating that sales volumes have entered a natural growth trajectory, with long-term growth prospects remaining promising. In terms of supply chain infrastructure, following Shanghai, Beijing, and Dongguan, the fourth supply chain center (SCC) was officially commissioned in Wuhan in August 2026, capable of supporting over 200 stores and significantly enhancing regional logistics capacity and delivery cost control. Meanwhile, SCC site selections in Chengdu and Nanjing have been finalized, with operations expected to commence gradually in the second half of 2027, laying a solid foundation for the next phase of national expansion. In external partnerships, DPC Dash signed a strategic cooperation agreement with SCP Group in July 2026, leveraging SCP's operational expertise to increase store density and penetration while expanding into emerging markets, potentially broadening its regional footprint.

Membership Ecosystem Remains Solid, Multi-Pronged Measures Drive ATP Recovery

Despite the challenging external operating environment in the first half, DPC Dash maintained strategic focus, making sustained efforts across product, marketing, and channel dimensions to steadily drive average ticket price recovery while reinforcing its brand positioning of delicious food at high value-for-money. On the product front, the company launched a croissant-inspired crispy crust, innovatively blending traditional Western baking techniques with pizza formats. The croissant's signature flaky texture seamlessly merges with the pizza crust, offering layered mouthfeel and rich buttery aroma, broadening consumer perception of pizza flavor boundaries. During the period, the company also introduced multiple new pizzas with distinctive flavors, such as the American-style hand-pulled BBQ pork pizza, featuring slowly marinated and cooked pork shoulder with hand-pulling to deliver robust, hearty texture; and the Mexican-style salsa chicken and beef pizza, which uses premium tomatoes to craft a tangy, refreshing salsa sauce layered over flavorful chicken thigh meat and plump beef chunks, delivering a distinctive South American flavor experience. On the marketing front, the company collaborated with the anime game Arknights to launch the co-branded Speed Delivery single meal and Flavor Quest double meal, deeply engaging young consumers and core gaming communities; it also partnered with the popular IP Zanneng Lubi for themed promotions, offering limited-edition meal sets and blind box merchandise, leveraging IP buzz to enhance brand relevance and social media traction, effectively boosting influence among younger demographics. The company has also been optimizing its product mix and pricing strategy, introducing multiple value meal sets, including a 79-yuan 6-item star value set suitable for group gatherings and a 45-yuan 4-item star value single meal balancing convenience and value, catering to diverse consumption needs. During the World Cup period, the company launched square pizzas and the Victory Feast combo set, bundling pizzas, sides, desserts, and beverages in one package, while simultaneously rolling out interactive mini-games on its mini-program to guide users back to self-operated channels like the mini-program and app, helping drive average ticket price recovery. From a channel perspective, average ticket prices on the self-operated app and mini-program have remained stable above RMB 90, indicating the brand still possesses strong pricing resilience and user stickiness. The current phased decline in average ticket price is primarily attributable to diversion from the delivery platform subsidy war; as subsidy policies return to rationality, average ticket prices are expected to gradually normalize. Delivery penetration in new markets has risen significantly. Due to the initial surge in customer traffic at new city stores, these locations initially offered only dine-in and pickup services; however, as operations stabilized, delivery penetration in new cities surged to 25% in the first half of 2026. Overall delivery sales grew 44.7% year-on-year, with the share of revenue rising from 43.1% to 51.7%, an increase of 8.6 percentage points. The strong performance of the membership ecosystem further corroborates the company's solid user base. As of the end of the reporting period, cumulative members reached 41.9 million, up 39.2% year-on-year; approximately 18.1 million first-time customers were added over the past 12 months, continuously expanding the user pool and laying a solid foundation for long-term growth. On the delivery front, the company upheld its 30-minute delivery promise, achieving an on-time delivery rate (DOT) of 93.6% in the first half, maintaining high service standards.

Conclusion

Looking back at the first half of 2026, DPC Dash maintained clear strategic focus amid industry volatility, consistently channeling resources into fundamental capabilities such as store network expansion, supply chain development, product innovation, and cost control, achieving a sound balance between profitability quality and scale growth. These accumulated scale advantages, user assets, and supply chain capabilities built during the industry adjustment phase will translate into growth elasticity when the industry returns to an upward cycle, driving sustained improvement in both performance and valuation.