LH GROUP (01978.HK) Chairman and CEO Huang Jielong stated in an interview with a newspaper that there is still room for development in Hong Kong's catering industry, emphasizing the importance of flexibility and innovation. The group currently operates over 70 restaurants, more than doubling from 34 at the end of 2017. Regarding the group's revenue decline last year, Huang Jielong mentioned that they had initiated a store optimization and transformation strategy, closing 10 underperforming or high-rent locations while opening 16 new stores, with related expenses being one of the reasons for the performance drop.

Huang Jielong pointed out that to adapt to changing consumer patterns, the group has been targeting the "light luxury" market since last year. For example, the group launched the Japanese hamburger brand "Wanjiaoyumi" last year, which promotes "a simple meal for just over a hundred dollars," yet allows customers to "enjoy their meal." He stated that they will continue to develop in their areas of strength and mentioned that they have been exploring in Japan over the past few months, hoping to introduce more light luxury dining brands within this year. However, the transformation also comes with challenges; he revealed that the market response to the mixed Japanese and Western cuisine "KAMO," located in the Kai Tak Retail Pavilion, was not as expected after its trial operation, leading management to decide to transform it into "Peace Hotel (Beijing, Sichuan, Shanghai)" less than a month after opening, which now sees customers queuing almost daily, showing significant improvement in business compared to before the transformation.

Regarding the recent aggressive entry of mainland dining brands into the Hong Kong market, Huang Jielong stated that Hong Kong has always been a highly internationalized and commercialized market, welcoming major brands to compete on the same stage. He believes that local operators have advantages in understanding local culture and regulations, site selection, and grasping the taste preferences of Hong Kong residents. In contrast, the strengths of mainland dining brands in central kitchens, logistics distribution, and cost control may not be fully realized in Hong Kong. He emphasized that despite the competitive environment with the same cost structure, he remains confident in the competitiveness of local dining establishments