Luckin Coffee Partners with Hextar Industries for 2025 Malaysia Expansion
Hextar Industries Berhad, a publicly listed conglomerate on Bursa Malaysia, has secured exclusive rights to bring China’s Luckin Coffee to Malaysia. The coffee giant is set to launch in the country during the first quarter of 2025, aiming to leverage its value-driven pricing and advanced technological strategies to carve out a space in Malaysia’s competitive coffee market.
The partnership will be managed through Hextar’s newly established subsidiary, Global Aroma Sdn Bhd (GASB), which was formed in July 2024. This move follows the announcement of Luckin Coffee’s plans to enter the Malaysian market, signaling Hextar’s commitment to tapping into the food and beverage sector for the first time.
Dato Eddie Ong, a key stakeholder in Hextar, expressed his enthusiasm about the collaboration, stating, “This partnership marks a pivotal step for our company as we embark on aggressive expansion plans for Luckin Coffee in Malaysia. Inspired by its remarkable growth in China and beyond, we aim to replicate this success locally.”
Luckin Coffee’s affordable pricing and technology-centered business model are seen as significant advantages in a market where established players like Starbucks, McCafé, and The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf already have strong footholds. Currently, these chains operate 405, 300, and 197 outlets in Malaysia, respectively. Meanwhile, domestic brands like ZUS Coffee, which has expanded to 586 locations, and smaller chains such as Gigi Coffee and Bask Bear Coffee are also gaining momentum.
The announcement comes amid broader market shifts, including Starbucks facing consumer boycotts in Malaysia, creating opportunities for emerging brands to gain traction. Other notable competitors include Indonesia’s Kopi Kenangan, which entered Malaysia in 2022 and has since opened 75 outlets.
Luckin Coffee, founded in 2017, has rapidly grown into one of the world’s largest coffee chains, operating over 21,000 stores in China and 45 in Singapore since its international debut in March 2023. The company is also exploring opportunities in the United States, with its first outlet anticipated to open in 2025.
Financially, Luckin Coffee has demonstrated robust growth, reporting record revenues of RMB 24.9 billion ($3.5 billion) in 2023—a figure it matched in the first nine months of 2024. The company recently announced a significant procurement agreement to purchase four million 60kg bags of coffee from Brazil between 2025 and 2029, further solidifying its position in the global coffee industry.
The Malaysia launch underscores Luckin Coffee’s ambition to expand its international footprint, aligning with its vision of becoming a major player in the global coffee market.
