Chinese food and beverage firms flock to Singapore as first step in expansion drive

By Claire Fu and Xinghui Kok

SINGAPORE (Reuters) -A record number of Chinese restaurants and cafes have flooded Singapore over the past year, using the island as a test bed for global expansion as they escape pallid consumer demand, extreme price competition and super-squeezed profit margins back home.

Well-known firms such as Luckin Coffee and bubble tea major Mixue joined hotpot and mala restaurant operators in the post-pandemic surge overseas, hoping to draw on the cachet of the internationally oriented city-state in a trend that industry experts and executives expect to accelerate.

“It’s really tough to operate in China now, so many brands are choosing to expand abroad,” said Josie Zhou, overseas general manager of Hunan cuisine restaurant Nong Geng Ji, which picked Singapore for th