百果园董事长回应水果太贵：我们不会迎合消费者，在教育消费者成熟

Core Viewpoint - The chairman of Baiguoyuan, Yu Huiyong, addressed concerns about high fruit prices, emphasizing the importance of quality over low prices and the need for consumer education regarding fruit value [1][4]. Group 1: Company Performance - Baiguoyuan's revenue growth has significantly declined, with a revenue increase of only 0.69% and a net profit growth of 11.88% in 2023 [4]. - In the first half of 2024, Baiguoyuan experienced negative growth in both revenue and net profit, with revenue down by 11% and net profit down by 66.06% [4]. - The company's 2024 financial report indicated a revenue of 10.273 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 9.8%, and a pre-tax loss of 391 million yuan, marking the first net loss in five years [4]. Group 2: Market Dynamics - Consumer complaints about high prices have surfaced on social media, with comments like "too expensive" and "monthly salary of 20,000 yuan can't afford it" [4]. - Baiguoyuan's store count has decreased significantly, with a net reduction of 966 stores, leaving only 5,127 stores by the end of 2024 [6]. - The number of franchise stores dropped from 6,081 to 5,116, averaging nearly five store closures per day [6]. Group 3: Consumer Engagement and Trends - The release of the popular drama "The Lychee of Chang'an" coincided with the fresh lychee season, leading to over 770 million yuan in sales for the lychee category alone [6]. - Baiguoyuan's stock price saw a temporary surge of over 20% on July 7, but has since fluctuated downwards, currently priced at 1.75 HKD per share, with a total market value of 2.694 billion HKD [6].