Core Viewpoint - 7分甜, as the pioneer of cup-based 杨枝甘露, has expanded its store presence significantly but remains heavily reliant on the 华东 region, indicating challenges in national expansion and market penetration [2][31]. Store Distribution - As of October 8, 2025, 7分甜 has opened 641 stores across 22 provinces and 76 cities in China, with 539 stores (84.1%) located in the 华东 region [3][12]. - 江苏省 is the most densely populated market with 357 stores, accounting for 55.7% of the total, while 上海 has 128 stores, representing 20% of the national total [6][8]. - Other regions like 华北 have only 40 stores (6.2%), and 华南 and 华中 regions have less than 1% of the total store count, indicating a sparse presence outside 华东 [3][12]. Market Expansion Strategy - The company aims to develop markets outside of 华东, but the current store layout shows that it is still in the early stages of national penetration, with most cities having only single-store layouts [12][31]. - In high-tier cities, 7分甜 has 138 stores in first-tier cities and 188 in new first-tier cities, making up 50.86% of its total store network [13][15]. Underdeveloped Markets - Despite some expansion into second-tier cities, the pace remains slow, with only 161 stores (25.1%) in these areas as of September 2025, and a mere 24.1% in third-tier and below cities [18][21]. - The brand has not achieved full coverage in new first-tier cities, with only 8 out of 15 cities entered, and most existing stores in these cities are below 10, lacking scale [15][31]. Special Location Strategy - The company has been slow to expand into special locations such as campuses and transportation hubs, with only 35 special point stores, a decrease of 20.45% [26][30]. - In comparison to competitors, 7分甜 has a low percentage of campus stores (3.12%) and transportation hub stores (2.34%) [27][28]. Future Challenges - The brand's ambitious growth targets, including plans for 1,000 new stores in 2021 and 5,000 in five years, face significant challenges given the current store distribution and expansion pace [31]. - The founding team has also initiated a new project, Tamkoko 泰柯茶园, which may indicate a shift in focus away from the main brand's national expansion efforts [32].