Core Viewpoint - The fast-food chain Tasting has issued a statement disputing recent media reports regarding its store opening and closing data, claiming that the data from the third-party monitoring platform, Extreme Sea Brand Monitoring, is significantly inaccurate [1][3]. Group 1: Store Data Discrepancies - As of December 2, according to Extreme Sea Brand Monitoring, Tasting opened 968 new stores and closed 907 in the past 90 days, which Tasting refutes [1]. - Tasting clarified that from January to November 2025, it closed 67 stores and relocated 238, with a total of 11,124 operating stores by the end of November 2025 [1]. - Tasting stated that the third-party monitoring platform did not communicate or verify the data with the brand before publication [1]. Group 2: Recent Developments and Growth Strategy - Tasting has been accelerating its store openings since 2022, becoming the third hamburger brand to exceed 10,000 stores, following Wallace and KFC [7]. - In 2023, Tasting's pace of new store openings has noticeably slowed, with 3,775 new stores opened in 2023, dropping to 2,355 in 2024, and 2,215 as of November 13, 2023 [7]. - Tasting is exploring new growth avenues, having opened two Tasting China Pizza stores in Quanzhou, featuring local flavors in their pizza offerings, with prices starting at 18 yuan [7]. Group 3: Company Background - Tasting was founded in Fuzhou in 2012, with its first store opening in Nanchang the same year [5]. - The brand introduced a dual-category offering of "hamburger + pizza" in 2017 and launched its signature "Chinese hamburger" in 2019, focusing on the "Chinese hamburger" market [5]. - Tasting's pricing strategy is aimed at being more affordable than competitors like KFC and McDonald's, targeting county-level cities and rural areas [5].