Aimeike's IPO marks a turning point in performance: soaring expenses eat into profits, and South Korean acquisitions pose compliance risks

Ask AI · How do South Korean merger disputes affect Aimeike’s international layout?

This report (chinatimes.net.cn) reporter Zhang Siwen and Yu Na in Beijing reported.

On March 20, Aimeike Technology Development Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Aimeike”, stock code: 300896.SZ) released its “2025 Annual Financial Report.”

The financial report shows that Aimeike achieved an operating income of 2.453 billion yuan in 2025, a decrease of 18.94% compared to the 3.026 billion yuan in the same period last year; the net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company was 1.291 billion yuan, a year-on-year decline of 34.05%; the net profit after deducting non-recurring gains and losses was 1.1 billion yuan, with a year-on-year drop of 38.01%.

(Data source: Wind)

This is the first time since the company went public in 2020 that both annual revenue and net profit have declined.

Behind the Dual Decline in Performance

Regarding the decline in performance, Aimeike stated to The Huaxia Times that the company’s performance was mainly affected by the dual impact of the macro environment and industry competition patterns. In 2026, the company will seize the historical opportunity of the industry shifting from scale expansion to high-quality development, using a “R&D innovation + industry integration” dual-driving strategy to deepen the product ecosystem layout across all categories, all scenarios, and the entire cycle, accelerate the implementation of its international strategy, and continuously create outstanding value for shareholders.

From a business composition perspective, both of the company’s two core product lines experienced varying degrees of decline.

As the company’s pillar product, solution-type injection products achieved revenue of 1.265 billion yuan in 2025, a decrease of about 28% compared to 1.744 billion yuan in 2024, with the proportion of total revenue dropping from nearly 58% to about 51.6%.

(2025 Aimeike revenue by product category, source: Tonghuashun)

Gel-type injection products achieved revenue of 890 million yuan in 2025, a decrease of about 24% from 1.216 billion yuan in 2024, with the revenue share declining from 40% to 36%.

(2024 Aimeike revenue by product category, source: Tonghuashun)

In this regard, Yuan Shuai, Executive Vice President of the China Urban Development Research Institute and the Agricultural Cultural Tourism Industry Revitalization Research Institute, told The Huaxia Times that the decline in Aimeike’s solution-type product revenue in 2025 marks the end of the golden era when the upstream medical beauty relied on a single “big product” to monopolize the niche market. The release of dividends from Hi-Body in the neck wrinkle market has nearly run its course, proving the vulnerability of technical barriers in the face of homogenized competition and consumption downgrading. Upstream medical beauty manufacturers must realize that when hyaluronic acid or regenerative products enter a stock game, the second growth curve must possess two characteristics: “clinical differentiation” and “multi-scenario collaboration.” This means new products cannot merely be slight adjustments of existing categories but should address unmet pain points through breakthroughs in materials science, such as longer maintenance cycles or more natural biocompatibility, while also forming combination solutions with existing products, locking in institutions and doctors through enhanced efficacy rather than a single price war.

On the other hand, Aimeike’s cost pressures last year were particularly prominent, becoming a key factor dragging down net profit performance.

The financial report shows that the company’s period expenses significantly increased in 2025. Among them, sales expenses reached 387 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 39.72%. The financial report explains that this is mainly due to the expansion of the sales personnel scale and the simultaneous increase in market promotion expenditures such as meeting expenses and advertising costs.

Management expenses saw the largest increase, reaching 183 million yuan, soaring 48.62% year-on-year. The underlying reason is the substantial increase in consulting and legal fees arising from mergers and investment transactions during the year, compounded by rising personnel costs.

In addition, financial expenses changed from a net income of 31.2763 million yuan in 2024 to a net expenditure of 7.5023 million yuan. This dramatic fluctuation is mainly due to exchange losses incurred from foreign investment foreign exchange purchases.

The comprehensive rise in expenses, without a corresponding increase in revenue, directly squeezed the company’s profit margins, becoming one of the reasons for its declining profitability.

Overseas Acquisition Risks Still Not Eliminated

While facing a decline in performance, Aimeike is also confronted with a significant legal dispute that could impact the company’s future development.

In search of new growth points, Aimeike completed the acquisition of South Korea’s REGEN Company in 2025, attempting to introduce its well-known “baby face needle” product AestheFill into the Chinese market. However, there is serious contention over the exclusive distribution rights of this product in mainland China.

The original exclusive distributor, Dato Medical, has initiated arbitration, claiming damages as high as 1.6 billion yuan. More critically, the Shenzhen International Arbitration Court has ruled that Aimeike’s subsidiary must not sell AestheFill products in mainland China before the arbitration decision and must continue supplying the original agent. This means that Aimeike, although having spent heavily to complete the acquisition, is temporarily unable to monetize this international blockbuster product domestically, and the anticipated performance growth point is postponed, while also facing the potential risk of massive compensation.

In response, Aimeike stated to The Huaxia Times that the arbitration case is currently under consideration, and specific progress can be referenced in subsequent relevant announcements.

Regarding the specific synergy effects on product development and channels after acquiring the South Korean company, Aimeike told The Huaxia Times that this merger and subsequent integration mark a crucial layout in building the company’s overseas R&D, production, and sales networks, successfully connecting key links to the international market. This move not only represents a substantive breakthrough in the company’s internationalization strategy but also helps it deeply integrate into the global medical beauty industry chain’s division of labor and cooperation, laying a solid foundation for continuously enhancing long-term competitiveness.

It is noteworthy that with the completion of the acquisition of 85% of South Korean REGEN Company for approximately 190 million USD, Aimeike’s goodwill soared to 1.641 billion yuan by the end of 2025, an increase of 489.78% compared to the beginning of the period, surging nearly fivefold.

Additionally, this acquisition has also led to an increase in the company’s long-term payables. Data shows that the net cash flow generated from operating activities in 2025 decreased by 31.29% year-on-year.

Regarding this acquisition, Yuan Shuai believes that while international mergers and acquisitions are a shortcut for Chinese medical beauty companies to shorten R&D cycles and acquire cutting-edge technologies, high premiums and legal risks are always present. The agency rights disputes encountered by Aimeike in acquiring assets like South Korea’s REGEN serve as a warning that the most critical risk prevention point in integrating overseas assets is not the technology itself but the legal rigor of the underlying contracts and the compliance of cross-border governance. The wave of overseas acquisitions must shift from “buying assets” to “buying systems,” not only focusing on patents but also paying attention to the retention mechanism of overseas R&D teams and the clinical pathways for products to land in China. If internalization of technology and localization transformation cannot be achieved, the high goodwill impairment will become a black hole that devours profits.

Overall, 2025 marks a watershed moment for Aimeike since its listing. At this critical juncture for the industry to transition from scale expansion to high-quality development, whether Aimeike can truly achieve the leap from product leadership to systemic competitiveness will be closely monitored by The Huaxia Times.

Editor: Jiang Yuqing Chief Editor: Chen Yanpeng