Yaomazi, the Green-Peppercorn-Oil Leader Backed by RMB 180M from Juewei, Lists on China's NEEQ After a Failed IPO

This is an English adaptation of a FoodBud historical article originally published on March 5, 2025.

For operators who think about ingredient supply and category specialists behind the menu, Yaomazi is a case study in a single-category condiment leader, its B2B distribution model, and a long, winding road to the capital markets.

A bumpy capital-markets path

Yaomazi's listing journey was anything but smooth. It first sought a ChiNext (Shenzhen) listing in 2020, switched to the main board in 2021, then withdrew its IPO application in December 2023 amid regulatory penalties over related-party disclosure issues and intermediary violations. In June 2024 it pivoted to China's NEEQ ("New Third Board"), and after review formally listed on February 27, 2025 — becoming the first green-peppercorn-oil (藤椒油) company on the NEEQ. The article frames the move as flexible adaptation to a changing regulatory environment and a foundation for later capital actions.

The business: a category leader concentrated in one product

Yaomazi is the leading player in green-peppercorn oil, with its core product contributing over 80% of revenue and roughly 27% category market share in 2022. Performance has grown steadily: 2023 revenue of RMB 545 million and net profit of RMB 98.78 million; for the first eight months of 2024, revenue of RMB 408 million and net profit of RMB 101 million, with gross margin rising above 38%. Its distribution network spans 34 provinces and municipalities with 600+ distributors, serving major customers such as Haidilao and Juewei Food, and it has lifted the sales share from markets outside Southwest China to over 50%.

The company plans three growth curves: consolidate its lead in green-peppercorn oil, expand compound seasonings, and develop Meishan-specialty foods (such as bobo chicken). It also plans to invest RMB 566 million to expand capacity, adding 20,000 tons of green-peppercorn oil and 1,800 tons of compound seasonings annually.

Juewei's strategic stake

Juewei Food invested twice via its investment platform Wangju Capital, for a cumulative RMB 180 million. In April 2019, Wangju Capital first invested RMB 130 million for a 15.29% stake; in September that year, a Wangju-controlled fund (Hunan Si Yi Wu) added RMB 50 million for a further 5.26%. CICC Qichen invested the same RMB 50 million for another 5.26% in the same period. Together, the Juewei group accumulated a 20.55% holding, becoming one of Yaomazi's most important strategic shareholders — a reflection of Juewei's strategic positioning in the má (numbing) flavor segment anchored by green-peppercorn oil, with CICC Qichen's participation reinforcing market confidence in the model.

Product structure and process

Yaomazi focuses on má-flavor condiments — green-peppercorn oil at the core, plus compound seasonings, vegetable products and snack foods. Seasoning oils have long exceeded 90% of core revenue: 92.6% in Jan–Aug 2024 (91.29% in 2023, 91.34% in 2022). Green-peppercorn oil is the star product, holding about 27% of the domestic category. Compound seasonings (Sichuan-style má-flavor) are about 4–5% of revenue with upside; vegetable products and snacks together are under 2%.

Quality is positioned as a differentiator via a triple process ("traditional sealed fermentation + ambient fresh-pressing + supercritical extraction"), improving raw-material utilization and flavor stability, with sampling pass rates kept at 100% and no major food-safety incidents.

Channels and customers

The model is distributor-led with a direct-sales complement. As of end-August 2024, the company had 604 tier-one distributors (64.4% corporate, about 35.6% individual businesses and other non-corporate). Distribution revenue exceeds 90% of core revenue; direct sales are under 10%.

• Geography: Southwest China remains a key traditional region but fell from over 50% of sales in 2022 to 44.16% in Jan–Aug 2024; East, Northwest, Central and North China grew quickly, and from 2023 the share from outside Southwest exceeded 50%.
• End customers: foodservice chains (e.g., Kaojiang, Laoxiangji, Wangjiadu), supermarkets (Yonghui, Walmart, Hongqi Chain) and food manufacturers (Juewei Food, Xiangnian Food, Baijia Food).
• Customer concentration: the top five customers were a stable 15–17% of revenue. For Jan–Aug 2024 the top five were Sichuan Biyoute Trading (RMB 22.27M, 5.45%), Yaheng Food Chengdu (RMB 17.63M, 4.32%), Guangzhou Jiuxiang Food (RMB 10.21M, 2.50%), Chongqing Tianhao Dijie Trading (RMB 9.09M, 2.23%), and Xi'an Jiaweisheng Trading (RMB 9.02M, 2.21%).
• Distributor tiers (Jan–Aug 2024): 11 large distributors (annual sales above RMB 5M) contributed RMB 104M (28.06% of distribution revenue); 74 mid-size (RMB 1–5M) contributed about RMB 144M (38.89%); 519 small (under RMB 1M) contributed RMB 122M (33.05%). The company supports strong distributors while leveraging the flexibility of smaller ones to deepen penetration.
• Pricing discipline: green-peppercorn-oil unit price held steady at RMB 35,100–35,400 per ton across customer types, indicating a uniform price policy and a stable, clear sales structure.

Note for international readers: This is a China-specific story — green-peppercorn oil and the NEEQ listing venue have limited direct overseas analogues, and figures are 2024 partial-year. It is included for the supply-chain and category-specialist lens (a B2B ingredient leader serving large chains), not as investment guidance.