Guangdong Yowant Technology Group Co., Ltd. (formerly known as "Saturday") is grappling with severe operational challenges as its traditional business segments decline, revenues drop by over 30%, and accumulated losses exceed 3.45 billion yuan in four years. The company’s short-term debt-to-cash gap has surpassed 500 million yuan, raising liquidity concerns amid its strategic pivot to "brand incubation."
The Q3 2025 report revealed a net loss of 415 million yuan, widening by 1.57% YoY, while total revenue plunged 34.65% to 2.613 billion yuan. Once hailed as the "first live-streaming e-commerce stock," the company now faces deep-rooted financial risks.
**Collapse of Traditional Business and Mounting Losses** In December 2019, Yowant’s stock surged from 4–5 yuan to a historic high of 36.56 yuan/share amid a 17-day涨停 streak, fueled by its acquisition of live-streaming platform YaoWang Network. However, by November 10, 2025, its share price had plummeted 80% to 6.98 yuan, nearly erasing six years of gains.
From 2021 to Q3 2025, Yowant’s revenue fluctuated between 2.151 billion and 4.763 billion yuan, with net losses totaling 3.431 billion yuan. Core segments—social e-commerce services and digital advertising—contracted sharply in H1 2025: social e-commerce revenue fell 19.83% to 1.113 billion yuan (58.7% of total), while ad revenue dropped 52.69% to 613 million yuan (32.33%). In-house brands and apparel sales also declined by 55.47% and 26.34%, respectively.
**Liquidity Crunch** As of September 2025, Yowant held just 208 million yuan in cash against 730 million yuan in short-term debt, including 692 million in loans and 38 million in current liabilities. The 500 million+ cash shortfall worsened as operating cash flow turned negative (-53.6358 million yuan in H1 2025).
**MCN Model Under Pressure: High Costs, Thin Margins** Despite boasting 70+ celebrity hosts (e.g., Jia Nailiang, Wong Cho-lam, Cecilia Cheung), Yowant’s gross margins collapsed to single digits post-2023, with net margins negative since 2021. In 2024, ad and e-commerce毛利率 were a meager 0.84% and 2.08%, respectively.
A key drag is soaring traffic acquisition costs. In 2024, Yowant spent 3.158 billion yuan (+37.06% YoY) on Douyin ads—68.86% of total procurement—eroding profits. As live-streaming platforms mature, reliance on celebrity-driven traffic buys appears unsustainable.
**New Brands: Hope or Hype?** Yowant is betting on self-owned brands like sanitary pad label "Duowei" (co-launched with Huang Zitao; 300 million yuan in sales) and "Jianqian" (6 million yuan GMV during Double 11 debut). However, Duowei faces consumer complaints over product quality, casting doubt on long-term viability.
The company’s struggle underscores broader challenges in China’s live-commerce sector, where high-profile talent and GMV growth no longer guarantee profitability.
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