Hoshizaki is restructuring its business in China in preparation for the market experiencing some of the operator trends already evident in more developed territories.
The refrigeration and ice machine supplier – one of the world’s largest catering equipment companies – plans to bring all its operations under one roof to further boost its competitiveness with a view to long-term growth.
Development, manufacturing and sales capabilities are currently divided among three separate companies, but will be consolidated into a single entity to improve both its ability to address individual customer needs and price competitiveness.
Since the pandemic, the Chinese food and beverage market has undergone structural changes including diversification of consumer tastes in food and an increase in openings of new food and beverage chain outlets across a wide range of categories such as restaurants, tea- and coffee-shop chains, fast food, and bakeries.
The company stated: “The economic damage caused by the pandemic has created a marked tendency for business operators to control investment per-store costs, particularly among food and beverage chains that operate multiple outlets. Such chains now tend to require order-made products for installation in numerous outlets that can be delivered rapidly and at low cost.
“Furthermore, Hoshizaki’s experience in the European, American, and Japanese markets leads it to anticipate that in the Chinese market, as in these markets, chain-based food and beverage brands will account for an increasingly large proportion of all restaurants and cafés. Hoshizaki therefore decided to pursue continued growth in China by restructuring its business to enable it to address such market changes.”
The integrated Chinese subsidiary will officially start operation on 2 January 2025 under the name of Hoshizaki China Corporation.
Hoshizaki said that the move will accelerate decision-making and development processes, while maintaining the high quality that it is known for.
“The company will be structured to enable rapid mass-production and delivery of order-made products. It will take as little as one month to develop and deliver products for testing purposes that meet the specifications and price levels restaurants and cafés require and will flexibly incorporate their wishes in response to the results of testing.
“This consolidation of development, manufacturing, and sales capabilities will also allow greater streamlining of operations, enabling the new company to improve its price competitiveness.
“Through this business reorganisation, Hoshizaki will enhance its ability to address customer needs, thereby achieving faster growth. In future, the company will expand its line-up of ice machines and commercial refrigerators and freezers, as well as its range of other foodservice equipment, and seek to enhance its solutions including entire kitchen design and installation. By addressing the needs of customers in a diverse range of sectors, including restaurants and cafés, Hoshizaki aims to ensure long-term growth for its Chinese operations as a whole.”
Hoshizaki first established a presence in China in 1998 with an office in Beijing. Six years later it set up an operation in Shanghai before adding a manufacturing plant in 2006.
In January 2024, it strengthened its local development capabilities by setting up an R&D center in Dalian to respond to rapid changes in the Chinese market and its customers’ needs.
