Moving forward aggressively, preparing for a Hong Kong stock listing.
A former lecturer at Shenzhen University, born in the 1980s, is leading a Hong Kong IPO.
According to reports, the parent company of domestic skincare brand HBN, Hujia Technology, will start its Hong Kong IPO non-deal roadshow (NDR) on April 21, with an expected fundraising scale of about $200 million, aiming to list on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange within the year.
Founder Yao Zhenan once taught at Shenzhen University, primarily lecturing in digital media animation courses. In 2019, he founded the HBN brand, which gained popularity through the “Vitamin C in the morning, Retinol at night” skincare concept, rapidly growing to a revenue scale of 2 billion yuan in just six years.
On the flip side of this popular brand, over 90% of sales rely on online channels, and it struggles to escape the path of heavy marketing and light research and development.
Efficacy Skincare
All of Hujia Technology’s revenue comes from the HBN brand.
Based on 2024 retail sales, HBN ranks among the top ten domestic brands in China’s skincare market and is the youngest brand.
From its inception, Yao Zhenan found a differentiated path, entering the mid-to-high-end market for anti-aging and whitening with the “Vitamin C in the morning, Retinol at night” selling point.
This concept means using vitamin C products for antioxidant protection during the day and retinol products for anti-aging repair at night.
Based on this, Yao Zhenan’s team built a systematic product matrix.
According to product details provided by official customer service, morning products include brightening toners, brightening serums, and whitening creams, featuring ingredients like alpha-arbutin. Night products include night renewal serums, advanced retinol serums, and black diamond creams, featuring ingredients like retinol.
The popular combo of brightening serum and advanced retinol serum costs about 709 yuan per 60ml. If purchased separately, the brightening serum costs 348 yuan per 30ml, and the advanced retinol serum costs 379 yuan per 30ml.
From 2023 to the first nine months of 2025, HBN’s revenue was 1.948 billion yuan, 2.083 billion yuan, and 1.514 billion yuan, respectively.
In 2023, Yao Zhenan turned the company profitable, entering a fast growth track. In 2024, HBN’s net profit surged to 129 million yuan, with growth exceeding 200%. In the first nine months of 2025, it reached 145 million yuan.
Company officials explained this as a systematic result of “business structure optimization, improved operational efficiency, and precise resource allocation.”
During the same period, the company’s gross margin remained between 73% and 76%, slightly higher than Proya’s level of around 70%.
Currently, its overall revenue heavily depends on HBN. To explore new avenues, Yao Zhenan’s team launched a new brand, “Luokexin,” last year.
However, “Luokexin” has only completed the registration of related companies and trademarks.
Officials stated, “This does not mean the brand has entered a substantive business stage, nor does it represent that the company will necessarily launch related products or businesses in the future.”
Marketing-Driven Start
Yao Zhenan excels at understanding user needs and content marketing.
Born in 1984, he went to study in the UK at age 17. After returning to China, he served as a lecturer in the Digital Media Art Department at Shenzhen University, a role he held until 2023.
HBN’s rapid rise is inseparable from its aggressive market strategy.
From 2024 to the first nine months of 2025, HBN’s sales and distribution expenses were as high as 1.238 billion yuan and 871 million yuan
