So-Young International Inc. (SY): Marketing Mix Analysis [Dec-2025 Updated]

You're trying to map out the next phase for So-Young International Inc., and frankly, the Q3 2025 results show a company making a very deliberate, high-stakes pivot away from just being an online middleman. Honestly, the numbers are stark: aesthetic treatment service revenue surged an incredible 304.6% in that quarter, making it the largest segment at RMB 183.6 million, while they simultaneously expanded their physical footprint to 39 branded centers with a clear target of 50 by year-end. This isn't just growth; it's a strategic shift toward a trust-driven model, moving from pure marketing spend (which was RMB 130.7 million in Q3) to owning the customer experience, and you need to see exactly how their Product, Place, Promotion, and Price are aligned to this new reality.

So-Young International Inc. (SY) - Marketing Mix: Product

You're looking at the core offering of So-Young International Inc., which has fundamentally shifted from a pure online content play to a hybrid online-to-offline (O2O) service provider. The product here is the access to, and direct delivery of, medical aesthetic treatments.

The platform itself is the central product, connecting consumers with services through its online platform and its growing network of branded aesthetic centers. As of September 30, 2025, So-Young clinic operated 39 centers across 10 cities, with management aiming to reach 50 centers by the end of 2025. This direct service component is now the engine of growth.

The financial performance of this product segment shows explosive adoption. For the third quarter of 2025, revenue from aesthetic treatment services surged by 304.6% year-over-year, hitting RMB183.6 million (US$25.8 million). This segment is clearly the focus, even as other revenue streams contracted. For context, total revenue for Q3 2025 was RMB386.7 million, meaning the treatment services accounted for approximately 47.5% of the total top line, up from just 12.2% in Q3 2024 (calculated from RMB45.4 million aesthetic services revenue out of RMB371.83 million total revenue in Q3 2024). Anyway, the company projects this growth will continue, forecasting Q4 2025 treatment services revenue between RMB216.0 million and RMB226.0 million.

So-Young International Inc. is heavily emphasizing specific, high-demand treatments within its centers. Management noted a focus on anti-aging procedures and 'blockbuster' products. The launch of Miracle PLLA version 3 was reportedly well-received, with the initial batch selling out quickly. To be fair, these top products were significant drivers, contributing over 30% of the aesthetic center business revenue in Q3 2025.

The company is building out a vertically integrated supply chain to support these services, which helps control quality and cost consistency across the network. This involves developing, producing, and distributing both optoelectronic medical equipment and injectable products. For instance, in Q1 2025, shipments of their injectable product, Elasty, reached approximately 27,900 units, representing a year-over-year increase of roughly 14%.

The product scope is also broadening beyond core aesthetics. So-Young International Inc. is actively expanding its service offerings within China to include adjacent medical fields. This expansion targets several key areas:

• Dental services
• Dermatology services
• Ophthalmology services
• Gynecology services
• Physical examination services

The operational efficiency of the direct service product is key to its success, as evidenced by the center-level performance metrics in Q3 2025:

Furthermore, the platform's digital product layer supports this, with a tiered membership system designed to enhance user retention. Core members (Level 3 and above) have an annual spending that is 2.5 times higher than average users.

So-Young International Inc. (SY) - Marketing Mix: Place

The Place strategy for So-Young International Inc. centers on integrating a rapidly expanding physical footprint with its established, high-reach online platform, primarily targeting the Chinese medical aesthetic industry. This hybrid approach leverages digital user data to drive disciplined, high-quality expansion of its direct service delivery network.

The core of the physical distribution strategy is the So-Young Clinic branded aesthetic center network. As of September 30, 2025, So-Young International Inc. operated 39 fully operational branded aesthetic centers across 10 major cities in China, including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Hangzhou, Chengdu, Wuhan, Chongqing, Ningbo, and Changsha. 20 of these 39 centers achieved center-level profitability in the third quarter of 2025, and 29 centers generated positive operating cash flow during the quarter. The company maintains a clear expansion trajectory, targeting a total network size of 50 centers by the end of 2025. Looking further out, management indicated plans to open no less than 35 new centers in the following year. This physical expansion is supported by the goal of increasing store density in existing major cities while systematically expanding into lower-tier cities.

The online distribution channel remains foundational, serving as the primary customer acquisition engine and data source for the physical clinics. This channel is executed via the So-Young Mobile App and its presence on the Weixin mini program ecosystem. While specific user metrics for So-Young International Inc.'s proprietary mini program are not publicly detailed, the platform operates within the massive scale of the broader Weixin environment, which projects 764 million Daily Active Users for Mini Programs globally in 2025. The online platform's data informs the offline strategy, as evidenced by the fact that the company's core members (Level 3 and above), who are heavily engaged through the digital ecosystem, grew by 40% sequentially in Q3 2025 and contributed 88% of the aesthetic treatment services revenues.

The distribution strategy's performance metrics for the third quarter of 2025 illustrate the shift in focus:

The physical network expansion is directly tied to the digital engagement, as the number of active users who visited branded aesthetic centers in the twelve months ending September 30, 2025, exceeded 130,000, a significant increase from approximately 30,300 users in the corresponding period of 2024. The distribution of services is therefore highly concentrated where the digital user base is most active and receptive to direct treatment offerings.

So-Young International Inc. (SY) - Marketing Mix: Promotion

So-Young International Inc. is executing a strategic pivot, moving the core of its business model away from being purely marketing-driven to a trust-driven business model. The company believes its durable competitive advantage stems from long-term commitment and accumulated trust, signaling a focus on credibility over sheer promotional spend in the long run. This shift is critical as the industry landscape evolves.

To quantify the investment in current promotional and user acquisition efforts, here are the key financial and statistical figures from the third quarter of 2025:

The company actively utilizes user-generated content (UGC) and community engagement to build credibility, although past issues with content authenticity have been noted. Currently, So-Young International Inc. is deepening cooperation with platforms such as Meituan to improve brand exposure and user conversion through targeted advertising and content selling. Furthermore, the internal community strength is evident, as the proportion of new customers acquired via referrals rose to 46% in Q3 2025, indicating strong word-of-mouth within the user base.

So-Young International Inc. is also investing in digitalization and AI capabilities. This investment is intended to enhance operational efficiency and the overall user experience. As the business scales, these digital tools are expected to help replicate service processes, aiming to break through bottlenecks commonly faced in the broader industry, thereby supporting future expansion.

Product promotion is directly tied to the company's 'blockbuster strategy,' which focuses on a curated selection of core treatments. This strategy is supported by offering products that address different budget levels. For instance, the company officially launched Miracle Babyface 3.0, priced at RMB 2,999. This is positioned as a value offering when compared to similar approved products on the market, which have an official recommended retail price of RMB 16,800 (for a comparable product in the 1.0 version line) and RMB 18,800 (for a comparable product in the 2.0 version line). So-Young International Inc.'s previous pricing for these comparable products was as low as RMB 4,999 and RMB 5,999, respectively, demonstrating a clear tiered approach to price accessibility.

So-Young International Inc. (SY) - Marketing Mix: Price

So-Young International Inc.'s pricing structure reflects a significant strategic shift toward direct service provision, which impacts how customers pay for aesthetic treatments. For the third quarter of 2025, total revenues reached RMB 386.7 million.

The revenue composition shows that the pricing power is now concentrated in the aesthetic center segment, which is the primary driver of current financial performance. This segment's revenue was RMB 183.6 million, making it the largest component of the total revenue base.

To give you a clearer picture of the revenue mix in Q3 2025, here is a breakdown of the key components:

The decline in platform information/reservation fees by 34.5% year-over-year signals a deliberate move away from lower-value intermediary revenue streams toward direct service pricing, which is intended to support better margins. The company's reported gross margin stands at 51.61%, which aligns with the stated pricing strategy emphasis on achieving healthy gross margins through upstream integration and direct service delivery.

This focus on the service side is also reflected in customer spending metrics. You should note that the per capita in-center Gross Transaction Value (GTV) increased by 6% year-over-year for verified medical aesthetic services, indicating that customers are paying more per visit within the branded centers. Despite this growth in service revenue pricing power, the company recorded a non-GAAP net loss of RMB 61.6 million for the quarter, which shows the cost of aggressively expanding the physical pricing footprint.

The pricing strategy, therefore, is currently balancing the need to attract customers with value-for-money offerings in the centers against the high operational costs of expansion. The company is pursuing a strategy centered on preparatory products, value for money, and end-to-end supply chain management to improve overall gross margins for its aesthetic centers.