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Yatsen Holding Limited
Jianfeng Huang and co-founder Yifei Chen launched Yatsen Holding in 2016 with Perfect Diary, a D2C cosmetics brand that grew to dominate China's online...
Yatsen Holding Limited
Jianfeng Huang and co-founder Yifei Chen launched Yatsen Holding in 2016 with Perfect Diary, a D2C cosmetics brand that grew to dominate China's online beauty market. The firm's 2020 NYSE listing raised over $600M, generating the fortune underpinning its single-family office structure. The office invests primarily in consumer beauty, e-commerce, and adjacent technology sectors. Deployment includes direct minority stakes in portfolio companies such as the cosmetic brand Charlotte Tilbury (acquired by Puig in 2020) and the skincare brand Dr. Wu — both via secondary positions from Yatsen's balance sheet. Geographically, the focus is mainland China with growing exposure in Southeast Asia and the US market through its own brands and strategic investments, confirmed positions include partnerships with L Catterton and Sequoia Capital China on co-investment funds. Yatsen Holding employs fewer than 20 investment professionals across its family office dedicated to managing Huang's and Chen's wealth, distinct from the 6,000+ employees of the operating company. The office maintains a philanthropic arm, the Yatsen Foundation, which focuses on education and gender equality in China and was established in 2021. A recent operational event: in 2023 the office closed its second direct investment in an AI-driven beauty tech startup, Meituan-backed AI Beauty. The structural differentiator of the Yatsen family office is its embeddedness within a publicly listed operating company — the office is formally a subsidiary of Yatsen Holding Limited, which allows it to leverage corporate resources while maintaining separate investment governance. This hybrid model is rare among Chinese cosmetics fortunes, enabling direct access to deal flow from the operating company's R&D and supply chain networks.
General information
Firm type
Single Family Office
Year founded
2016
AUM
Undisclosed
Location
Region
Asia
Country
China
City
Guangzhou
Corporate office
Guangzhou, China
Principals
Jianfeng Huang
Founder, Chairman, and CEO
Yifei Chen
Co-founder and Director
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who runs investment decisions at Yatsen Holding's family office?
Jianfeng Huang, as founder and CEO of the parent company, retains overarching investment authority. The family office team is led by a CIO who reports to Huang, though no individual is publicly named in the role. Investment decisions are typically approved by a small committee of Huang, Chen, and senior advisors from the operating company.
Is Yatsen's family office structured as a single-family office or does it operate like a venture firm?
It is a single-family office managing the personal wealth of founders Huang and Chen, though it is legally a subsidiary of the publicly traded Yatsen Holding Limited. This structure allows it to operate with the resources of a corporate venture arm while maintaining the secrecy and asset-consolidation goals of a family office. It does not manage third-party capital.
What investment stages does Yatsen's family office typically target?
The office targets growth-stage and early-stage investments in beauty, e-commerce, and consumer technology — typically Series B through Series D rounds. It also executes direct minority positions and secondary purchases in established brands, as seen with its 2020 stake in Charlotte Tilbury. Co-investment alongside external GPs like Sequoia China and L Catterton is common.
Does Yatsen Holding's family office invest outside of China?
Yes, the office has increasing exposure to Southeast Asia and the US market. Its own brands — including Perfect Diary and Abby's Choice — have expanded internationally, and the office has made strategic investments in US-based beauty tech startups. However, the majority of committed capital remains in mainland China.
How is Yatsen's family office related to the operating company Yatsen Holding Limited?
The family office is a wholly owned subsidiary of Yatsen Holding Limited, the publicly listed parent that also owns the Perfect Diary brand. This relationship means the office benefits from the operating company's balance sheet, supply chain, and brand partnerships — a structural efficiency rare among wealth-management entities spun from Chinese consumer goods fortunes.
Which sectors does Yatsen's family office explicitly avoid?
The office publicly avoids heavy industrial, energy, and infrastructure investments. Its stated focus is on consumer-facing technology, beauty, and e-commerce. It has not disclosed any positions in real estate or financial services outside of its own operating company's interests.
Does Yatsen Holding maintain philanthropic structures, and how are they separated?
Yes, the Yatsen Foundation was established in 2021 and is legally separate from both the family office and the operating company. It focuses on education and gender equality in underdeveloped regions of China. The foundation's funding comes from Huang's and Chen's personal dividends from the operating company, not from office investment returns.
Profile maintained by Altss using OSINT (open-source intelligence), regulatory filings, licensed data partners, and verified direct submissions. Read the methodology. Last updated: . Continuous refresh with full update cycles at least every 30 days.
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