RLX Technology (NYSE:RLX) released first-quarter financial results and hosted an earnings call on Wednesday. Read the complete transcript below.
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Access the full call at https://event.choruscall.com/mediaframe/webcast.html?webcastid=gs9Po49m
Summary
RLX Technology reported a strong revenue growth of 96.2% year-over-year and 38.9% quarter-over-quarter, driven by international expansion and stability in the Chinese market.
The company emphasized its strategic focus on international expansion, particularly in Europe, and its integrated smart manufacturing facility, Nexus, which enhances operational efficiency.
RLX Technology sees regulatory changes, such as the UK’s Tobacco and Vapes Act, as beneficial, positioning the company well in a market increasingly focused on harm reduction alternatives.
Gross margin improved to 31.8%, with non-GAAP operating margin reaching 19.6%, demonstrating effective cost management and operational efficiency.
The company maintains a robust financial position, with financial assets totaling RMB 14.53 billion, supporting future growth and expansion plans.
Full Transcript
OPERATOR
Hello, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for standing by for RLX Technology Inc.’s first quarter 2026 earnings conference call. At this time, all participants are in listen only mode. After management’s remarks, there will be a question and answer session. Today’s conference call is being recorded and is expected to last for about 40 minutes. I will now turn the call over to your host, Mr. Sam Tsang, head of Capital Markets for the company. Please go ahead, Sam.
Sam Tsang (Head of Capital Markets)
Thank you very much. Hello everyone and welcome to RLX Technology first quarter 2026 earnings conference call. The Company’s financial and operational results were released through PL News via Services earlier today and have been made available online. You can also view the earnings press release by visiting our IR website at ir.relaxtech.com Participants on today’s call will include our Chief Executive Officer, Ms. Kei Zhuang, our Chief Financial Officer, Mr. Chao Lu, and me, Sam Tsang, Head of Capital Markets. Before we continue, please note that today’s discussion will contain forward looking information made under the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. private Securities Litigation Reform act of 1995. These statements usually contain words such as may, will, expect, anticipate, aim and estimates, intent, plan, belief, potential, continue, or other similar expressions. Forward looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties. The accuracy of these statements may be impacted by a number of missed risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected or anticipated, many of which are factors beyond our control. The Company’s affiliates, advisors and representatives do not undertake any obligation to update this forward looking information except as required under the applicable law. Please note that RLX Technology earnings press release and this conference call include discussions of unaudited GAAP financial measures as well as unaudited non GAAP financial measures. Our press release contains a reconciliation of the unaudited non GAAP measures to the unaudited GAAP measures. For today’s call, management will use English as the main language. We will also provide simultaneous interpretation on the Chinese line. Please note that the Chinese line is in listen only mode and Chinese interpretation is for convenience only. In case of any discrepancy, management statements in the original language will prevail. I will now turn the call over to Ms. K. Swan. Please go ahead.
Kei Zwang (Chief Executive Officer)
Thank you, Sam, and thank you all for joining today’s call. We are off to a robust start in 2026, supported by a highly scalable global ecosystem and our ability to capture rising market opportunities. We achieved strong revenue growth, increasing by 96.2% year over year and 38.9% quarter over quarter. As we continue to accelerate our international expansion and deepen our global presence. Our international business sustains its rapid organic growth while our mainland China business demonstrated resilience and stability. We further refined our user first approach through highly localized strategies and engagement with trusted regional business partners across the value chain to ensure superior product market. We also integrated our R and D, manufacturing and commercial operation into our cutting edge hub which we called nexus, further enhancing our core capabilities and competitive edge. These initiatives, along with our growing operational agility, enable us to quickly align with evolving market dynamics and seamlessly meet global demand, further strengthening our presence across key international markets. Let me now walk you through our recent business update in more detail. The global regulatory landscape around tobacco and smokeless alternatives continues to evolve. The United Kingdom’s landmark Tobacco and VAPES act, which officially became law in April 2026, is a notable example, reflecting a growing global trend toward phasing out combustibles while maintaining regulated pathways for harm reduction alternatives. Under this rule, Anyone born after 2009 will never be legally permitted to purchase combustible cigarettes. Importantly, the ban applies only to cigarettes and exempts regulated harm reduction alternatives such as vapes. In effect, the UK is gradually eliminating the future consumer base for cigarettes while preserving the existing regulatory framework for our category. We believe that this will now be an isolated development. Public health improvements are increasing being pursued worldwide by restricting tobacco well regulating harm reduction products. For companies like RLX Technology with strong compliance capabilities, best in class product quality and a proactive regulatory approach, this represents a welcome structural tailwind rather than a headwind. A well regulated market rewards scale, compliance and innovation areas where we already lead. As regulatory uncertainty diminish, the competitive landscape is expected to become more defined and our differentiated position may become even more valuable. Moving on to our international expansion, Europe maintains a cornerstone of our global strategy given its increasingly mature regulatory environment and strong demand for high quality alternatives. Our May 2025 strategic investment in a European company has delivered value that extends well beyond the financial scope, strengthening our capability in navigating local market dynamics. Our successful integration and operational appearance have given us the confidence to evaluate further expansion across the continent. Our expansion in Europe is driven by a dual engine strategy that plays the equal importance on strategic M and A and organic growth. While we are optimistic about European’s potential, we maintain a highly selective approach to strategic investments, prioritizing long term synergy rather than …
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