Gourmet Master, the parent company of coffee and bakery chain 85°C, delivered its strongest quarterly result in five years, sending its shares straight to the daily limit-up — clearly good news for shareholders.

• Second-quarter earnings per share came in at NT$1.88, the best showing since the second quarter of 2021.
• The stock hit limit-up at NT$73.2 in early trading, with more than 1,180 lots still queued up on the buy side.
• The improvement in profitability came from closing unprofitable stores in China, where the outlet count has now fallen below 300.
• The United States has become the main growth driver, accounting for nearly 60% of revenue, with the store count expected to reach 100 by year-end.
• Revenue for the first seven months of this year was actually down by more than 10% from a year earlier — in other words, earning more while selling less.

Outlook: If the US store expansion proceeds smoothly, profitability has room to stay strong, but the pressure from falling revenue remains, and the question ahead is how long the benefits of store closures can hold up.