When was A.S. Watson founded?

A.S. Watson was founded in 1841 and raised its 1st funding round 173 years after it was founded.

Where is A.S. Watson located?

A.S. Watson is headquartered in Hong Kong, China.

Who is the current CEO of A.S. Watson?

Kulvinder Birring of A.S. Watson.

How many employees does A.S. Watson have?

As of May 31, 2026, the latest employee count at A.S. Watson is 19600.

Is A.S. Watson a funded company?

A.S. Watson is a funded company, having raised a total of $***** in its 1st and only funding round, a PE round on Mar 21, 2014.

When was the latest funding round of A.S. Watson?

A.S. Watson's latest funding was a $***** PE round on Mar 21, 2014, with participation from 1 investor.

Where does A.S. Watson rank among its competitors?

A.S. Watson ranks 12th amongst 576 active competitors, of which 41 are funded. It stands 1st in terms of total funding among its competitors. The most recent competitor to raise funding was Apnamart, which secured $12.7M in Jul, 2026.

Who are the top competitors of A.S. Watson?

A.S. Watson's top competitors include Wadiz, Walmart and Suning.com. Among them, Apnamart secured the most recent funding round in July, 2026.

A.S. Watson - 2026 Company Profile, Team, Funding & Competitors

A.S. Watson is a late stage company based in Hong Kong (China), founded in 1841. It operates as a Health and beauty products retailer. A.S. Watson has raised $5.7B in funding. The company has 576 active competitors, including 41 funded and 185 that have exited. Its top competitors include companies like Wadiz, Walmart and Suning.com.

Company Details

A.S. Watson Group is a health and beauty products retailer.It sells health and beauty products, luxury perfumeries,cosmetics,food, electronics,wine, and beverages.As of September 2016, the company claims to operate 12,800 stores across Asia and Europe. Brands under which it operates its stores include Watsons, Kruidvat, Rossmann, The Perfume Shop, ParknShop etc. The company recorded revenues of HK$157.4 billion in 2014.

Website: aswatson.com
Part Of

Key Metrics

Founded Year

1841

Location

Hong Kong, China

Stage

Late Stage

Total Funding

$5.7B in 1 round

Latest Funding Round

PE, Mar 21, 2014, $*****

Investors

Temasek

Ranked

12^th among 576 active competitors

Employee Count

19,600 as on May 31, 2026

Similar Companies

Walmart & 513 more

View A.S. Watson's full profile

A.S. Watson has raised a total funding of $5.7B over 1 round. Its latest funding round was a PE round on Mar 21, 2014 for $*****. 1 investor participated in its latest round. A.S. Watson has 1 institutional investor.

Here is the list of recent funding rounds of A.S. Watson:

Date of Funding	Funding Amount	Round Name	Post-Money Valuation	Revenue Multiple	Lead Investors	Other Investors
Mar 21, 2014	9689921	PE	1915660	2452191	8024411	4730512

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View details of A.S. Watson's funding rounds and investors

A.S. Watson's employee count trend

A.S. Watson has 19,600 employees as of May 26. Here is A.S. Watson's employee count trend over the years:

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Top competitors of A.S. Watson include Wadiz, Walmart and Suning.com. Here is the list of Top 10 competitors of A.S. Watson, ranked by Tracxn score:

Rank	Company Details	Short Description	Total Funding	Investors	Tracxn Score
1st	Wadiz 2012, Seongnam-si (South Korea), Series D	Equity and revenue-based crowdfunding platform	$128M	Smile Gate Investment, DS Investment Management ... & 14 others	76/100
2nd	Walmart 1962, Bentonville (United States), Public	Multinational retail corporation	-	Benson Family Private Equity, Boston York Restaurant Group ... & 8 others	75/100
3rd	Suning.com 1990, Nanjing (China), Public	Retail chain of multi-category products	-	Shizl, Alibaba Group & 10 others	73/100
4th	SuperK 2019, Visakhapatnam (India), Series B	Retail chain of supermarkets	$24.3M	Blume Venture, STRIVE & 67 others	71/100
5th	DMart 2002, Mumbai (India), Public	Retail chain of multi-category products	-	WestBridge Capital, General Atlantic	67/100
6th	Sainsbury's 1869, Holborn (United Kingdom), Public	Supermarket chain providing frozen ready meals & groceries	-	Vesa Equity Investment, Qatar Investment Authority	67/100
7th	ALDI 1946, Essen (Germany), Funding Raised	Chain of supermarket	-	Europa, 2am VC	66/100
8th	Harris Teeter 1960, Charlotte (United States), Acquired	Offline supermarket chain	-	-	66/100
9th	Apnamart 2022, Bengaluru (India), Series C	Hybrid model grocery delivery services with a focus on providing products at affordable prices	$50.7M	Accel, Fundamentum & 22 others	66/100
10th	Starbird Chicken 2015, Sunnyvale (United States), Series B	Chain of limited service restaurant offering chicken	$21M	KarpReilly, Cambridge Companies SPG	66/100
12th	A.S. Watson 1841, Hong Kong (China), Late Stage	Health and beauty products retailer	$5.7B	Temasek	65/100