The coffee world's 'king of 9.9' storms into the milk tea world

Earlier this month, Luckin Coffee launched a new “Light Jasmine milk tea” product, in anticipation of the upcoming Qixi Festival. This product is a collaboration with the popular IP LOOPY and includes exclusive larger-sized cups, as well as themed accessories like cup holders and stickers. However, many customers have remarked that this is simply a "¥9.9 ($1.40) version of 伯牙绝弦 (bóyájuéxián)."

Various bottle designs and collaborative merchandise for Light Jasmine milk tea. Images are from RED.

伯牙绝弦(bóyájuéxián）is a classic, best-selling product from the popular Chinese tea brand CHAGEE, known for its gentle and sweet taste starting at ¥16 ($2.20). In 2023 alone, it sold over 230 million cups. Perhaps Luckin Coffee perceives the current chain coffee market as saturated and is therefore attempting to tap into the fresh milk tea market by drawing from the successful experience of its old friend, CHAGEE.

Overall, these two products share several similarities:

In terms of ingredients, bóyájuéxián, which emphasizes a health-conscious approach, includes jasmine snow sprouts, milk, and a non-hydrogenated base of ice. On the other hand, Light Jasmine milk tea features jasmine tea, pure milk, light cream, and green coffee extract.

Regarding design, both products are packaged in cups with a blue and white traditional Chinese style.

In terms of flavour, both are predominantly sweet, although many people note that bóyájuéxián has a stronger tea flavour.

When comparing with each other, there are many similarities between them. Images are from 36Kr.

Despite many regular customers of CHAGEE jokingly referring to Luckin Coffee's new product as a diluted version of bóyájuéxián, it's clear that this time Luckin is determined to compete head-to-head with the dominant CHAGEE. Previously, CHAGEE had introduced health indicators such as product identity cards and calorie calculators, claiming on their "three-zero standard（the tea base contains 0 artificial flavours, the whole drink has 0 trans fats, and milk contains 0 non-dairy creamer)." Now, Luckin has elevated its standards to the "four-zero standard（0 plant-based powders, 0 aspartame, 0 trans fats, and 0 hydrogenated vegetable oils).” Additionally, both Light Jasmine milk tea and bóyájuéxián use double-petaled jasmine tea from Hengzhou(横州), Guangxi, known as the "home of Chinese jasmine." The difference lies in the processing: bóyájuéxián's jasmine tea undergoes "three to five" rounds of fermentation, while Luckin employs a "seven-round" process.

CHAGEE's calorie calculator and Luckin's four-zero standard. Images are from WeChat and Baidu.

In today's market, whether it's coffee or tea drinks, they have both entered a fiercely competitive landscape, where the saying "business is tough" is often heard. Therefore, market overlap is an unavoidable reality. For Luckin Coffee, competing with the flagship products of its competitors with new offerings may seem like a long shot. However, in the highly price-sensitive Chinese consumer market, the strategy of pricing products at ¥9.9 ($1.40) is a cheap, straightforward method that appears to work at the moment.