Unconventional café experiences standing out in China's ever more competitive coffee market

China has overtaken the United States to become the country with the most branded coffee shops globally according to the World Coffee Portal on Dec, 2023, , boasting nearly 50,000 coffee shops. In China, more and more people are embracing coffee as part of their daily routine.

While the coffee industry is fiercely competitive, it's also driving innovation. We're seeing creative blends, collaborations between brands, and unique coffee-related products hitting the market. Coffee companies are not just selling coffee anymore; they're creating entire coffee cultures and promoting coffee as a lifestyle choice.

In today's rapidly evolving coffee scene, we can't overlook how coffee shops are reinventing the offline retail experience. The lottery-themed coffee shop serves as a prime example of this. By blending different elements, coffee shops are providing consumers with surprising and exciting experiences. It's not just about the coffee itself; it's about the emotions and connections it brings.

Ferrymen Coffee Shop: Innovatively Combine Funeral Services with Coffee

In China, death has long been a heavy topic, but in recent years, as attitudes towards death and funerals change, more young people are joining the funeral industry. Despite facing fears and misunderstanding, they are increasingly gaining respect. Mixing death with coffee shows youths’ growing interest in discussing these topics.

During the Qingming holiday this year, a Shanghai coffee shop named 'Ferrymen(摆渡人)' — a reference to Charon in Greek mythology, the ferryman who took souls across the river that separated the living and the dead — gained widespread traction on social media. Located quietly on Luochuan East Road in Jing'an district, Shanghai, this small shop might not catch your eye at first glance.

The small storefront of Ferrymen Coffee Shop. Image: Shanghai Daily

This shop, run by young people, innovatively combines funeral services with coffee. The shops decor is modern, with soft lighting, in stark contrast to the dim, funeral-filled traditional funeral parlours.

Interior decoration style of Ferrymen Coffee Shop. Image: 咖门

The shop offers four types of coffee: sour, sweet, bitter and spicy, which is not for sale, but is available in exchange for a story about life and death. Mourners express their thoughts on life and death, and people casually discuss the topic while drinking coffee with strangers.

Sour, sweet, bitter and spicy flavoured coffee. Image: 咖门

A young customer wrote about his experience at Ferrymen Coffee Shop, “By talking about the soul, philosophy, belief, and death with coffee friends, I can actually gain strength and make the most of the time we have left in life.”

T7A2 Coffee Shop: Innovatively Combines an Archaeological Experience with Coffee

In recent years, documentaries like ‘Guardians of the Palace’ and ‘If National Treasures Could Speak‘ have become popular nationwide. Alongside the ongoing success of tomb-raiding-themed literature and films, cultural products from the Forbidden City and museums have gained attention, fuelling public interest in archaeology.

In Chongqing, there's a café named T7A2, short for Together Archaeology. It creatively integrates archaeological elements into its décor and experience. The cafe is equipped with various archaeological tools actually used by archaeologists. Customers can enjoy their coffee while engaging in artifact restoration activities. Many parents also bring their children to experience immersive archaeological education. Artifact restoration activities here also provide relief for many white-collar workers.

The storefront of T7A2. The corridor outside the entrance of the cafe displays 254 important archaeological sites in Chongqing. Images: @T7A2一起考古咖啡 @重庆一只鹿鹿 on Xiaohongshu/RED

The interior decoration of T7A2. Images: @嘟嘟 @T7A2一起考古咖啡 on Xiaohongshu/RED

When customers place orders, the staff explain the stories behind the drinks. These cultural stories are also printed on exquisite cards and handed to customers along with their coffee. Another highlight is the archaeological experience, where customers can restore artifacts and engage in manual activities. The cafe also hosts themed salons, broadening discussions from archaeology to ceramics, jewelry, and more. T7A2 introduces archaeology to the community, using coffee to share Chongqing's history and culture.

Coffee served in T7A2. Images: @T7A2一起考古咖啡 on Xiaohongshu/RED

Artifact restoration and other manual activities, salons. Images: @T7A2一起考古咖啡 on Xiaohongshu/RED

Creative peripheral merchandise is also an important part of the store's income. T7A2 offers a range of creative items themed around archaeology, such as canvas bags, souvenirs, and replicas of archaeological tea sets, priced from ¥10 ($1.40) to over ¥1000 ($138). The archaeological blind box is particularly popular, allowing customers to enjoy the excitement of unboxing while participating in artifact restoration.

T7A2's periph creative and cultural peripheral merchandises. Images: @T7A2一起考古咖啡 on Xiaohongshu/RED

POST Coffee Shop: Back to Romantic Old Good Times

'Savour a Post Coffee, pen a fresh letter to your beloved one.' This tagline from the Post Coffee Shop evokes memories of a nostalgic era in China, with mailboxes, postcards, and postal bikes.

In recent years, China Post has ventured into the offline coffee shop scene, offering specialty coffee, desserts, and postal-themed merchandise. Here, people don’t just enjoy coffee but also write and send letters.

POST Coffee Shop. Images: @小徐爱生活 @锦衣小朋友 @昆明广场种草姬 from Xiaohongshu/RED

The shop also features a soundwave postcard printer, where customers can customise a postcard with a photo and a recorded audio message for just ¥10 ($1.40). These postcards can be mailed, and recipients can scan a QR code to listen to the sender's audio message.

Steps to guide you print a DIY customised postcard. Images: @邮局咖啡 @声音小邮局 from Xiaohongshu/RED

These innovative coffee shop experiences embody the prevailing social sentiments of today. The fusion of coffee shops exemplifies the need for creativity to thrive in China's ever more competitive coffee market. We look forward to seeing more examples of this trend!