The appetite for emotionally charged purchases is spreading beyond tea and coffee beverages. — China Daily
BEIJING: Fall’s onset has sparked an online hashtag: “the first cup of milk tea in autumn” across the country, turning a seasonal drink into a national ritual.
Every year, at the Chinese solar term Start of Autumn, millions of consumers log on, or line up, for a plastic cup of comfort.
This hashtag is once again flooding trend lists: social feeds have overflowed with milk-tea selfies, delivery counters are backed up, and some outlets have logged order backlogs of more than 1,000 cups.
Delivery platforms have become the main battleground.
Meituan said more than 100 tea brands, including Mixue, YH Tang and coffee brands Starbucks and Luckin Coffee, rolled out exclusive products on their platforms on this year’s Start of Autumn day, which fell on Aug 7, while at least 250,000 beverage outlets joined in the promotions.
For Generation Z (Gen Z) consumers, the ritual has become less about tea and more about emotion.
Ordering a cup is a form of social currency, a way to show affection or simply indulge in an instant, low-cost reward.
“China’s new-style milk tea is entering a highlight moment,” said Zhu Danpeng, an independent food-and-beverage analyst.
Zhu compared the drink to a psychological nudge: a symbol of harvest and abundance that delivers “mood value” alongside caffeine and sugar.
The generational divide is stark.
Post-1990s consumers often buy to “please themselves”, while older cohorts lean toward gifts that “please others”.
As Gen Z edges into the mainstream, self-reward is becoming not only acceptable, but also visible, documented on feeds and shared in groups.
The appetite for emotionally charged purchases is spreading beyond tea and coffee beverages.
From hanfu (traditional Chinese dress) to national-chic apparel, cultural creative goods and IP crossovers, “emotion-plus” is reshaping consumption patterns.
On Dewu App, a trading platform popular with Gen Z, two drivers dominate: upgrading for quality and aligning with personal values.
Toy sales on Dewu surged 310% year-on-year in the first half of 2025; blind-box sales rocketed 1,000%; and sales of stress-relief toys rose 900%. — China Daily/ANN
