A coffee seller that thinks it’s a tech company is taking on Starbucks in China
Luckin plans to have more stores in China than Starbucks by the end of the year
For many of us, coffee is an indispensable part of life. But it’s not something we spend too much time thinking about, let alone reading about in newspapers.
Yet in China, a place not exactly known for its love of coffee, startup Luckin has been filling headlines for taking on coffee chain Starbucks. It's also turning heads in the tech community, making some wonder what all the fuss is about.
Luckin isn’t just a Starbucks knock-off, though. The two have some obvious differences, and it’s not just the brew.
First, Starbucks sells muffins and sandwiches while Luckin has also Sichuan cold noodles. Luckin is also cheaper since it burns a significant amount of money on coupons for customers.
The biggest distinction for Luckin, though, is that it relies completely on an app-based platform for selling and delivering coffee. This has allowed the company to quickly find its way into the lives of China’s young, delivery-loving urbanites. That is where the frenzy began.
“They are still basically a retail coffee business at the end of the day, but they act like a tech company,” said Peking University professor Jeffrey Towson.