The stock of China’s prominent packaged milk tea provider, Xiangpiaopiao, soared by the daily limit on Monday following widespread attention garnered by its fruit tea beverages over the weekend. These beverages drew headlines for their packaging in overseas markets, protesting against Japan’s disposal of nuclear-contaminated water into the ocean.
The paper cup sleeves of Xiangpiaopiao’s fruity tea drinks, known as Meco, were discovered to bear slogans such as “Japanese politicians please drink the water contaminated by nuclear waste materials,” and “We can manage without Japan but the world cannot live without the ocean.” These messages, printed in Japanese and Chinese, were initially shared online by an anonymous user who found them at a Chinese supermarket named Kyowa in Tokyo’s Shinjuku area.
In response to the viral attention, shares of Xiangpiaopiao surged by 10 percent in Shanghai after the company’s subsequent social media post in China, lauding its employees’ efforts, circulated widely online. This post, shared on Saturday, garnered over 320,000 likes on the microblogging site Weibo.
Xiangpiaopiao, renowned for its bubble milk tea, has diversified its product line in recent years, introducing offerings such as fruity flavored packaged tea drinks and Hong Kong style milk tea beverages.
Further boosting its visibility, a livestreaming session on Douyin promoting the Meco packaged drinks gained significant traction on Sunday. President Yang Dongyun, attired in a red T-shirt, participated in the livestream to endorse the beverages. Third-party data revealed that hundreds of thousands of viewers flocked to Xiangpiaopiao’s livestream room on Douyin, resulting in sales exceeding 400 times the normal rate, totaling over 1.36 million yuan (US$188,580).
Xiangpiaopiao’s Taobao flagship store also issued a notice, informing customers about inventory replenishment for the same paper cup sleeves and advising patience regarding any potential delivery delays.
While many internet users have expressed support for the domestically grown brand, opinions remain divided. Some, like online user “iced wolf” who commented on Observer Net, believe that such issues deserve greater attention and commended Xiangpiaopiao’s actions. However, others perceive the situation as a contrived online stunt aimed at capitalizing on nationalistic sentiment among young consumers.
