Is the Luckin Coffee Copycat Franchise Worth Joining?

A copycat brand closely resembling Luckin Coffee has appeared in multiple cities under names like LUCKY CAT COFFEE. Its visual design, store decor, and staff uniforms track Luckin closely, and locations sometimes sit across the street from a real Luckin store. Many consumers assumed it was a renamed or sub-brand. Luckin has responded, and questions about the brand's legitimacy and franchise offer remain open.

The outlets have been spreading nationwide since April this year, echoing past copycat waves in the tea drink business when near-identical shopfronts crowded single streets. For entrepreneurs weighing a franchise, the caution is practical: a brand built on resemblance rather than its own identity carries unstable footing, and losses can follow if the brand's legal and operational base is unclear.

Recently, a copycat brand highly similar to Luckin Coffee has appeared in multiple cities—LUCKY CAT COFFEE. The brand is extremely close to Luckin in visual design, store decoration, and even staff uniforms, sparking heated discussion among netizens. Since April this year, LUCKY CAT COFFEE has been popping up across the country, and many consumers mistakenly thought it was a renamed Luckin or a sub-brand. Although Luckin officials have responded, discussions about whether LUCKY CAT COFFEE is legitimate and whether it can be franchised are still ongoing. This article will sort out the thread of events and remind entrepreneurs to be cautious when choosing a franchise brand, so as to avoid losses due to an unstable brand foundation.

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- Want to keep a dog It also uses business blue as the main brand tone, with a highly similar decoration style,

- Tiger Even the staff uniforms are very similar.

- LUCKY CAT COFFEE Even the name gets as close as it can… LUCKY CAT COFFEE LUCKY CAT COFFEE…

- Unvvv At this point Luckin officials probably also need to pause for two seconds to check whether this is one of their own brand stores…

And netizens in other regions have also said that LUCKY CAT COFFEE exists where they are too! And not far away there is Luckin Coffee, and it is even opened directly across the street…

This reminds the writer of the once hugely popular “Gong Cha.” What I remember most vividly is a 200-meter street with three Gong Cha shops, and the logos of each had only very slight changes.

As for which one was the real Gong Cha, it is no longer knowable. After all, when I saw such a scene, I turned around and went next door to Guru Guru to eat small balls.

According to netizens’ shares, it can be seen that LUCKY CAT COFFEE only began to emerge across the country starting in April this year. At the beginning, many netizens thought Luckin had changed its name, and some netizens asked whether it was a Luckin sub-brand…

Looking back now at the brand’s store distribution, it may mainly target consumers who want to “fish” for Luckin nearby but have poor eyesight… Although after walking in and opening the app they will find that this is not Luckin, walking in already wins one chance to let consumers try it.

After all, with a 30% discount across the board, as long as they are not specifically chasing the Luckin brand or a particular product, most consumers will probably hold the mindset of “it’s so cheap, and since I’m already here, I might as well give it a try.”

- LUCKY CAT COFFEE

Regarding the appearance of this brand, netizens tagged Luckin Coffee one after another. After all, if the official side did not respond to such a highly similar brand, it would really make many people misunderstand. Luckin officials also quickly arrived under a certain post and responded:

However, if it really has nothing to do with Luckin Coffee, I still hope Luckin will clarify officially as soon as possible… because some netizens said that the brand’s company has already obtained financing from a Nasdaq-listed company and is a legitimate brand, so other netizens began asking about franchising (I hope this netizen listens to another netizen’s advice)

As the saying goes, when joining a brand that has not yet gotten on track, everyone must be extremely vigilant!!! Leaving aside whether franchisees can make money immediately after opening a store, when a brand opens franchising before its foundation is solid, its reputation is also worth pondering.

Image source: Internet

The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.