How did empty packages reach a street coffee memorial?

Takeout orders left as tributes at the Chongqing Yangtze River Bridge arrived as empty boxes or plain water instead of milk tea. The orders were placed after a 21-year-old man known as "Fat Cat" died by suicide following a romantic dispute, and netizens ordered drinks to the bridge as a memorial on the evening of May 2.

Staff at stores of chains including Mixue Bingcheng and ChaPanda acted on remarks that other outlets were sending empty packages, and mishandled the orders. Lawyers said the practice infringed consumers' right to know and amounted to fraud. The brands apologized, carried out fixes, and regulators stepped in.

Recently, a news story about delivery orders placed as memorial tributes that turned out to contain empty packages and plain water instead of milk tea has attracted widespread attention. The incident stems from a 21-year-old man nicknamed "Fat Cat" who jumped into the river and ended his life due to a romantic dispute. Netizens across the country, sympathizing with his plight, spontaneously ordered takeout to be delivered to the Chongqing Yangtze River Bridge as a memorial. However, some of the delivery bags contained only empty packaging boxes and milk tea faked with plain boiled water, involving well-known chain brands such as Mixue Bingcheng and ChaPanda. Staff at the stores involved listened to remarks that "everyone else is sending empty packages" and mishandled the orders, sparking consumer outrage. Lawyers pointed out that this act infringed on consumers' right to know and constituted consumer fraud. The brands have issued apologies and made rectifications one after another, and regulatory authorities have stepped in. Front Street Coffee reminds everyone that under any circumstances, businesses should operate with integrity and respect every single order.

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Yesterday, hot search lists were successively flooded with apology statements released by several well-known brands such as ChaPanda and Mixue Bingcheng, and the string of trending topics left onlookers bewildered.

Upon clicking in, it became clear that these brands issuing apology statements were apologizing for store employees delivering empty takeout packages. At this point, some readers may still not understand how so many employees from different brands could have given out empty takeout packages during a certain period of time.

This brings us to a 21-year-old man nicknamed "Fat Cat." This young man chose to jump into the river and end his life due to a romantic dispute. After the tragedy, his grieving family members said that "Fat Cat" had been frugal in life and that the takeout he ordered for himself generally cost only around ten yuan.

Netizens everywhere deeply sympathized with this young man's plight and spontaneously ordered takeout to be delivered to the Chongqing Yangtze River Bridge, the scene of the incident, as a memorial and expression of grief for the deceased.

Thus, on the evening of May 2, the railings of the Chongqing Yangtze River Bridge were covered with plain-colored flowers and various takeout packages. However, netizens soon discovered that some of the delivery bags contained only empty packaging boxes and milk tea faked with plain boiled water, and most of these orders came from well-known chain brands such as Mixue Bingcheng and ChaPanda.

Consumers who placed the takeout orders believed that regardless of whether the recipient could normally consume the takeout, they had genuinely paid their own money, and the store should have prepared and dispatched the food according to their order requirements, completing the takeout transaction with them, rather than fobbing consumers off with empty packages.

However, employees at the stores involved mistakenly believed remarks such as "everyone else is sending empty packages" and processed some takeout orders as empty packages, which is what triggered the incident that infuriated the public—"multiple brands collectively delivering empty takeout packages."

In the eyes of netizens, this behavior by the stores neither conformed to store food preparation standards nor matched the transaction content of the orders between the two parties. A lawyer commented on the matter, stating that the stores' actions of delivering empty takeout packages and substituting plain water for milk tea actually infringed on consumers' right to know, not only violating good faith but also constituting consumer fraud.

After this incident was published on major platforms, it rapidly escalated and drew attention from all sides, and the brands named by netizens issued apologies one after another. Currently, Mixue Bingcheng stated it has required the store involved to close for rectification, contacted the affected parties to apologize, and offered compensation of 10 times the order amount. Heads of other stores that received orders addressed to the "Yangtze River Bridge" said they would take such orders seriously and would photograph and record videos before packing to send to the customers who placed the orders.

ChaPanda stated it has required the store to fire the employees involved, deduct the store's security deposit in accordance with the company's store management regulations, and terminate the store's contract in accordance with laws and regulations. All orders involved will be fully refunded, with apologies issued one by one and compensation of 10 times the order amount. In addition, ChaPanda stated it will donate 1 million yuan in the name of "Fat Cat."

And this afternoon, Red Star News reported that it called the Chongqing Municipal Market Supervision Administration's 12315 complaint hotline regarding the "empty takeout packages" matter. A staff member said the local market supervision department is already aware of and has noted the matter: "If there is a complaint, we will definitely investigate and handle it, and reply to the consumer."

Image source: Internet

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