Sour Coffee and Shuttered Stores: Why Chayan Yuese Left Yubei

A Chayan Yuese store in Chongqing's Yuanyang commercial area closed abruptly. It was taking orders one night, and the next day the sign was gone and the shop had vanished from the official mini-program. The store was the first in the Yubei area and had built a steady base of regular customers over a long run.

The brand reportedly chose not to renew the lease after the contract expired. Long-time fans saw it as part of Chayan Yuese's elimination-based store adjustment strategy rather than a sudden crisis. At the same time, new stores in Suzhou drew criticism over verification and product efficiency, raising questions about reputation and store layout.

The holiday consumption rush had barely ended when store closures by new-style tea beverage brands drew attention. A Chayan Yuese store in Chongqing's Yuanyang commercial area was operating normally at night, but the next day its sign was suddenly removed and the store quietly closed, and the store could no longer be found on the official mini-program. This store was once the first in the Yubei area and held many regular customers' everyday consumption memories. The brand was said to have chosen not to renew the lease because the contract expired, and longtime fans were not surprised, seeing this as Chayan Yuese's usual elimination-based adjustment strategy. At the same time, the brand's newly opened stores in Suzhou were again criticized over its verification system, product efficiency, and other issues. As leading brands compete for the market with stable products and user experience, the direction of Chayan Yuese's reputation and changes in its store layout deserve closer observation.

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The seven-day holiday had just ended. During this period, many tea beverage brands favored by consumers generally saw store revenue double, and frontline staff were exhausted from being so busy. However, some observant customers noticed that as the holiday was nearing its end, some tea beverage stores quietly ceased operations.

Recently, a Chongqing netizen posted on social media revealing that a Chayan Yuese store near their home was still taking orders normally the night before, but when they passed by the next day, the storefront had changed beyond recognition, with the entrance sign and lights all removed, making the brightly lit scene of the previous day seem like an illusion.

Such an abrupt closure caught nearby loyal customers quite off guard. According to the netizen, this Chayan Yuese store in Chongqing's Yuanyang commercial area was the first in the Yubei area, had been open for a long time, and had always maintained relatively stable product quality. Regular customers mentioned that the store usually did not require a long wait: they could order online in advance and pick up their drinks upon arrival without having to stand outside "punished," which was very convenient for them.

But now the store can no longer be found on the official mini-program. Judging from the notice posted in Chayan Yuese's welfare group, the reason for the closure should be that the lease expired and the brand decided not to renew it and chose to withdraw. Nearby regular customers all felt regret and nostalgia about this.

That said, longtime fans who understand the brand's operating strategy were not surprised by this sudden change. They pointed out that Chayan Yuese adjusts its market layout based on each store's actual operating performance and periodically closes stores with mediocre performance and overlapping coverage. "It's an elimination mechanism. They may be preparing new stores elsewhere at the same time. Changing shop locations in Changsha is common."

Data provided by Jihai Brand Monitoring shows that Chayan Yuese currently has 973 stores operating nationwide, with nearly two-thirds highly concentrated in Changsha, Hunan, while other cities have some locations but generally a relatively small total number of stores.

Before the National Day holiday, Chayan Yuese had just entered the Suzhou market and opened three stores in one go. On opening day, there were not only long lines outside the stores, but also people livestreaming on site, making the scene very lively. At the same time, however, its controversial verification mechanism was once again criticized by consumers, who reported slow drink output, worrying quality control, and a poor overall experience, using their own experiences to discourage many onlookers who had come because of its fame.

Tea beverage enthusiasts believe that current leading brands such as Chagee, Heytea, and Naixue Tea not only achieve fast and stable product output, but also meet user needs as much as possible, focus on the consumption experience, and provide customers with a certain amount of emotional value. By contrast, many people say frankly that with Chayan Yuese, they are merely buying a cup of milk tea, yet have to follow "exclusive rules" such as waiting in line for food, having drinks remade if overtime, and no packaging, and they have said one after another, "I've checked in, I've drunk it, and I won't buy it again."

Perhaps for this reason, compared with other brands, Chayan Yuese's consumer reputation has shown a trend of gradual decline in recent years. Some netizens pointed out that apart from special times such as holidays and limited-time events, scenes of "standing punishment" while waiting for food are no longer easily seen at store entrances. From this, it can be inferred that a profit-oriented brand will quickly remove stores that no longer have lines and perform poorly, which is also a routine operation consistent with business logic.

Image source: Xiaohongshu

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