Why did free Heytea magnets reach such a high price?

Heytea opened new stores in Toronto, Canada, and Birmingham, UK, offering the first 300 customers a day a limited-edition city fridge magnet during opening promotions. The Toronto opening drew hours-long lines in temperatures of minus six or seven degrees Celsius, and the free magnet was resold on the secondhand market for as much as 200 Canadian dollars, about 1,019 yuan.

Scalpers and purchasing agents made the magnets harder to get, and fans suggested the brand sell them at a clearly marked price to balance demand. Staff handed out hot water and hand warmers to people waiting, but drink orders surged on opening day and service ran slower than expected, adding to the frustration behind the high price on resale listings.

Heytea has recently accelerated its overseas expansion, opening new stores in Toronto, Canada, and Birmingham, UK, one after another, and the limited-edition city fridge magnets given away during the opening events quickly became the focus. The Toronto store, despite temperatures of minus six or seven degrees Celsius, still attracted a large number of fans who lined up for hours, and the free fridge magnet was even scalped on the secondhand market for as much as 200 Canadian dollars (about 1,019 yuan), leaving many merchandise fans astonished. At the same time, the involvement of scalpers and purchasing agents made it even harder to obtain, and fans began suggesting that the brand sell the fridge magnets at a clearly marked price to balance demand and market order. This article will take you through the lively scene of Heytea's overseas store openings, the reasons behind the fridge magnet hype, and consumer feedback on this phenomenon.

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After Vancouver and Burnaby, Heytea has expanded its footprint to Toronto, opening its third store in Canada. It is reported that the new Toronto store offered promotions such as buy one get one free on the first day of opening, and during the event the first 300 customers each day could also receive a limited-edition city fridge magnet.

Although the temperature in Toronto at the time was as low as minus six or seven degrees Celsius, the bitter cold did not dampen the fans' enthusiasm. They put on down jackets, scarves, and gloves early in the morning, fully geared up as they braved the biting wind to rush to the scene, just to catch a glimpse of Toronto's first Heytea opening.

Judging from photos shared by netizens on social platforms, a large crowd gathered at the store entrance, with people lining up in a winding queue along the outside of the building. Some netizens said they started waiting around 9:30 and were lucky enough to be the first customer to enter. Those who arrived later were not so fortunate, shivering in the cold wind and enduring two or three hours of waiting before they could step into the warm store.

They reported that orders surged on the first day of opening, and the speed of serving drinks was far slower than expected. Although staff provided hot water and hand warmers to those in line, customers buying drinks generally had to wait for hours in the cold wind. By evening, with wind and snow swirling together, queuing figures could still be seen outside the Toronto store, prompting people to sigh, "True feelings are revealed in heavy snow."

However, the harsh weather and the seemingly endless line still made some people back out, giving up this chance to "get a bargain," saying they would come back when the weather improved and there were fewer people. Those merchandise fans who longed for the fridge magnet but could not line up in person turned to the secondhand market, planning to simply pay for it and avoid the torment of waiting in the cold wind.

Unexpectedly, this limited and restricted fridge magnet, after being layered with the attribute of being hard to obtain, saw its value soar. According to a chat record posted by a netizen, the Toronto fridge magnet that was originally free has now risen to 200 Canadian dollars (about 1,019 yuan), and the high price made merchandise fans say they were truly ignorant.

Interestingly, Heytea also opened a new store in Birmingham, UK, across the ocean during the same period, and the entrance was likewise packed. Many consumers in line reported that although the store had already pushed the speed of serving drinks to the limit, with machines and equipment running so hard they were almost smoking, people still had to wait at least one or two hours to get a milk tea.

Among the crowds in line, besides milk tea lovers who just wanted to try something new, there were even more merchandise fans who came to collect the limited-edition fridge magnets. They said that the fridge magnets Heytea releases overseas are basically only given away in the first few days after a store opens, while supplies last, so whenever a new store opens overseas, it attracts many people to line up and snap them up.

Because of this, the resale price of Heytea's overseas limited-edition city fridge magnets on the secondhand market far exceeds the price of a cup of milk tea, resulting in not only loyal brand users gathering outside new stores, but also purchasing agents and scalpers. After getting the limited-edition merchandise, they resell it at unimaginably high prices, causing considerable frustration for the many merchandise fans who want to collect the fridge magnets.

Many fans said that profit-driven scalpers have made it harder for them to obtain limited-edition merchandise, but they also understand that this situation is difficult to eliminate. So they instead suggested that the brand could sell the city fridge magnets as products at clearly marked prices after the event ends, which would both meet user demand and reduce opportunities for scalpers to exploit free fridge magnets for profit.

Image source: Xiaohongshu

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