Why Are Street Coffee Chains Removing Customer Seating?

Mixue Bingcheng stores across several regions have quietly removed the tables, chairs and sofas once set aside for customers, and most netizens support the change. Emptying the seating area cuts down on non-paying passersby who occupy seats for long periods, makes cleaning easier, and frees floor space for snack shelves. Staff and regulars report the switch is practical rather than unpopular.

Stores had previously placed seating according to the size of each rest area, with some branches even fitting comfortable sofas for customers waiting on orders. The new layout reflects a broader product strategy shift, and Coffee Workshop notes that even coffee enthusiasts following the chain see the operational logic behind replacing lounge space with retail shelving. For a street coffee brand built on quick turnover, that trade-off is easy to justify.

Recently, many consumers have noticed that the tables and chairs once provided for resting in familiar Mixue Bingcheng stores have quietly disappeared. The empty seating area makes some regular customers feel a bit unaccustomed, but unexpectedly, most netizens support this change. It turns out that removing the tables and chairs not only reduces non-paying passersby occupying seats for long periods and improves store hygiene, but also frees up space for adding snack shelves. Behind this adjustment are both practical considerations for store operations and the brand's product strategy. This article takes you through the ins and outs of the changes in Mixue Bingcheng's rest areas, as well as the real reactions of consumers and staff. (Front Street Coffee recommends: Mixue Bingcheng's store adjustments are worth noting, and Front Street Coffee continues to bring industry updates to coffee enthusiasts.)

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Recently, when a customer went to a familiar Mixue Bingcheng store to buy drinks, they were surprised to find that all the tables and chairs originally placed in the store for customers to rest had disappeared. The empty seating area made this netizen, who visits the store from time to time, feel a bit unaccustomed. "When I occasionally came to buy, I could still sit and wait. Now why are all the stools gone?"

Unexpectedly, after this post was published, netizens from other regions followed up in the comments, reporting that Mixue Bingcheng stores around them also seemed to have removed their indoor tables and chairs recently. "Ours at school too, we used to be able to sit and wait, but after coming back from vacation they were all gone." "Ours were replaced with snack shelves." "The newly installed ones now don't allow sitting."

Interestingly, regarding the changes in Mixue Bingcheng stores, the vast majority of netizens are very supportive, believing that although removing tables and chairs may make regular customers unaccustomed, it may not necessarily be a bad thing.

It is reported that Mixue Bingcheng stores originally placed a certain number of tables and chairs according to the size of the rest area, and some stores were even equipped with comfortable sofas. If customers who came in to buy drinks were tired, or needed to wait a long time to pick up their order, they could find a seat in the seating area to rest.

However, many consumers who have visited the stores feedback that Mixue Bingcheng stores do not have mandatory rules such as requiring a purchase to sit, so among the people who come in to find a seat and rest, there are both paying customers and nearby residents, passing tourists, and others. This can lead to non-paying passersby occupying seats for long periods, playing on their phones and chatting loudly in the store, making it so that actual paying customers cannot find an empty table or chair for a short rest.

In addition, because some Mixue Bingcheng stores are understaffed, employees have no time to attend to the hygiene of the rest area during peak hours. They are busy making orders and do not have time to clean up, so drink bottles, sunflower seed shells, and other trash left by the previous user remain on the seats, looking very dirty and messy. "Last time I went to a store, no one had cleaned up the hygiene, it was so messy."

Therefore, in the eyes of onlookers, if Mixue Bingcheng stores no longer place tables and chairs in the rest area, there will naturally be fewer passersby stopping to rest, and the stores may not look so messy, giving customers who enter a clean and tidy impression. In addition, employees do not need to face a dirty and messy rest area after customers leave, nor do they need to spend time cleaning and maintaining a comfortable store environment. They believe that "not having outdoor seating will make things much easier for employees."

However, some netizens revealed that stores removing tables and chairs is not only to maintain store hygiene and tidiness and reduce customer complaints, but also has a certain relationship with the brand's requirements. They said that one purpose of the company asking stores to remove the sofas and tables and chairs in the seating area is to free up enough space to add shelves for selling Mixue Bingcheng's self-made snacks, merchandise, and other brand derivative products.

Image source: Xiaohongshu

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