Why does a coffee store check ice cream scoops?
At the end of 2025, Luckin store employees handling year-end inventory received an added internal notice to calibrate equipment counts, specifically checking whether small topping scoops and ice cream scoops were present at each coffee store. Because the chain rarely issues a notice without a purpose, staff read the request as a signal that a new drink requiring on-site scooping is coming.
Veteran employees connected the tools to the labor-heavy topping drinks of the Little Deer Tea period, when added ingredients slowed service. With timeliness and hourly cup volume targets already strict, a scoop-intensive product would raise pressure on the coffee production process. Some workers treat the check as routine; no product launch has been confirmed.
In the final days of 2025, Luckin employees were busy with year-end inventory checks when they unexpectedly received a notice to calibrate store equipment inventory, requiring them to verify whether small topping scoops and ice cream scoops were complete. This move immediately sparked speculation: is the brand about to launch a new product that requires scooping ice cream balls on-site? Veteran employees were reminded of the labor-intensive topping teas from the Little Deer Tea era. With timeliness and hourly cup volume assessments becoming increasingly stringent, complex new products would undoubtedly add pressure to stores. Workers are generally resistant, but some optimistically believe it might just be a routine inventory check.
As the year draws to a close, inventory counting is almost an unavoidable routine for chain coffee stores. In the final days of 2025, many Luckin staff were forced into overtime, following company instructions to count and register all kinds of materials and equipment stored in warehouses one by one.
However, Luckin employees busy with inventory work recently received another internal notice requiring each store to calibrate equipment inventory, with a focus on checking whether stores are equipped with small topping scoops and ice cream scoops.
This notice made the staff responsible for inventory checks instantly nervous. Every internal notice Luckin issues usually has a clear purpose, and suddenly requiring each store to check small topping scoops and ice cream scoops likely means that the brand's upcoming new products will require these two tools during preparation.
At the thought of not only shaking milk tea but also finding time to scoop ice cream balls, many Luckin workers fell into anxiety and unease. "What the heck is an ice cream scoop?" "Going crazy, I have to bake bread, shake milk tea, do cleaning, and now scoop ice cream too." "Launching ice cream in the dead of winter, what kind of operation is this?" "Are they trying to copy Lucky Cup and launch coffee with ice cream balls?" "Don't tell me they're coming out with snow-top coffee?"
Interestingly, unlike newcomers who just joined, veteran Luckin employees were reminded of the past by the "old friends" sealed away in the warehouse for so long.
In their memories, Luckin's beverage lineup during the "Little Deer Tea period" was extremely rich, with toppings added to drinks including pearls, taro balls, pudding, taro paste, and more. At that time, staff often needed topping scoops and ice cream scoops to scoop the corresponding toppings when making drinks. But as Luckin placed more emphasis on production efficiency, those labor-intensive topped teas gradually disappeared from the menu, and tools like topping scoops and ice cream scoops were tucked away in the warehouse.
Now, due to company requirements, the dusty "old friends" in the warehouse may see the light of day again. While veteran Luckin employees feel nostalgic, they can't help but feel worried. Currently, Luckin strictly enforces metrics like timeliness and hourly cup volume, requiring staff to complete drink preparation within two minutes of receiving an order. If future new drinks require scooping toppings with tools, the increased preparation steps will undoubtedly drag down employee efficiency, making it difficult to meet various targets and affecting store performance.
Therefore, regardless of how long they've been employed, most Luckin workers are not too keen on seeing "dead tools return to the bar," and are strongly resistant to the company potentially launching complex new products. "Scanning codes, timeliness rates, compressed labor efficiency, AI cameras, and still coming up with so many increasingly complex drinks—one person would need eight pairs of hands." "Launching so many hard-to-make new products again, and still requiring timeliness—Luckin really wants to have it both ways."
However, although most workers believe Luckin's recent inventory notice is paving the way for next year's new products, some hold an optimistic view, thinking it might just be a false alarm, and comforted colleagues not to worry too much before the company makes a formal announcement.
Image source: Xiaohongshu
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The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.
