Where Will Luckin Coffee Open Its First Hong Kong Store?
Luckin Coffee's first Hong Kong store sits on the first floor of Mira Place in Tsim Sha Tsui, in the core commercial district, directly next to a Starbucks. Blue hoarding with white text reading "A Lucky Day starts with Luckin Coffee" already covers the frontage, and the only opening signal so far is a "Coming Soon" notice.
The mainland chain had been rumored to be entering Hong Kong since early this year. In early September it posted recruitment notices for store manager and barista roles paying up to HK$30,000 a month, covering Yau Tsim Mong and Central. More than 15 mainland tea and coffee brands, including Mixue Bingcheng, Heytea, Cotti Coffee, Chagee, and ChaPanda, have already set up there.
Mainland chain beverage brands continue to expand into the Hong Kong market, and at least 15 hand-shaken tea and coffee brands have now established a foothold there. As the largest coffee chain enterprise in the mainland, Luckin Coffee, after months of rumors, has finally revealed the location of its first Hong Kong store—on the first floor of Mira Place in Tsim Sha Tsui, and notably, it sits right next to Starbucks. This layout has sparked widespread discussion: Can Luckin shake up Hong Kong’s coffee market landscape with the cost-effectiveness strategy it excels at in the mainland? This article sorts out the specific location of Luckin’s first Hong Kong store, the surrounding environment, price comparisons, and subsequent expansion plans into residential areas, presenting this closely watched market development to coffee lovers.
Recently, wave after wave of mainland chain beverage brands have successively laid out plans in Hong Kong. According to rough statistics, no fewer than 15 mainland tea drink and coffee brands have now settled in Hong Kong, including Mixue Bingcheng, Heytea, Cotti Coffee, Chagee, and ChaPanda.
As the coffee chain enterprise with the largest number of stores in the mainland, Luckin Coffee has repeatedly been rumored since the beginning of this year to be entering the Hong Kong market. In early September, Luckin posted a recruitment notice on social platforms, hiring frontline staff for Hong Kong stores, mainly for store manager and barista positions, with a maximum monthly salary of HK$30,000, and work locations covering areas such as Yau Tsim Mong and Central, basically confirming its plan to open stores in Hong Kong.
At the time, outsiders were speculating about where this late-arriving brand would place its first store, but Luckin was quite effective at keeping its site selection confidential, and no exact store information ever leaked out.
Recently, a netizen tipped off that Luckin Coffee’s first Hong Kong store has been confirmed to be located on the first floor of Mira Place in Tsim Sha Tsui. Sharp-eyed netizens noticed that the store’s exterior has already been fitted with blue hoarding with white text, printed with the slogan “A Lucky Day starts with Luckin Coffee,” but the opening date has not yet been announced, with only the words “Coming Soon” marked.
It is reported that Mira Place is located in the core business district of Nathan Road in Tsim Sha Tsui, with a total floor area of more than 180,000 square meters, and is only a three-minute walk from MTR Tsim Sha Tsui Exit B1. The mall integrates dining, shopping, and entertainment, and is quite popular among young consumers.
It is worth noting that the location of Luckin’s first Hong Kong store is quite a talking point—right next door is Starbucks. Many netizens said bluntly that this is clearly a posture of coming to poach business. Onlookers were even more eager to see how the two major coffee brands would face off head-on, and some excitedly remarked that the era of Starbucks charging HK$50 a cup may soon be over.
A meticulous netizen made a special price comparison: In Hong Kong, a 473 ml grande latte and cappuccino at Starbucks are priced at HK$47; in the mainland, the same size latte and cappuccino at Starbucks are priced at RMB 33 (about HK$36.3); while on the Luckin mini-program, the same-sized latte at a Shenzhen store is priced at RMB 15 (about HK$16.6), and the cappuccino at RMB 17 (about HK$18.9).
If only the pricing differences between brands are considered, some have estimated that Luckin’s two drinks in Hong Kong may be priced at HK$21.4 and HK$24.7. However, this estimate does not take into account Hong Kong’s high shop rents and labor costs, so the final pricing remains difficult to determine.
On the other hand, upon hearing that Luckin is about to land in Hong Kong, many people’s first thought is “the RMB 9.9 coffee is coming”—after all, Luckin made its name in the mainland precisely through the price war of RMB 9.9 per cup. But some rational netizens also pointed out that many mainland brands previously did not continue their mainland pricing strategies after entering Hong Kong. For example, Mixue Bingcheng’s products in Hong Kong are generally about 30% more expensive, since Hong Kong’s rent levels and employee salaries are vastly different from those in the mainland.
In addition, it is understood that in addition to setting up locations in tourist shopping districts, Luckin Coffee also plans to expand into Hong Kong’s residential areas. The latest news shows that Luckin’s second Hong Kong store is about to open in Phase 2 of Metro City in Tseung Kwan O. The space was originally occupied by the international brand Pacific Coffee, and coincidentally, there is also a Starbucks in the same mall.
Image source: Internet
The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.
