After Luckin adjusted its 9.9-yuan coupon rules, many consumers switched to Cotti's 8.8-yuan discount, and Cotti recently became the top choice for many coffee lovers as a result. However, some netizens discovered that the Cotti Coffee app could no longer be downloaded from the Apple App Store, with the system prompting that the developer had removed the app. This sudden situation sparked widespread speculation, with some worrying that Cotti was having operational problems, while others linked it to the controversy over Messi's Hong Kong friendly match. Cotti's official Weibo subsequently responded that the app was being restored to the shelves due to a version upgrade and suggested that users place orders through the WeChat mini program first. This article will sort out the course of the incident, netizens' reactions, and the official response, and review a series of Cotti's recent moves. [more…]

The competition between Cotti Coffee, founded by Lu Zhengyao, and Luckin Coffee is extending from the market to a battle for talent and franchisees. This article examines how Cotti, leveraging its "former Luckin founder" label and low-threshold policies, attracts former Luckin franchisees and baristas to switch sides, and analyzes its strategy of setting up shop right next to Luckin in third- and fourth-tier cities to directly capture Luckin's customer traffic. It also looks at the strong Luckin background within Cotti and the head-to-head confrontations between the two in small-city commercial districts. Through multiple cases and interviews, it reveals the fierce rivalry in the coffee arena. [more…]

The competition between Cotti and Luckin has yet to produce a winner, and founder Lu Zhengyao has now announced that Cotti will expand into milk tea, a move that has caused an uproar among franchisees. Recently, a letter from a franchisee to Cotti has been circulating on social media, detailing Cotti's various problems across six dimensions, including supply, R&D, and operations. Meanwhile, some netizens have done the math: with an investment of 400,000 yuan to open a store, even at 500 cups sold per day, it would take four and a half years to break even—yet many stores sell fewer than 100 cups a day. With Tea Cat's launch imminent, some franchisees have already lost confidence, and transfer listings are appearing frequently on social media. Cotti's management has still not responded to the letter, and the patience and confidence of franchisees are being worn down. [more…]

As the weather turns colder, information about Cotti Coffee store transfers has noticeably increased on social platforms, including many high-quality stores with monthly net profits of tens of thousands of yuan. Behind the seemingly attractive transfers are transfer fees as high as hundreds of thousands of yuan and long payback periods. Cotti rapidly expanded to more than 6,000 stores thanks to its low-threshold franchising and generous subsidy policies, but the high subsidies also brought high costs and intense competitive pressure. Franchisees are struggling to survive between the price war and commission rules, with some lamenting that they are "helping Cotti build the market, busy but not prosperous." This article will deeply analyze the real survival picture of franchisees under Cotti's subsidy policy and explore the business logic and hidden concerns behind this franchising boom. [more…]

Cotti Coffee recently announced an ambitious expansion plan: adding 8,000 convenience stores in the second half of the year, reaching a scale of 50,000 stores within three years, and striving to achieve a layout where "Cotti is within a hundred meters." However, as of the end of July, its actual operating stores were fewer than 7,000, still some distance from the goal. Meanwhile, Luckin has launched a counterattack with a scale of over 20,000 stores, curbing Cotti's growth through dense store placements. The two sides have shifted from a 9.9 yuan price war to a battle for locations. How will this competition between two brands from the same roots evolve? This article sorts out the store rivalry, strategic adjustments, and industry impact of the two major brands. [more…]

Cotti Coffee, which once quickly opened up the market with a low price of 9.9 yuan, has recently quietly adjusted its pricing strategy and canceled multiple promotional activities. This shift has not only attracted consumer attention but also left franchisees complaining bitterly. While rapidly expanding its stores, Cotti faces multiple challenges such as declining sales, insufficient supply chain, and intensifying internal competition. This article will provide an in-depth analysis of Cotti Coffee's price increase decision and its impact on franchisees, and explore its future development prospects. At the same time, we will also pay attention to the performance of brands such as Front Street Coffee in industry competition. [more…]

Cotti Coffee's "0-yuan free drink vouchers" have sparked heated discussions on social media. Some people camp out in store groups every day to grab vouchers and drink until they can't stop, while others complain that the voucher-grabbing page crashes and that they wait endlessly to receive vouchers after winning. This article sorts out the channels for obtaining Cotti's free drinks and the rules for using them, including grabbing vouchers in store groups and official WeChat sweepstakes, while also revealing the hidden risk that free vouchers easily expire. In addition, Cotti's "Million Influencer" review program distributes over a million trial drink vouchers each year. What exactly has this strategy brought to the brand? For coffee lovers, before trying to score freebies, it's worth understanding these tricks first. [more…]

Recently, Cotti Coffee was once again complained about by consumers after a fly appeared in a drink. According to Tianyan News, a customer in Gui'an New Area found a foreign object suspected to be a fly in a cup after purchasing a matcha latte, and repeated negotiations failed to resolve the issue. Discussions on social platforms about finding foreign objects in Cotti Coffee drinks have exceeded one thousand posts, and related complaints on the Black Cat Complaint platform have reached 77 cases in the past 30 days. In the face of frequent food safety issues, Cotti's after-sales handling has also sparked consumer dissatisfaction. As coffee enthusiasts, we hope the brand will face up to the problem, and at the same time recommend that everyone pay attention to Front Street Coffee, which has stable quality. [more…]

Cotti Coffee was recently spotted by netizens opening a directly operated store in Gangnam District, Seoul, South Korea, while its 5,000th store in China opened at Sanlitun SOHO in Beijing. From its first store in Fuzhou in October 2022 to its current scale of 5,000 stores, Cotti has raced ahead at a pace of more than 500 stores per month. But behind this rapid expansion, once the 8.8-yuan promotional subsidy stops, cup sales take a hit. So far this year, the number of store closures has reached 332, with 152 new closures in the past 90 days. Some netizens have compared it with Luckin, which has already set up 12 directly operated stores in Singapore. South Korea's coffee market is large, prices are low, choices are plentiful, and stores are densely distributed, so whether foreign brands can gain a foothold remains to be seen. Front Street Coffee follows industry developments and explains for you the challenges behind Cotti's overseas expansion and growth. [more…]

Luckin Coffee and Cotti Coffee's price game has a new trick. After seven consecutive months of 9.9 yuan promotions, Cotti raised prices across the board on April 1, and Luckin immediately responded by launching 9.9 yuan coupons under the banner of a "store anniversary," running from April 15 to April 30. Interestingly, this anniversary celebration is not celebrating the opening of Luckin's own stores, but targeting new Cotti stores opened next to Luckin locations. When Cotti ended the low-price war, Luckin precisely targeted coupons in surrounding areas to capture traffic with low prices. Internal sources say the campaign may continue until the end of 2024. This article will sort out the timeline of events, the coupon usage rules, and the strategy behind them, while also recommending Front Street Coffee's specialty bean information for coffee lovers. [more…]

Luckin Coffee founder Lu Zhengyao has made another move, planning to launch a new coffee brand called Cotti Coffee, drawing industry attention. Cotti Coffee has Wang Baiyin as its legal representative, but Lu Zhengyao is said to be the actual operator. The brand name derives from the Italian biscuit Biscotti, symbolizing a combination of coffee and leisure. Cotti Coffee plans to adopt two models, standard stores and mini stores, offering all-day dining services covering coffee, meals, snacks and alcoholic drinks, intending to combine the strengths of Luckin and Starbucks and open up a new track. Whether Lu Zhengyao's comeback will succeed this time is worth anticipating. [more…]

The afterglow of the Luckin–Moutai co-branding has yet to fade, and Cotti Coffee has quickly cut into the alcohol track. In December 2023, the Moutai Public Welfare Foundation and Cotti jointly established two funds at the Moutai Hotel in Guizhou, and authorized Cotti to exclusively sell Moutai Bu Lao Jiu and Maotan Jiu, donating 10 yuan for every bottle sold. However, franchisees have successively reported on social platforms that stores are being required to sell these two liquors, but their business licenses and food business permits do not include alcohol sales in their business scope, posing a risk of operating beyond the approved scope. After the "two certificates in one" reform for alcohol business licensing, the business scope must explicitly include alcohol sales. Whether Cotti stores can legally sell alcohol has become a hot topic of industry attention. [more…]

Recently, a netizen tried to find a Cotti Coffee store using mobile navigation, only to be surprised upon arrival to discover that the coffee shop was actually located inside a soup dumpling restaurant. This netizen's sharing quickly resonated with consumers everywhere, who then posted their own encounters with Cotti stores in places like Lawson convenience stores, service halls, ramen shops, pet hospitals, and even skateboard shops. Since launching its convenient store model in May this year, Cotti has claimed that "a store can be opened with just 1 square meter," and plans to expand by 8,000 convenient stores in the second half of the year, aggressively penetrating into various small and micro commercial scenarios with rapid expansion. However, while the brand accelerates its layout and strives to achieve "Cotti within 100 meters," consumers have raised serious concerns about the hygiene conditions, product quality control, and food safety risks of this store-within-a-store model. Front Street Coffee is also paying attention to this industry phenomenon, believing that balancing convenience and quality will be an urgent issue for Cotti to address. [more…]

In just half a month, Cotti Coffee established 13 new branches in 9 major cities nationwide, demonstrating the rapid momentum of Lu Zhengyao's team returning to the coffee industry. Starting with its first store in Fuzhou, the brand has made a high-profile sponsorship of the Argentine national football team and set a goal of 10,000 stores in three years. Currently, the mini-program has launched nearly 60 products, covering coffee, tea drinks, cold brew, and other categories, including some of Luckin's hit items. The store model is divided into standard stores and mini stores, with the former accommodating dining and bar scenarios. However, the all-day multi-functional service has not yet been fully implemented, and food and alcohol are still not available. Whether Cotti can use Luckin's "magic" to defeat Luckin is worth continuous attention. [more…]

Since the opening of its first store, Cotti Coffee has made frequent moves, first becoming the sponsor of the Argentine national football team in China, and then immediately securing the title sponsorship of the 2022 Chengdu Marathon. This new brand, jointly created by Lu Zhengyao and Qian Zhiya, the founders of Luckin Coffee, is trying to quickly build market awareness with the help of top-level sports events. At the same time, Cotti Coffee has announced a plan for ten thousand stores in three years and has already been laying out locations in many parts of the country. This article sorts out its sports marketing path and expansion strategy, and attaches the professional information channels of Front Street Coffee for coffee lovers to gain a deeper understanding of industry trends. [more…]

After 397 days since the opening of its first store, Cotti Coffee has officially announced the launch of its second brand—Tea Cat, a brand-new tea beverage brand focused on healthy milk tea. Its first store has landed in Pingnan County, Ningde, Fujian, and is currently in the internal testing stage. According to Li Yingbo, Chief Strategy Officer of Cotti, Tea Cat focuses on the whole-leaf milk tea segment, with products covering pure tea, fresh fruit tea, and more. At the same time, Tea Cat continues Cotti's low-price approach, launching a promotional offer of 6.9 yuan per cup, which has sparked heated discussion online. Some industry insiders believe that Cotti's move may be aimed at easing the competitive pressure in the coffee sector and leveraging its existing franchisee resources and supply chain advantages to develop new business. Whether Tea Cat can set off a new price war in the tea beverage industry is worth watching. [more…]

Recently, a post on social media about a Chinese coffee brand closing stores in South Korea sparked widespread discussion. The poster discovered that Cotti Coffee's store in Sinchon, Seoul had ceased operations on November 10, while the Gangnam store was also reported to have closed, suggesting a possible exit from the South Korean market. Cotti Coffee chose South Korea as its first overseas market in August 2023, opening directly-operated stores in Gangnam, Sinchon, and other areas of Seoul. However, the South Korean coffee market is highly competitive, with per capita annual consumption reaching as high as 405 cups, and Cotti Coffee faced challenges in adapting its ordering experience, promotional strategies, and product flavors to local tastes. Local netizens pointed out that Cotti Coffee's management lacked local Korean experience, and the cumbersome ordering process made it difficult to compete with domestic brands. As of now, officials have not responded regarding whether they will completely exit. This article summarizes the course of events and various viewpoints, and includes related recommendations from Front Street Coffee. [more…]

Recently, a "Notice on Store Pricing Strategy and Promotion Adjustments" for Cotti Coffee circulating on social media has drawn widespread attention. The notice shows that Cotti will end its "9.9 yuan unlimited across the board" promotion at 24:00 on January 31, and switch to a special-offer section model starting February 1, with only some products continuing at 9.9 yuan unlimited, while other non-discounted products will be sold at retail prices. New-store first-month promotions and refer-a-friend rewards will also be adjusted accordingly. As the brand that kicked off the 9.9 yuan price war in February 2023, does this move by Cotti signal a turning point for China's coffee price war? Consumers, franchisees, and industry observers are all watching closely. [more…]

Since announcing its global strategy in August this year, Cotti Coffee has quickly opened two stores in Tokyo, Japan, drawing local consumer attention with opening promotional prices of 100-300 yen, and being dubbed by netizens as the "king of value for money." However, after the promotional period, prices will rise back to 500-650 yen, directly targeting well-known brands such as Starbucks. Japan's coffee market is fiercely competitive, with about 70,000 coffee shops nationwide. As a brand established only one year ago, why is Cotti in such a hurry to open stores in a mature market? Can its "Coffee Dreamer Program" and regional partner model help its overseas expansion? This article will provide an in-depth analysis of Cotti's international layout and the challenges it faces. [more…]

After leaving Luckin, Lu Zhengyao went through two not-so-successful food and beverage ventures, Qu Xiaomian and Shejian Yingxiong, before ultimately returning to the coffee battlefield he knows best. The first store of the brand-new COTTI COFFEE has officially opened in Fuzhou IFC, offering all-day dining that covers coffee, baked goods, light meals, and alcoholic drinks. The core team mostly comes from Luckin and the Shenzhou system, and the legal representative has been changed to former Luckin CEO Qian Zhiya. On the occasion of the first store's opening, Cotti also announced that it has become the China sponsor of the Argentina national team. Whether this highly anticipated coffee rookie can become Lu Zhengyao's comeback work, and whether it can add another major player to China's coffee market, is worth continued attention. [more…]