Chinese coffee chain Luckin is delivering a jolt to the java industry as it looks to brew up business in the United States after dominating its home market.
Luckin, which was founded eight years ago, surpassed Seattle-based java giant Starbucks as the biggest coffee chain in China in 2023. Since then, the Xiamen-headquartered franchise has gradually expanded into the other Asian markets. By the end of the first quarter of 2025, the brand owned more than 24,000 shops worldwide.
Now, Luckin is setting its sights on America. The newcomer to the U.S. retail coffee market currently boasts five stores in New York and is already gaining popularity. After debuting its first two U.S. locations in the city at the end of June, the company opened its most recent store in the heart of the financial district last month.
"The coconut flavor within the coffee. I think that's the best," a young consumer told China Global Television Network outside a Luckin storefront.
"It kind of reminds me of when you go into a Starbucks, but you're also getting the speediness and quickness of a Dunkin'. So it's like the best of both worlds," said another consumer.
In addition to its inventive drinks represented by the flagship product, the coconut latte, Luckin also appeals to younger demographics with a business model built around its App-only order platform and cashierless stores.
"I thought it had great flavor. And it was nice and easy to order," said a man.
Meanwhile, Luckin regularly offers steep discounts and promotions to users of its App. These have proven to be as irresistible as the company's beverages.
"The pricing is really good. It's really hard to find something affordable, quick, especially in Lower Manhattan, so just to have that for us everyday working people is great," a consumer said.
Luckin's 2025 second-quarter results show that the Chinese coffee giant had an overall net revenue of more than 1.7 billion U.S. dollars, marking a 47.1 percent increase compared to the same period a year ago.
This success comes at a time when Luckin's long-established rival, Starbucks, which has more than 17,000 stores in the U.S., is cutting prices in China. Starbucks has also recently announced a one-billion-dollar restructuring plan that includes shrinking its global footprint, closing hundreds of stores in the North American market, and laying off 900 more employees.
Chinese coffee giant Luckin expands in New York City
The "soft landing" of the China-EU electric vehicle case will greatly boost market confidence and inject new momentum into China-EU cooperation in automobile trade and investment, a spokeswoman of the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) said at a press briefing in Beijing on Thursday.
He Yongqian, the spokeswoman, made the remarks after China and the European Union (EU) agreed on the necessity of providing general guidance on price undertakings for Chinese companies exporting battery electric vehicle (BEV) passenger cars to the EU.
"China and the EU simultaneously announced on Monday that they had achieved positive outcomes following multiple rounds of consultations on the EV case, a development that has drawn wide attention at home and abroad. Industry players from both sides have 'highly welcomed and fully endorsed' the outcome, saying the 'soft landing' of the case is expected to greatly boost market confidence and inject new momentum into China-EU cooperation in automobile trade and investment. Some EU politicians have described it as a positive step toward building a sustainable China-EU trade relationship, and said it demonstrated that resolving trade differences through partnership remains feasible," she said.
"Against the current international backdrop, China and the EU, acting in a spirit of mutual respect and within the framework of WTO rules, have properly addressed the EV case, which is of significant positive importance. The outcome will not only contribute to the sound development of China-EU economic and trade ties and help safeguard the stability of the global automotive industrial and supply chains, but will also send a clear and strong signal that both sides are willing to uphold a rules-based international trading order, setting a good example for countries to resolve differences through dialogue and consultation and injecting greater certainty and positive energy into global economic growth," she said.
"China appreciates the spirit of dialogue showed by the EU side and stands ready to work with the EU, building on the current positive outcomes, to further implement the consensus reached by the leaders of the two sides, maintain dialogue and communication, and support stable industrial and supply chains on both sides, continue to deepen cooperation on the basis of market principles, and make active contributions to the global green transition," she added.
"Soft landing" of China-EU EV case to significantly boost market confidence: MOC spokeswoman
"Soft landing" of China-EU EV case to significantly boost market confidence: MOC spokeswoman
