Online emotional support meets growing needs

Every time Gao Tangtang mails a postcard and a small packet of sand from the post office deep inside the Tengger Desert in the Inner Mongolia autonomous region, she hopes to reduce the recipient's anxiety and loneliness.

Since 2021, the 37-year-old has been running this desert-themed post office. Due to its remote location — difficult to access without a guide — netizens have dubbed it the "loneliest post office in the world".

"I am someone who easily feels down, yet I also have a strong sense of empathy. I often need products that stabilize my emotions, and I believe many others in society, too, need the same," Gao said.

Customers can place orders for postal services with the post office on online platforms such as Taobao. Since early 2022, when it started operations, the post office has dispatched more than 20,000 letters and postcards. "As the pace of life accelerates, more and more people need emotional support. People like buying things that may seem useless (to others) but are meaningful (to the purchaser)."

In May this year, the China Consumers Association released its"2023 Annual Report on Consumer Rights Protection", which said that in 2024, apart from cost-effectiveness, emotional value will continue to influence young consumers' decisions. This factor could become a new point of consumption in the future.

Besides, a report by McKinsey & Company on China's consumer trends in 2024 said 64 percent of consumers place a higher value on emotional consumption, with the figure being higher for younger people.