The 11th Lujiazui Coffee Festival, featuring over 390 brands from 20 countries and regions across five continents, has turned into a showcase of a robust coffee industry in Shanghai.
Nestled among the skyscrapers in Shanghai's Lujiazui Central Green, the festival hosts more than 70 global product premieres, alongside a national barista skills competition and 16 master classes led by award-winning international roasters and brewers.
A report released by Fudan University's Big Data Laboratory of Consumer Market shows that festival attendance has jumped from 12,000 to over 150,000, and participating brands have expanded from 24 to over 390, outpacing leading global peers, including the London Coffee Festival and Melbourne MICE, to rank among the world's top-tier city coffee events.
Chinese tea brand Chayanyuese is debuting its offline coffee line in Shanghai with oriental fusion drinks. "We integrate oriental ingredients to create localized coffee products," said brand communications representative Liu Qiaofang, noting that daily sales have exceeded 1,000 cups.
A delegation from Yunnan's Gongshan county brings high-mountain specialty coffee and local ethnic cultural heritage to the event, using coffee as a medium to connect the remote region with Shanghai's consumer market and industry benchmarks.
Peruvian specialty coffee brand SHAN-KAY chooses the season for its China market debut. Brand representative Kael Buttermann said local demand for light and medium roasts has surpassed expectations, and the brand has registered a Shanghai entity for long-term operations.
This year's festival also partners with the China Shanghai International Arts Festival and major commercial landmarks, including Jin Mao Tower and IFC Mall, to extend the "coffee-plus" experience citywide.
A year-round "Coffee Cube" venue signed at Jin Mao Tower will extend the festival's industrial incubation value with rotating monthly brand residencies.
