SHANGHAI — As China’s sluggish market drives widespread budget cuts, brands are trying to get more creative with on-the-ground activations. However, a recent Givenchy Shanghainese breakfast takeover promptly sparked controversy online.
Over the weekend, Givenchy took over three Shanghainese eateries and one nightclub, where shoppers could purchase the “Four Heavenly Delicacies” of Shanghainese breakfast, including fried dough sticks, sticky rice wraps, soymilk, crispy pancakes, alongside xiaolongbao steamed dumplings, Chinese-style breakfast wraps, and Americano coffees.
With prices ranging from 3 renminbi to 38 renminbi, some Chinese netizens cheered the brand on for being down-to-earth.
“Seeing Givenchy’s black-and-white minimal logo take over the streets of Shanghai…I can finally afford Givenchy!” exclaimed one Xiaohongshu user.
“The comforting satisfaction of laid-back Chinese brunch, xiaolongbao and soymilk are enough to give me the most genuine, most needed kind of energy,” wrote Hong Kong influencer Nicky Cheung in a social media post.
