How to Sell Ice Cream in China (Without Becoming the Next “Ice Cream Assassin”)
Chicecream burned bright — and crashed harder.
Let’s rewind.
🧊 THE STORY: The “Hermès of Ice Cream” Melts Down
In 2018, Chicecream (钟薛高) launched with a bang.
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Their Ruby Cocoa bar? 66 RMB ($9.28).
Their positioning? “Luxury. Craft. Artisan.”
Netizens? Called it “雪糕刺客” — the ice cream assassin.
Why? Because it stabbed wallets without warning.
By 2022, their reputation melted under pressure:
- ❄️ Ice cream that wouldn’t melt, even when torched.
- 💸 Prices that mocked logic.
- 😠 Public sentiment turned vicious — memes, boycotts, backlash.
- 💰 By 2023, cash dried up.
- 📉 Market share fell to 2.99%. Yili and Cornetto crushed them.
🔥 THE FINAL TWIST: Selling Sweet Potatoes on Livestream
On May 28, 2024, founder Lin Sheng shows up on Taobao livestream —
Backdrop says: “Old Lin selling sweet potatoes.”
He’s not hiding:
“We owe salaries. We’re broke. But we’ll sell ice cream, dumplings, even potatoes to pay our debt.”
He does it. Starts hawking 0.5kg sweet potatoes for 8 RMB.
Viewers? 500,000 in two hours.
Reaction? Mixed:
- Respect for owning up.
- But still called “sweet potato assassin” — trust still broken.
- The price pain from the past hadn’t faded.
🧠 THE LESSON: Don’t Just Sell Ice Cream. Sell Trust, Joy, and Face.
You want to win in China’s ice cream market? Here’s how:
1. 🇨🇳 Understand the Modern Chinese Consumer
- Gen Z + Millennials = emotional, social, value-driven.
- They won’t tolerate fake stories or overpriced products.
- They care about face (面子), identity (认同感), and hype (流量).
If your product doesn’t give them face when they gift it, post it, or eat it — you’re irrelevant.
2. 💸 Be Premium — But Not Pretentious
You can be high-end, but you can’t be tone-deaf.
Pricing must match perceived value, not just raw cost.
Wrong: 66 RMB for a bar with zero story.
Right: 20–30 RMB for a collab with Sanxingdui Museum, wrapped in cultural cool.
Make it feel like culture, art, or fashion — not just dessert.
3. 📱 Nail the Livestream + Xiaohongshu Play
Chicecream’s livestream still pulled 500K viewers. That’s your sign:
- Use Douyin for emotional storytelling.
- Use Xiaohongshu for daily-life lifestyle positioning.
- Avoid “hard sell” — instead, tie it to daily joy, self-reward, summer escape, childhood memories.
4. ⚠️ Be Careful With Scarcity & Scar Tactics
Don’t fake luxury with scarcity.
Instead, use limited drops that connect to cultural rhythms:
- Qingming Festival: “Herbal-flavored ice cream for cleansing.”
- Mid-Autumn: “Osmanthus + Pu’er ice moon bar.”
- CNY: “Red date + rice wine ice cream in red envelopes.”
This is how you create cultural legitimacy.
5. ✅ Your Playbook to Enter
| Step | Tactic | Tools |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Build brand on Xiaohongshu with KOCs (not big influencers) | 50 small creators > 1 celebrity |
| 2 | Test pricing sensitivity with 3 SKUs | 9.9, 19.9, 29.9 RMB |
| 3 | Run livestreams, but make it a “story” not a sale | Founder comes on to “eat and chat” |
| 4 | Use Douyin ads with storytelling hooks | 15s – 30s max |
| 5 | Sell through JD, Tmall, TikTok Commerce | No need for physical retail upfront |
🎯 Final Thought: Don’t Be the Assassin. Be the Artist.
The Chinese consumer is no longer chasing “foreign = better” or “luxury = expensive.”
They’re chasing meaning + authenticity + face.
Sell joy. Sell stories. Sell face.
Not hype. Not markup.
If you can do that — your ice cream brand doesn’t just win. It becomes beloved.
