China Brands, Marketing & Consumers

KFC in Tibet: Kentucky Fried Chicken Opens First Chain in Lhasa

Fast food giant KFC has opened its first outlet in Lhasa, Tibet. Although most netizens on Sina Weibo seem happy with KFC’s arrival in Tibet, Newsweek reports that the opening has also drawn criticism from Free Tibet campaigners.

Published

9 years ago

March 11, 2016

Manya Koetse

Almost 29 years after the first KFC opened in China near Tiananmen Square in Beijing, the chain has now opened its first Tibet branch in Lhasa on March 8, 2016.

KFC’s opening in Lhasa is a first in many ways; not only is this the first KFC in Tibet, it’s also the first international chain opening up there, and it is the biggest KFC restaurant in the world (over 500 square meters). KFC, a brand under the umbrella of YUM! Brands, has tried to open its Lhasa store for over a decade.

“Nowhere outside else of the US has KFC expanded so quickly.”

Although KFC is not China’s first fast food restaurant, it is one of China’s most popular ones. The love between KFC and China is mutual; nowhere outside else of the US has KFC expanded so quickly. For its first 18 years straight, the chain had an average of 50% growth per year (Liu 2008, xi). There are more than 5000 KFC restaurants in over 1100 places in China.

Its popularity is also visible on China’s social media; on Sina Weibo, the fast food giant has over 1,3 million fans on its official account. In comparison: McDonald’s has 64,0000 fans, Burger King a mere 4900 followers.

A sandwich meal with chicken wings, cola and French fries will be 40 yuan ($6.10) in Lhasa, while it is 31 yuan in inland cities, People’s Daily reports.

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London-based organization Free Tibet, that supports an independent Tibet, has released a statement about KFC in Tibet earlier this week, in which they say that “there’s nothing in principle wrong with a Western company setting up shop in Tibet but it’s always a source of concern because so far, very few companies have shown that the have any interest in bringing benefit to Tibet and Tibetans,” and that “Tibetan interests aren’t represented by local authorities who serve Beijing rather than Lhasa”.

According to China Daily, half of the new KFC’s staff will be from Tibet.

“The Dalai Lama wrote KFC saying that the slaughtering and eating of chickens was against the values of the Tibetans. But it later turned out the Dalai Lama himself liked to eat beef.”

Chinese leading news portal Phoenix News reports that when KFC first planned to open a branch in Tibet, the chain received a letter from the Dala Lama, saying that the slaughtering and eating of chickens was against the values of the Tibetans. But, Phoenix News writes, it later turned out the Dalai Lama himself liked to eat beef.

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Dalai Lama aside, KFC mostly waited so long to open a chain in Tibet because it was not expected to be profitable. The economic environment of Lhasa today is strong enough for KFC to be expected to thrive there.

On Weibo, some netizens are astonished with the news of the first KFC opening in Tibet: “Does this mean that there was no KFC there before?!”, one netizen says. Other Weibo users wonder what’s next: “Where’s Starbucks?” they say.

– By Manya Koetse
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China Brands, Marketing & Consumers

Wahaha and Jinmailang: the Bottled Water OEM Controversy

Published

1 month ago

May 16, 2025

Manya Koetse

What’s in your water? Would a water by any other name taste as good? That’s the main gist of the topic that’s been trending these days after Chinese consumers found out the Wahaha water they purchased was actually produced by Jinmailang, calling it an ‘OEM controversy’ (OEM stands for Original Equipment Manufacturer).

Wahaha Group (娃哈哈集团) is one of the largest food and beverage producers in China. The brand is a beloved one—last year in March, when its founder and chairman Zong Qinghou (宗庆后) passed away, people collectively began buying Wahaha water to show sympathy for the brand and for Zong, who was seen as a patriotic and humble businessman.

Big bottle of Wahaha (meaning “laughing child”) water.

In fact, that movement to pay tribute to Wahaha got a bit out of hand and turned into a grassroots campaign to boycott another water brand: Nongfu Spring, a competitor whose founder, Chinese entrepreneur Zhong Shanshan (钟睒睒), was not considered as patriotic (read more here).

Now, a different kind of ‘controversy’ is unfolding around China’s famous bottled water brand, directly related to last year’s sales boom. Chinese netizens have posted videos and images claiming that the Wahaha purified water they bought was actually produced by Jinmailang (今麦郎)—as stated on the label.

Wahaha water, produced by Jinmailang (今麦郎).

Jinmailang is an entirely separate food enterprise group—mostly known for its noodles—based in Xingtai, Hebei, since 1994. Both Wahaha and Jinmailang produce purified water (纯净水).

The fact that Jinmailang was mentioned on Wahaha’s labels as the producer raised questions: why bother buying Wahaha at all? Consumers might as well buy Jinmailang directly instead of these relabeled bottles? Wahaha is generally more expensive than Jinmailang’s own Blue Label water.

Wahaha’s customer service soon responded, confirming that they had indeed outsourced some of their production to Jinmailang. However, that partnership was terminated in April of this year after certain batches of purified water products failed to pass factory sampling tests (#娃哈哈称已终止和今麦郎代工合作#).

Customer service staff also stated that as long as Wahaha products are purchased through official channels, they comply with Wahaha’s quality standards and are safe to drink.

On May 16, Xinhua News published an interview with Fan Xianguo (范现国), the chairman of Jinmailang, about serving as an OEM for Wahaha. Without mentioning the termination of the partnership, Fan stated that last year, Wahaha’s bottled water sales suddenly soared, and that they began searching for companies that could support them during these peak times while adhering to their strict quality requirements – otherwise they would not be able to meet market demand.

Producing 1.2 billion bottles of water for Wahaha. Jinmailang’s xinua interview.

Jinmailang stepped in around June 2024, promising to support Wahaha’s production. During the peak season, they even prioritized Wahaha’s orders over their own. Over the course of a year, they produced 1.2 billion bottles of water for the company. Speaking about their own brand, Fan stated that they keep their prices as low as possible by minimizing their profits. One bottle of water only gives them 0.02 RMB ($0,0028) profit.

The interview seemed to cause a shift in online sentiments. Many netizens now praised Jinmailang for its response and for stepping in, viewing the cooperation as an example of domestic brands supporting one another.

Some suggested that Wahaha had betrayed Jinmailang by emphasizing the termination of their contract rather than acknowledging how the company had stepped in to help during a time of need.

At the same time, others applauded how Jinmailang turned the situation to its advantage by using it as an opportunity to promote its own brand.

“I’m switching to Jinmailang from now on, it’s way more cost-effective!” one comment read.

Especially since last year’s “water wars”, it’s clear that consumers’ choice of water is about more than quenching thirst alone — it’s also about which brand’s story resonates with them. As the peak season for bottled water is approaching, the OEM controversy comes at an especially unfortunate time for Wahaha. It’s Jinmailang that now seems to be having the last laugh in this OEM controversy.

By Manya Koetse

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China Brands, Marketing & Consumers

‘Lai Dou Lai Le’: IShowSpeed Debuts in Chinese Online Commercial

Published

1 month ago

May 8, 2025

Manya Koetse

🔥 A version of this story also appeared in the Weibo Watch newsletter. Subscribe to stay in the loop.

The China tour of American Youtube star IShowSpeed (Darren Watkins Jr.) is still echoing on Chinese social media—the hype hasn’t quieted down just yet, especially now that the popular livestreamer launched his very first Chinese commercial recently, just before the May Day holiday.

It’s an online commercial for China’s dairy giant Yili, and—in line with IShowSpeed’s high-energy livestream—it is entertainingly chaotic. Watkins himself posted the video on his Weibo account on April 30.

In China, Watkins is known as 甲亢哥 (Jiǎ Kàng Gē), which literally means “Hyperthyroidism Brother.” Hyperthyroidism is a condition where the thyroid is overactive, leading to symptoms like restlessness, a rapid heartbeat, and high energy levels. Due to Watkins’ fast-paced livestreams and his reputation for running, screaming, and jumping around, the nickname is a tongue-in-cheek reference that fits him well.

The commercial also suits him, as it is a bit of a rollercoaster. It begins like a typical celebrity endorsement, with Watkins promoting a dairy drink, but quickly shifts into a quirky narrative. In it, Watkins appears god-like, watching over people from a mountaintop and encouraging them to try new things. The ad then morphs into a music video before ending with some inspirational words from the YouTuber himself. Watch the commercial here.

The slogan used in the commercial is “lái dōu lái le” (来都来了), along with the English tagline “Enjoy milk, enjoy holiday.”

“Lái dōu lái le” (来都来了) is a simple phrase that basically means “You’re already here,” and implies a light-hearted “Why not?” to encourage people to go on and do something (since you’ve come this far), or try something new.

Dao Insights’ Yimin Wang explained it as having a positive and daring tone to try new things that you’d otherwise “wouldn’t, couldn’t, or even shouldn’t,” much like “YOLO” from the early 2010s (link).

On Xiaohongshu, typical responses to the commercial describe it as “creative” and “cute.” More notably, many users see it as proof of how successful Watkins’ tour in China has been. “He’s like a native celebrity in China now,” one commenter remarked.

By Manya Koetse

(follow on X, LinkedIn, or Instagram)

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