Luckin Coffee has opened its first premium Origin flagship store in Shenzhen, stepping into higher priced specialty coffee and taking direct aim at Starbucks’ Reserve format as competition sharpens in China’s urban café market. The launch marks a clear shift for Luckin, which built scale through compact, app led outlets known for low priced drinks and fast delivery.
The two level flagship sits in one of Shenzhen’s busiest commercial districts near the Hong Kong border. Unlike Luckin’s usual pricing of roughly one to two dollars for core beverages, the new store offers a curated menu of specialty brews such as pour over and cold brew, positioned for customers willing to pay more for sourcing stories and in store experience.
Luckin said the Origin concept focuses on traceable beans and brewing methods. The flagship highlights coffee sourced from Brazil, Ethiopia and Yunnan in southwest China, reflecting a growing interest among Chinese consumers in origin specific flavours. Early social media posts from local platforms show long queues during the soft launch period in late January, with reported wait times stretching beyond an hour, pointing to strong initial curiosity around the premium format.
The move comes as China’s coffee market grows more crowded. Starbucks set the tone for premium café experiences with its Reserve Roastery in Shanghai in 2017, but faces sustained pressure from fast expanding domestic chains and boutique cafés. Luckin reported revenue of about $1.55 billion for the quarter ended September 30, 2025, up nearly 48 percent year on year, underlining its scale advantage. The company crossed the 29,000 store mark globally by the end of September and has positioned the Shenzhen opening as part of its milestone march toward 30,000 outlets.
Starbucks, which runs just over 8,000 stores in China, is reshaping its local business through a proposed stake sale to Boyu Capital, valuing its China unit at roughly $13 billion including future licensing income.
By pairing premium storytelling with its vast retail footprint, Luckin is signalling an ambition to compete across price tiers. If the Shenzhen model delivers steady volumes, similar flagships are likely to follow in Shanghai, Beijing and other large cities, adding pressure on established premium players to defend both share and brand loyalty.
