Source丨Foodaily Daily Food In the summer of 2024, ice cups went viral across the internet, and now their prices have been driven down? I noticed that some online platforms have slashed the price of a single ice cup to as low as 1 yuan or even 0.01 yuan, while major tea beverage brands like Guming and Shuyi Xiancao have also launched '1 yuan ice water/ice cup' promotions to attract customers. Image source: Meituan Waimai Last year, I followed up and deeply analyzed the underlying logic behind the ice cup craze in Japan and South Korea, sparking industry attention and discussion. In the comments section of that article, readers engaged in heated discussions about the price, usage scenarios, and other aspects of ice cups, with sharp observations such as 'lack of a complete product ecosystem,' 'lack of detailed usage scenarios,' and 'pricing too high' highlighting the shortcomings ice cups faced at the time. Image source: Foodaily A year later, I found that the previous skepticism did not halt the ice cup trend; instead, the craze has only intensified. According to the '2025 China Urban Consumer Behavior White Paper,' ice cup sales have grown by over 300% for two consecutive years, with per capita annual consumption in first-tier cities reaching 48 cups, indicating a rising market penetration rate. Entering 2025, the ice cup market has seen more concrete changes in product ecosystem, scenario applications, and pricing. Now, let's take a look at how ice cups are being played this year and why they are racing ahead at high speed. 1-Yuan Traffic Generation and Bundled Sales: The Full Pull of a Cup of Ice Last summer, Mixue Bingcheng launched a '1-yuan ice cup,' attracting a large number of consumers into stores with an extremely low threshold. This summer, the tea beverage battlefield has seen the 'one-yuan tactic' again. Guming launched 1-yuan ice water at its offline stores, also drawing widespread attention from consumers and the industry. Just a few days ago, Shuyi Xiancao launched a '1-yuan ice cup' at its Hunan stores, where consumers can purchase it for an additional 1 yuan with any purchase, or 1.5 yuan for a lemon ice cup, with online ordering supported. Image source: Xiaohongshu, Shuyi Xiancao Whether it's the 1-yuan ice cup or 1-yuan ice water, they essentially leverage the psychology of 'since you're here.' Consumers enter the store for the low price, and after seeing the menu, they are likely to grab a milk tea as well. According to Guming store statistics, about 35% of customers who buy the 1-yuan ice water also purchase other products, ultimately raising the average order value to over 20 yuan. Using these high-frequency, low-price products to attract consumers into stores and then profiting from high-margin products is a common marketing strategy in business. While tea beverage stores are fiercely competing with the 'one-yuan tactic,' channel distributors are continuously refining their sales strategies around ice cups. Recently, Meituan's Xiaoxiang Supermarket launched a set meal online called 'Bold Orange Ice Tea,' which includes Xiaoxiang's own NFC orange juice, Nongfu Spring's Oriental Leaf jasmine green tea, an ice cup, and a bottle of lemonade. After ordering and having it delivered home, consumers can mix their own refreshing summer drink. Image source: Xiaoxiang Supermarket The interesting change here is that in the past, DIY drinks with ice cups mainly relied on consumers' spontaneous creativity and purchasing beverages separately; now, channels are directly bundling ice cups with alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks into one-stop DIY meal sets, embedding ice cups as core components in scenario-based product combinations. This not only simplifies the DIY drink process but also elevates ice cups to part of a strategy to increase average order value through combination marketing. This is just a microcosm of ice cups upgrading from a supporting role to a leading role in summer beverages. With the combined effect of 'ice + drinks,' channels are converting the traffic-generating power of ice cups into tangible 'product-driving ability.' Last year, with the explosion of ice cups, this trend had already emerged. After Nongfu Spring launched its ice cup, it went viral thanks to DIY drink content shared by netizens on social media. User-generated content like 'recreating Orange C Americano' also brought summer popularity to its other products such as Tanbing, Shuirong C100, and NFC juices. Some offline channels even took advantage of the trend to launch promotions like buying a bottle of NFC juice or Shuirong C series and getting a Nongfu Spring ice cup for an additional 1 yuan, using a combination punch to boost beverage sales. In the instant retail sector, this combination strategy has yielded even more impressive results. According to Ele.me summer data for 2024, the pairing of 'alcohol + ice + beverages' in delivery orders increased by 211% year-on-year, far exceeding the growth rate of alcohol itself; 'beverages + ice' pairings increased by 142% year-on-year. This year, the same blockbuster logic is playing out. Some online stores have directly opened 'DIY Special Mix' sections, offering 'alcohol + ice + non-alcoholic beverages' trios to meet diverse needs such as family gatherings, office drinks, and late-night refreshment. Image source: Ele.me 'Where there are drinks, there are ice cups' is gradually becoming a consensus across all channels. Now, when consumers walk into convenience stores, they will notice that ice cup freezers are usually placed alongside beverage coolers. This display arrangement encourages customers to pick up other drinks when buying ice cups, forming an 'add-on purchase' model. Convenience stores, instant retail, and tea beverage stores are all using ice cups to complete the business loop from 'traffic generation' to 'conversion.' Major convenience store chains like Lawson, 7-Eleven, FamilyMart, and Meiyijia have long listed ice cups as key products. Supermarkets like Hema and Costco are also continuously launching upgraded ice cups. Image source: Xiaohongshu The value of ice cups is far exceeding their basic function as ice, becoming the core protagonist of summer beverages. Competing on Flavor, Shape, and Packaging: Ice Cups Are No Longer Just Simple Frozen Water Entering 2025, it's not just sales strategies at the channel level that are changing; ice cups are also becoming more segmented in product form and usage scenarios. Now, more and more brands are launching flavored ice cups, such as coffee ice cups, fruit-flavored ice cups, and lemon tea-flavored ones; some even add real fruit slices to the ice cups, making the flavors richer and more visually appealing. Pouring a drink into an ice cup and adding fruit can create a 'high-value' beverage. Image source: Meituan Waimai The shape of the ice cubes in the cups is also reaching new heights. In addition to cubes and spheres, 7-Eleven and Lawson recently launched bear-shaped ice cups, taking the aesthetics of ice cups to the next level. The brown bear-shaped ice cubes in the cups come with coffee caramel and cola flavors, prompting netizens to test and review them. Image source: Xiaohongshu users @wss, @7-ELEVEN Chengdu Not only flavors and shapes, but packaging is also continuously upgrading. In FamilyMart's freezers this year, you can see ice cup packaging printed with MBTI labels, precisely targeting young people's preference for labeling and personalization. Four different bottle designs with slogans like 'E-person here' and 'Don't bother I-person' help consumers express their personality and further amplify social sharing touchpoints, leading consumers to check in and collect all four types of ice cups. Image source: Xiaohongshu In addition, some brands have recognized the 'product-driving' ability of ice cups and have started launching complementary products for ice cup sales scenarios. For example, coffee brand Yongpu launched a bagged ready-to-drink American coffee with packaging that directly states 'Tastes better with an ice cup.' In fact, the commercial success of complementary products for ice cups has a precedent in the Korean market. Bagged coffee in Korean convenience stores is typically enjoyed with ice cups, so summer sales are high, especially concentrated in July and August. Taking Cantata, Korea's top bagged coffee brand, as an example, sales in July and August 2018 were approximately 26 million packs, accounting for about 45% of annual sales. This shows the huge market potential for beverages paired with ice cups. Image source: 대한투데이 On the industry side, traditional giants and emerging brands are jointly entering the fray, fueling the 'ice cup revolution.' Not only are established players in the ice-making field like Bingjixian and Binglida continuously deepening their efforts, but convenience stores and supermarkets are also launching their own private-label ice cups. At the same time, traditional dairy and beverage giants like Mengniu and Yili are also crossing over into the market. At the end of 2024, Yili showcased its own ice cup at its 2025 new product launch event; in March this year, Mengniu also released its 'Ice+' series, further enriching the brand lineup in the ice cup market. Image source: Mengniu, Xiaohongshu As mentioned earlier, some online channels have launched ultra-low-priced ice cups limited to the first cup to drive traffic, but currently, in offline convenience stores and supermarkets, the price of regular edible ice cups generally remains around 3-5 yuan. However, consumers' love for ice cups has not diminished due to price. On Xiaohongshu, the number of posts related to ice cups has been continuously rising, from over 40,000 in June last year to over 100,000 now. The question arises: why are young people willing to pay twice the price of mineral water for a cup of ice? Competing with Ice Makers, New Tea Beverages, and Iced Drinks: Why Do Consumers Need an Ice Cup? Beyond price considerations, many consumers have other doubts about the popularity of ice cups: There are ice makers on the market, convenience stores and supermarket freezers are stocked with various iced drinks, and new tea beverage brands offer ready-made icy drinks. Why buy an ice cup separately? Foodaily believes this can be analyzed from two perspectives: social needs and the lazy economy. 1. Social Scenario Needs and the DIY Trend Overlap, Turning Ice Cups into Mobile Social Carriers Among the 100,000+ posts on Xiaohongshu related to ice cups, the vast majority share DIY recipes for 'ice cup + alcoholic beverages and drinks.' The rise of social media has made DIY drinks a social symbol for young people, and ice cups play an important role in this. Image source: Xiaohongshu According to a NielsenIQ survey, 69% of consumers who buy ice cups at convenience stores use them to make their own drinks. Previously, supermarkets commonly sold combinations of small bottles of alcohol and beverages, providing consumers with initial DIY mixing ideas. The most essential element in homemade mixed drinks is ice, but making ice at home is time-consuming and requires advance preparation, failing to meet immediate needs. The 'low-cost, easy-to-operate' ice cup exactly fills this final gap. Whether mixing iced tea or cocktails, people only need an ice cup to enjoy the fun and deliciousness of mixing anytime, anywhere. Compared to directly buying finished products from tea shops or bars, this DIY experience not only offers more controllable prices but also provides the emotional value of 'doing it yourself.' Many merchants have also launched a series of 'drink mixing formulas' to match their ice cups, providing consumers with choices and inspiration. Image source: 7-ELEVEN, Bingguozhu, Bingjixian According to the '2025 Douyin Selected Top 10 Trends for Young People,' low-cost 'rebellion' and 'self-expression' have become the lifestyle pursuits of today's youth. The emergence of ice cups allows them to break free from traditional menu constraints, create and share 'internet-famous recipes' on their own, which are not only highly personalized but also garner likes and comments on social media, triggering secondary viral spread and further stimulating more people to try and buy ice cups. 2. The 'Lazy Economy' and the Need for Icy Refreshment: Ice Cups Are Walking 'Portable Mini Freezers' Complementing the DIY trend is the instant gratification psychology of the 'lazy economy.' As temperatures rise, people's desire for 'lasting coolness' grows stronger. Ice cups not only keep ordinary drinks cold for longer but also enhance the refreshing taste of coffee, juice, and soda. Compared to using an ice maker at home, occupying freezer space, and waiting for freezing, buying pre-made ice is clearly more time-saving and labor-saving. Ice cups readily available at convenience stores, combined with instant retail delivery services, make them a summer essential for 'buy and use immediately' and quenching thirst anytime. The '2023 Instant Retail Ice Products and Iced Beverage Consumption Trend White Paper' shows that over 40% of consumers prefer alcoholic beverages, drinks, and dairy products to be consumed chilled. As a 'walking freezer,' ice cups make drinks last longer in the scorching summer. Final Thoughts Since Nongfu Spring launched its ice cup, it has only been two years since ice cups attracted widespread industry attention in China, but their market value has already transcended the product itself. Consumers are not just buying ordinary ice cubes; they are buying the sense of control and instant satisfaction of being able to mix their desired drink anytime, anywhere. To make ice cups a truly 'long-lasting business,' it requires not only robust demand but also a stable upstream supply chain and cost control. It is understood that common cups are typically made of PET material, which becomes brittle at low temperatures and can crack after freezing. Ice cups in South Korea are made of PET-G (glycol-modified PET resin), which China currently mainly relies on imports for. However, with the acceleration of domestic production, the supply chain cost of ice cups is expected to be further optimized. When costs drop, the price of ice cups may truly be 'brought down.' 🔺Scan the QR code for ticket inquiries🔺