Due to the downgrading of consumption by the Mainland Chinese people, this year’s mooncakes did not sell well during the Mid-Autumn Festival. The question of where the unsold mooncakes went after the festival has become a hot topic, trending on September 19th.
Before the Mid-Autumn Festival, mooncakes were prominently displayed in supermarkets, but after the festival, they seemed to disappear overnight. Where did all the unsold mooncakes in supermarkets go?
According to reports from Mainland media, on September 18th, the day after the Mid-Autumn Festival, there was a noticeable absence of mooncakes at Yonghui Supermarket and Hema Fresh Store in Tianhe City, as well as at the Maxim’s Cake stall at the West Gate of the metro station in Guangzhou. By the afternoon, Yonghui Supermarket had no mooncakes left for sale.
In a local store in Zhujiang New Town, various mooncakes in different packaging were still on the shelves, with some labeled with discounts such as “buy one get one free” or “40% off for two boxes.”
How are unsold mooncakes handled? Employees at Maxim’s Cake Store mentioned that even if there were leftover boxed mooncakes after the Mid-Autumn Festival, they had already been returned to the manufacturers for recycling.
After the Mid-Autumn Festival, it was hard to sell mooncakes. Some supermarkets would extend promotions for several days to sell more mooncakes. Regardless of how many were left after the actual festival, unsold mooncakes would not be continued for sale post-festival. Unsold mooncakes would be taken off the shelves that night, and manufacturers contacted for return. Some supermarkets would distribute unsold mooncakes as benefits to their employees to internally consume.
The stagnant sales of mooncakes this year have become a hot topic. After the Mid-Autumn Festival, how do shop owners who sell homemade mooncakes deal with unsold stocks?
A blogger from Liaoning, “Happy Little Red Flower,” shared that her friend’s family has run a cake shop for 15 years, specializing in handmade mooncakes. They usually have group and individual orders every year. Before this Mid-Autumn Festival, her friend’s shop had prepared over a thousand kilograms of mooncakes and also imported gift box mooncakes worth tens of thousands from suppliers in preparation for the festival. However, this year’s sales plummeted, with few customers in the shop, even regular clients who used to order each year.
She questioned, “What happened this Mid-Autumn Festival? Are people not willing to spend money? The Mid-Autumn Festival is a traditional Chinese holiday, and eating mooncakes while appreciating the moon is a long-standing custom. As part of the festival tradition, shouldn’t people exchange mooncakes as gifts anymore?”
She expressed her friend’s distress as the sales continued to decline even after the festival. With these unsold mooncakes, what should they do? The stock purchased can be returned, but how about the handmade ones? The labor, materials, and time are all costs involved. This would result in a significant loss. With a short shelf life, even if discounted, how long can they be sold for? This unusual situation has never been encountered before, causing much worry for her friend. How should these unsold mooncakes be handled? Should they be smashed and sold as animal feed?
A blogger from Jiangsu, “Yuanbao,” shared, “Mooncakes are a highly seasonal food item primarily sold during the Mid-Autumn Festival. Moreover, their shelf life is relatively short. Therefore, most mooncakes are prepared in the 15 days leading up to the festival and swiftly distributed to supermarkets, hotels, and retailers for sale.”
He mentioned that his cousin works for a mooncake manufacturer. With poor mooncake sales this year, what can be done with the unsold stock? The cousin explained the following solutions:
Firstly, major hypermarkets often conduct continuous promotions on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival and in the days following.
Secondly, the unsold mooncakes are repurchased. After the festival, many small vendors would visit the mooncake factories to purchase unsold stock, which they then sell at rural markets.
Thirdly, they can be used as animal feed. Feed manufacturers also prefer to buy mooncakes at this time, crush them, and use them as feed.
Fourthly, for internal consumption. Leftover mooncakes are distributed as benefits to the factory employees.
Lastly, if the mooncakes exceed the shelf life and none of the previous methods work, the manufacturer has no option but to destroy the remaining mooncakes.