Chicecream facts for kids
A Chicecream bar
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| Founded | 14 March 2018 in Shanghai, China |
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| Founder | Lin Sheng (林盛) |
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Area served
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China |
| Products | Ice cream and other food products |
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| Simplified Chinese | 钟薛高 | ||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 鍾薛高 | ||||||
| Literal meaning | Zhong Xue Gao | ||||||
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Chicecream is a popular ice cream company from China. It started in Shanghai in 2018. This company is known for making fancy, high-quality ice cream. Unlike many famous ice cream brands from other countries, Chicecream is a Chinese brand. It became very popular by selling its ice cream online and working with Internet celebrities, who are like online stars.
Contents
What Makes Chicecream Special?
High Prices and Special Ingredients
Chicecream is famous for its higher prices. People sometimes call it the "Hermes of ice cream." This is because Hermes is a very expensive fashion brand. In 2021, a Chicecream bar usually cost about 13 to 18 Chinese Yuan (RMB). One special cocoa popsicle, called "Ecuador Pink," even sold for 66 RMB! Most other ice cream brands in China cost much less, usually 2 to 8 RMB. The company's founder, Lin Sheng, says the high prices are because they use expensive ingredients. Some ingredients, like yuzu fruit, are imported from other countries.
A Chinese Brand Identity
Chicecream wants to be known as a luxury ice cream brand from China. This is different from well-known foreign brands like Häagen-Dazs and Magnum. The Chinese name for the brand is Chinese: 钟薛高 (Zhōng Xuē Gāo). This name uses three common Chinese family names: Zhong, Xue, and Gao. It also sounds a lot like "Chinese ice cream" in Chinese.
Healthy Choices
The company says its products are healthy. They advertise their ice cream as all-natural. They also claim it is low in sugar and fat.
Who Buys Chicecream?
Most people who buy Chicecream are young adults. Data from online shopping sites shows that many customers are between 26 and 37 years old. Young women are especially big fans. People aged 18 to 25 also enjoy the brand.
How Chicecream Started and Grew
Early Days in Shanghai
Chicecream was founded in Shanghai on March 14, 2018. The founder and CEO, Lin Sheng, used to work in advertising. The company launched its first six ice cream flavors on May 20, 2018. Before Chicecream, only foreign ice cream brands were seen as fancy in China. Chinese brands like Mengniu and Yili were usually seen as more basic. Chicecream helped create a new market for high-end Chinese ice cream.
Online Sales and Famous Influencers
Chicecream focused on selling its products online. They also worked with internet celebrities to promote their ice cream. These online stars helped the brand become very popular. For example, a famous blogger named Li Jiaqi recommended Chicecream in 2020. The brand quickly became one of the most searched products on Xiaohongshu, a popular social media app.
Advertising Issues
In 2019, Chicecream faced a problem with its advertising. Regulators in Shanghai fined the company. This was because some of their ads made false claims. For example, they wrongly said their ice cream had no water. They also claimed it was made with special Japanese tea leaves, which was not true.
Dealing with Challenges
In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic affected many businesses, including Chicecream. The company's aged Irish cheese ice cream was not available for months. This was because the special cheese could not be imported due to shipping problems. However, the pandemic also made online shopping more popular. This helped Chicecream's sales grow.
In May 2021, Chicecream received a large investment of 200 million RMB. This money helped the company grow even more.
The "No-Melt" Controversy
In the summer of 2022, a big discussion started online about Chicecream. People claimed that the ice cream did not melt easily. On June 25, 2022, a user left a Chicecream bar out at 31 degrees Celsius (88 degrees Fahrenheit). After 50 minutes, it became sticky but did not turn watery or lose its shape. People wondered if the ice cream had too many preservatives or other additives like carrageenan.
Then, on July 5, a viral video showed a salted coconut Chicecream bar not melting even under extreme heat. This made viewers worried about what was in the ice cream and if it was safe to eat. Chicecream responded by saying their ice cream has a lot of solid ingredients and not much water. This is why it behaves differently when heated. The company stated that its products meet all safety standards. They also said that heating ice cream is not a scientific way to test its quality. Chicecream promised to cooperate with any investigations.
Chicecream Products
Chicecream makes more than ten different ice cream flavors. Some popular ones include:
- Ecuador pink
- Ghana black gold
- Hand-crafted jasmine
- Aged Irish cheese
- Salted coconut
- Semi-opportunism
- Velvet cocoa
Chicecream ice cream bars have a unique shape. They look like a Chinese roof tile. The top of each bar is shaped like the Chinese character 回, which means "return."
Chicecream has also worked with other companies. For example, they teamed up with a skincare company called Xiaoxiandun. Together, they made an ice cream with birds' nests. In some cultures, birds' nests are believed to be good for the skin.
Besides frozen desserts, Chicecream also sells other fancy food items. These include high-quality dumplings and cakes.
Where to Find Chicecream Stores
Even though Chicecream mostly sells online, it also has some physical stores. You can find these brick-and-mortar stores in cities like Chengdu, Hangzhou, Shanghai, and Shenzhen.
See also
- Conspicuous consumption
- Food safety in China
- Hey Tea
- Luxury goods of China
