Introduction:Recently, Cotti Coffee collaborated with the popular mobile game Honor of Kings to launch the Peach Drunk series of co-branded drinks, featuring character designs inspired by Gongsun Li, Yang Yuhuan, and Wu Zetian, along with limited-edition merchandise. This article delves into the marketing strategy behind this collaboration, examines whether Cotti’s approach of “rapid expansion + low-price promotions” can break through in the fiercely competitive market, and provides real-world store coverage and market data for reference.
On February 28, Cotti Coffee announced a crossover collaboration with the hit mobile game Honor of Kings, drawing inspiration from three beloved in-game characters—Gongsun Li, Yang Yuhuan, and Wu Zetian—to launch the distinctive Peach Drunk series of beverages, along with multiple limited-edition merchandise items. Although the official release date has not yet been disclosed, based on in-store promotional materials and photos shared by netizens, the new products are expected to officially debut on March 6.
This co-branded series focuses on three themed drinks: Peach Drunk Cocoa Ice, Peach Drunk Thick Milk Latte, and Peach Drunk Fresh Cheese Latte, each reflecting the unique style of one of the three game characters. Although the brand has only released promotional images so far, some customers have already noticed related promotional materials in certain stores, and some have even shared photos of the co-branded packaging and cup sleeves on social media platforms. According to store staff, this wave of co-branded new products is confirmed to launch on March 6.
For Cotti Coffee, which has only been established for about four months, leveraging co-branded events to boost brand visibility has become a key strategy. Since the opening of its first store, the brand first became the official Chinese sponsor of the Argentina national football team during the World Cup, then secured the title sponsorship of the 2022 Chengdu Marathon, and earlier this year collaborated with the trendy brand SMILEY to launch co-branded products. Now, with its latest partnership with Honor of Kings, each move has successfully captured market attention and sparked widespread discussion.
In terms of market expansion, Cotti is following a rapid growth model similar to Luckin Coffee’s early phase, employing a three-pronged strategy of “intensive store openings + low-price promotions + aggressive marketing” to seize market share. During a joint operation policy meeting, Cotti explicitly set the goal of “exceeding 10,000 stores by 2025” and launched the “100 Cities, 1,000 Stores Coffee Carnival” campaign, offering 9.9-yuan promotions across 181 prefecture-level cities nationwide, with approximately 1,300 participating stores.
However, according to statistics from Zhaomen Canyan, Cotti currently operates in only 81 cities, with a total of 232 stores. A closer look at the Cotti Coffee mini-program reveals that although some cities show stores that are “coming soon,” online ordering services are not yet available; for example, in Guangzhou, the system indicates a total of 12 stores, but only 5 are actually selectable, highlighting a clear gap between the stated expansion goals and actual progress.
Notably, while Luckin Coffee is gradually shifting its focus back to the essence of coffee—strengthening product R&D and quality control—Cotti has chosen to retrace Luckin’s early path of rapid expansion. Whether this model, which relies on large-scale marketing, low-price strategies, and co-branded events to attract customers, can achieve stable growth in the highly competitive market remains to be validated by time and market feedback.
The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.
