From a Small Shop to a 2,000-M2 Roastery: A Taishan Homecomer Bets Big on Qiaoxiang Coffee

“I am studying professional coffee knowledge in Guangzhou these days, and when I get back I will share what I have learned with my team,” Chen Wenhai, founder of the Cherry Coffee roastery in Taishan, told reporters recently.

Built in March in the Changlong industrial zone of Sijiu town, the roastery covers 2,000 square meters with a total investment of 3 million yuan. It runs an integrated chain covering green-bean selection, professional roasting, quality control and cupping, packaging and warehousing, plus experience and training.

As a Taishan native, Chen opened his first Cherry Coffee community shop in Taicheng six years ago, refining his products while feeling out the direction of local coffee, and gradually grew from city stores into converted rural buildings. Behind every cup is a story of young people returning home — and of the deep integration of qiaoxiang (overseas Chinese hometown) culture with the local rural-revitalization drive.

The bond between Taishan people and coffee goes back a century. In the late 19th century, large numbers of Taishan emigrants went overseas, later bringing the coffee habit — along with beans and brewing gear — back home. A 1906 Hills Bros coffee tin preserved in the Taishan Museum stands as physical evidence of that transpacific exchange.

In Chonglou town, Chen converted old overseas-Chinese houses and an idle grain warehouse into a rural coffee experience space that combines a cafe, qiaoxiang culture displays and rural study tours, creating jobs for villagers and returnees. The once-quiet market town has regained its buzz over a cup of coffee.

“When I started the conversion, I thought selling 100 cups a day would be great. I never expected holiday sales could hit 1,000 cups a day,” Chen said. The warehouse-turned-public-space has become Chonglou’s new traffic landmark, keeping the old street lively while drawing back young people and visitors.

Balancing rural experience venues with real industrial capacity, Chen runs a dual “store experience + factory industry” model. In his view, the factory is not merely a photo stop: it is divided into seven functional zones from green-bean storage to roasting, cupping, packaging, warehousing, display and training, where visitors can follow the full journey from green bean to cup.

On the product side, Cherry Coffee keeps innovating with local ingredients — its rice latte, made with Taishan simiao rice, has become a signature that pairs hometown flavor with qiaoxiang character.

Chen noted that coffee competitions and cultural-tourism events across the Wuyi region have built a platform where government, market and the public all play a part — fertile ground for local coffee entrepreneurs.

“Next, we will keep promoting the Taishan coffee brand, build a livestream studio, and open up sales channels through chain stores, market fairs and e-commerce,” Chen said. He plans to launch an official online flagship store and join coffee expos around the country, pouring new momentum into the qiaoxiang practice of rural revitalization, one cup at a time.

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