At a Glance (China Coffee Network): In early summer, coffee aroma quietly spreads along the river and sea. In mid-June, the “Coffee Aroma Summer · Extraordinary Haimen” themed series launched in full swing, and the “Haimen Coffee Map” WeChat mini-program went live, with the first batch selecting 84 quality coffee stores and simultaneously releasing 100,000 yuan in special consumption vouchers and DiDi travel subsidies. A small electronic map not only marks the coffee coordinates scattered through streets and villages, but also hides Haimen’s thoughtful care for youth and deep cultivation of “twin-type city” building.
In early summer, coffee aroma quietly spreads along the river and sea. In mid-June, the “Coffee Aroma Summer · Extraordinary Haimen” themed series launched in full swing, and the “Haimen Coffee Map” WeChat mini-program went live, with the first batch selecting 84 quality coffee stores and simultaneously releasing 100,000 yuan in special consumption vouchers and DiDi travel subsidies. A small electronic map not only marks the coffee coordinates scattered through streets and villages, but also hides Haimen’s thoughtful care for youth and deep cultivation of “twin-type city” building.
The “digital ingenuity” of a map: connecting youth and city with warmth.
Coffee has long become the mainstream choice for contemporary young people’s socializing and office breaks. Haimen District Commerce Bureau linked all towns, completed a full survey of the district’s coffee stores, screened and integrated 84 store entries, and built the “Haimen Coffee Map” WeChat mini-program, using digital means to bridge the “last meter” of youth convenience services.
The mini-program covers store search, precise navigation, brand profiles, and more—from standardized chain brands in urban commercial complexes, to personalized independent stores hidden in alleys, to rural garden cafés, a tap brings you there.
After years of cultivation, Haimen’s coffee industry has formed a healthy ecosystem where chain-scale layout and local small shops’ characteristic breakthroughs run in parallel, with store count ranking among the top in Nantong. Starbucks, Luckin, Cotti and other well-known chains are widely deployed and gradually sinking into towns, covering daily commuting and quick-consumption needs; Haimen Economic and Technological Development Zone, relying on its main-city advantage, cultivates distinctive owner-operated coffee favored by youth; each town, combining industry development, talent aggregation, and rural characteristic resources, spawns crossover coffee, promoting balanced urban-rural coffee development.
The platform’s vision goes beyond “navigation.” Zhang Jianfeng, deputy director of Haimen District Commerce Bureau, said the platform plans to gradually connect local food recommendations, check-in reviews, community exchange, and other rich functions. Meanwhile, store information is dynamically updated quarterly, and an entry application channel is open to coffee entrepreneurs—continuously enriching youth consumption choices while building a showcase platform for local micro and small coffee operators.
“Xiao Wang,” a post-95 citizen living in the urban area and a seasoned coffee lover, said: “Previously I collected internet-famous coffee shops entirely through netizen shares; now I open the map and chain stores and owner-operated cafés are clear at a glance. On weekends I call friends, take a DiDi to explore shops, and walk the countryside sipping coffee—Citywalk happiness is maxed out.”
A map makes the connection between city and youth light and warm.
A “cultural translation” of a signature drink: putting Haimen’s local flavors into a coffee cup.
When the century-old Yisheng liquor aroma meets coffee’s mellow fragrance in a cup, Haimen completes a contemporary translation of its local culture through a signature drink. What young people taste is not just a cup of coffee, but the flavor of a city.
To break the homogenization bottleneck of coffee products and let youth perceive Haimen culture in a cup of coffee, the District Commerce Bureau and District Integrated Media Center jointly held a special selection meeting with several owner-operated cafés, repeatedly screening and polishing around local “good products.” They finally established a “city-limited + characteristic coffee drinks” fusion development idea centered on loquat and Yisheng liquor as core ingredients.
As the debut “Haimen characteristic coffee drink” owner café Kira Coffee, since opening in late September 2025, it quickly became Haimen youth’s “hidden gem shop” with its quiet, comfortable environment and unique product flavors. The six signature drinks launched this time—Honey Between Branches, Shallow Summer Golden Fragrance, Golden Branch Pomelo Dew, Branch Jasmine, Southern Branch Condensation, and Yisheng Intoxication—all use loquat pulp, loquat leaf, and loquat paste as the core base, blended with fresh milk, tea broth, lemon juice, etc., breaking the boundary of traditional coffee.
Owner Xu Xiaoxiao voiced the original intention of this creativity: “I’m a native-born Haimen person; many snacks I ate as a child were very distinctive, and I hope such attempts let the young group touch Haimen’s traditional local things.” Consumers buying the six characteristic drinks in store can also receive Haimen specialties like candied dates and sesame balls with their order, immersively feeling the local cultural vein between a meal and a drink.
Moreover, to further drive consumption and empower coffee-store development, the District Commerce Bureau, together with Haimen Subdistrict and China Construction Bank Haimen Branch, issued 100,000 yuan in special “coffee consumption vouchers,” and with DiDi Travel Nantong issued 1,000 special travel vouchers. Coffee with vouchers, DiDi to explore shops with discounts—Haimen delivers real benefits to youth, creating a one-stop happy loop of “take a DiDi to explore shops, drink coffee affordably.”
An ecosystem “system integration”: defining the city’s future with youth-friendliness.
The vigorous rise of the coffee economy is a vivid microcosm of Haimen building a “twin-type city.” Since the “Nantong Haimen District Talent-Friendly Youth-Development City Construction Implementation Plan” was officially released in November 2025, Haimen has used concrete measures to build a stage for young talent to start careers and a home that is livable and workable.
On May 21, the Jiangong Lake Youth-Development Block officially opened, and the “Chasing Dreams of Youth” themed series launched simultaneously.
The block gathers Haimen’s esports A-level home arena, film and short-drama industry base, professional football sports base, and lakeside camping cultural-tourism base, simultaneously laying out youth shared office space, trendy leisure shops, and youth social interaction positions, fusing sports events, startup incubation, leisure check-ins, and friendship activities into diverse scenarios, meeting youth’s diversified needs for employment, entrepreneurship, sports leisure, and social growth in one stop.
At the opening, Wang Wenxian, member of the district standing committee and head of the organization department, said in his speech that he hopes more OPC communities, sports events, youth night schools, cultural-creative markets, and roadshow activities will enter the block, making it a base that youth want to come to, love to come to, and often come to.
In service details, Haimen is equally attentive. Haimen produced and launched the “Dongzhou Talent” Enjoyment Card, offering 53 exclusive courtesies across 5 categories—food, housing, transport, entertainment, shopping; the talent service dedicated window formed a youth service team, cumulatively providing 100+ consultation sessions with 100% completion; 12 corporate family-doctor teams entered key enterprises, providing 2,198 health-service visits; 99 various job fairs were held, releasing 23,800 jobs, absorbing large numbers of youth to take root.
“Originally I thought handling talent-subsidy procedures would be troublesome; unexpectedly the youth talent service window handled it all, finished within half a day,” said Xiao Zhang, 28, who after joining a Haimen unit smoothly received the youth-talent living subsidy; the convenient, efficient service made her feel warm.
One coffee shop after another, one leisure corner after another, are microcosms of the city’s youthful vitality. In the future, Haimen will continuously anchor the “twin-type city” construction goal, constantly improve the full-chain youth supporting services, and let more young talent see Haimen, choose Haimen, and take root in Haimen.
By Guo Yina. Sources: Haimen Integrated Media, Haimen Release, Haimen Daily, Jianghai Evening News, People’s Daily Online.
Reprint Notice & Disclaimer: This article is reprinted from Haimen Integrated Media and related local sources. Original reporting by Guo Yina. All rights belong to the original publishers.
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