At 7 o'clock in the evening, as the dusk gradually deepened, the Diancui Coffee Complex in Xishan District was bustling with people. Each store is filled with people, some whispering softly, some holding their phones to take photos and check in. The aroma of coffee, flowers, and bread interweaves in the air, showing a leisurely and comfortable feeling.
Whether it is a boutique coffee brand occupying the C-position or a local independent small shop, they all showed their skills and achieved great success in the just concluded 2026 Dianchi International Coffee Culture Carnival.
However, beyond the excitement, a more realistic thought gradually emerged: as drinking coffee becomes a daily routine and the carnival's climax gradually fades away, what else can coffee shops use to retain customers? This is a more challenging 'protracted battle' that tests one's internal strength.
Xishan District gathers popularity through scene updates, connects links through ecological revitalization, and optimizes the environment through mechanism innovation. It collaborates with enterprises to create the Diancui Coffee Complex, introducing the city's first store and brand flagship store. Through innovative supply, it creates consumer demand and guides brand gathering places to transform and upgrade into trendy source areas, continuously injecting new momentum into the high-quality development of Kunming Dianchi Lake's lakeside economy and cultural tourism industry.
The starting point of a first store
A gentle breeze blows, and the curtains sway. In the flower bed of Bidun Coffee Shop, several coffee saplings from Lujiang Dam in Baoshan shine brightly.
This is a transformation store. In the past, our core business focused on the cultivation and sales of coffee beans. After settling in Diancui, we hope to further deepen the industrial chain, achieve self upgrading, and connect the complete chain from beans to cups, so that customers can have a leisure and relaxing social experience. "Supervisor Jiang Yitao introduced that the coffee beans in the store are all produced in our own high-altitude ecological estate, and are independently roasted. The selection, production, and circulation of raw materials are strictly controlled throughout the entire process, laying the foundation for stable taste and quality of every cup of coffee.
The first store is not simply the first store, "said Shen Qifang, operator of Diancui and chairman of Kunming Zhirun Commercial Operation Management Co., Ltd. This can be understood as a leap in brand influence, stronger innovation ability, greater market radiation, and better resource aggregation ability.
Waves crash on the shore, and in front of the Xingye flagship store, tourist Zhang Yifan from Sichuan holds a limited edition coffee "Danxia" and takes a photo with the sunset, which is a footnote to the slow life in Kunming.
Flagship stores are another new starting point for brand layout and experiential economy, "said Zhang Sixi, the brand director of Xingye Boutique Coffee, who loves cycling. In addition to hardware expansion and upgrading, the new store focuses more on allowing consumers to immerse themselves in the local coffee culture and life scene by the Dianchi Lake. They can both drink on site and purchase products, achieving a complete format that can be experienced, consumed, and taken away.
In Diancui, coffee shops and flagship stores can be roughly divided into social living room type, spatial aesthetic type, display and tasting type, and business integration type. They do not compete on price or quantity, but on cross-border and experiential aspects to seek breakthroughs in growth. They not only maintain a sense of freshness in consumption, but also have industry compatibility, allowing brands and products to better reach consumers.
The addition of a cup of coffee
In the classic theory of urban life, the "third space" is a public leisure area in the city that is located outside of home and work, allowing people to relax, be alone, socialize freely, and be stress free. In Diancui, the connotation of the "third space" has been rewritten. It is not only a place to drink coffee, but also provides additional value and exclusive experience.
Qiupo Coffee comes from Lincang and has won multiple national green bean competition championships. The store has replicated the original scenery of the estate and become a popular check-in spot for young people. When it opened, many people came to taste the champion beans, and later everyone fell in love with the relaxed atmosphere here and made multiple repeat purchases, "said the store manager.
At the Guqi Bakery, honey, pineapple, spicy chicken, whole wheat bagels, and sweet soy sauce caramel walnut cake have successfully gained popularity. The owner, Cheng Jingchao, is a French Blue Ribbon baker who said, "We use French techniques to carry Yunnan's rich specialty ingredients and raw materials, achieving complementary coffee and baking formats
Not Far from the Sea, Lakeside Coffee Craft Restaurant is the main catering service by the lake. In order to fit the coffee mainline, the kitchen team has innovatively developed exclusive series, including cold brewed coffee cheese sauce pizza, French coffee stewed beef ribs customized dishes, daytime coffee light meals, and evening craft meals, creating a lake view all time dining space.
In addition, Diancui has also introduced pet, cultural and creative, light medical beauty, clothing, retail supporting and other business formats, providing a new experience of "eating and drinking, immersive shopping", making coffee no longer the only reason for consumption here. Rich and diverse scenes are becoming a new driving force for consumption.
Shen Qifang introduced that Diancui has formed a matrix of four high-quality brands in the coffee industry, specialty catering, lifestyle aesthetics, and leisure and entertainment, gradually moving towards a fully immersive consumption complex of "coffee+life". Currently, the investment rate has reached 95%, with 26 signed brands and 23 already open.
The second half of an industry
In recent years, Yunnan's coffee planting area, yield, and output value have all ranked first in the country. Backed by its unique resource advantages, Diancui is no longer satisfied with "opening one more store and selling more goods", but continues to amplify the consumption effects of commercial districts and cities, promoting industrial upgrading.
As a world leading Swiss green bean trader, in 2020, Sukefina landed in Yunnan, bringing international coffee quality standards and green processing technology, empowering Yunnan's premium coffee industry to upgrade. After settling in Diancui, it will greatly strengthen the international linkage ability of Kunming's coffee industry.
The Yunyun South South Boutique Coffee Experience Center is a professional one-stop showcase for Yunnan coffee. On June 25th, 2026, the second Yunnan Treasure Coffee Green Bean Competition (Yunnan Excellence Cup Pilot Competition) was held here. The center's manager Cai Yatong introduced, "In this competition, three beans scored over 90 points, and in this Olympic event known as the coffee green bean world, Yunnan boutique coffee has been recognized by the world
As the invisible hand of the market exerts its power, the tangible hand of the government also brings in the east wind.
Xishan District takes the transformation of "one coffee bean" as the starting point and relies on the "efficient completion of one thing" reform. It focuses on the development needs of the entire life cycle of the coffee industry, connects key links such as coffee deep processing, talent training, comprehensive trading, and retail, sorts out six related government services, including the establishment of coffee deep processing factories, baking workshops, and coffee shops, and forms an integrated service guide for the coffee industry chain. It has launched service mechanisms such as on-site visits and cadre assistance to enterprises, and built a new business environment of "Xishan Boundless · Enterprise Symbiosis", promoting the gathering and development of the coffee industry from a brand gathering place to a trend source.
In addition, Xishan District focuses on solving project problems, reserving high-quality projects, creating demonstration models, promoting high-quality development of service consumption, focusing on the Xunjin Street area and the "Dian Cui" coffee series projects, conducting special research, one-on-one guidance, and actively cultivating "three new" pilot projects for new consumption formats, models, and scenarios. Among them, the "Diancui Coffee Complex" creates a scene of "coffee+cultural tourism+health", with an expected annual revenue of over 62 million yuan and an annual foot traffic of 4 million people.
Following the development concept of "four seasons with scenery, two days of sightseeing, and a place to go 24 hours a day", Xishan District focuses on building a "coffee+" lakeside integrated ecological belt on both sides of the Dianchi Lake Grass Sea. Nowadays, along the Dianchi Lake villages, Xishan scenic area, Xunjin Shulin cultural and tourism block, more and more coffee scenes are landing in Xishan, integrating local elements and gradually turning single cafes into "micro vacation" destinations.
In the interview, multiple consumers expressed their anticipation to hear more news about new store openings, encouraging everyone to 'buy, buy', try new things, and experience. In the second half of the coffee industry, the exploration of innovation and experience is far from over, and the coffee narrative of Xishan is still ongoing.
Yunnan Daily – Yun News Reporter: Li Shufen Intern: Zheng Kaiyun
Editor: Li Xingwen
Reviewed by: Zhang Yaolong