On the second-hand platform, Starbucks mooncakes, which were originally priced at 358 yuan, were sold for 175 yuan. The seller admitted: "You have to put a little on yourself, you can't sell it without paying for it." Behind these sellers are countless Starbucks employees who were forced to complete sales tasks out of their own pockets.

""I was forced to put 15 boxes, the amount was nearly 3,000 yuan"" A part-time employee of Starbucks in Hunan complained online that the sales indicators of this mooncake were so much that he could hardly afford to eat!

The comment section instantly became a "Tucao conference" for employees from all over the country. A full-time employee in Zhejiang cried: "The sales target of 25 boxes, I gritted my teeth and padded 5 boxes first, and spent more than a thousand yuan in a flash!" What made him even more anxious was the punishment trick - if he couldn't complete the task, not only would he have to spend the third-paid shift to a remote scenic spot store where birds can't shit, but he would also have to "experience life" at his own expense!

01 Sales pressure is transmitted layer by layer, full-time and part-time jobs have their own indicators

Starbucks mooncake sales KPI reveals! The "mooncake pressure level table" leaked from within makes workers call it "mooncake assassin" - the store manager carries 60 boxes of KPI, the duty supervisor carries 40 boxes, and the full-time friends have 25 boxes to base, and even part-time jobs have to digest 15 boxes! This set of exposed hard-core indicators has turned the Mid-Autumn Festival reunion into a sales digital game~

A part-time student girl who had just been working for a month complained to the reporter with her fingers: "They have put up 23 boxes of mooncake sales tasks for me!"

What is even more surprising is that when the reporter secretly visited five Starbucks stores in Shandong, the employees of the three stores were bluntly speaking: "The company has indeed sent moon cake sales indicators, and this indicator is also linked to our assessment."

02 "Soft compulsory" punishment measures, employees dare not speak out

Starbucks used many "gentle" punishment tricks to employees who did not complete sales tasks - want to earn three times their salary on holiday shifts? No way! Then transfer to remote stores to "support"? However, the fare is only half, allowing you to experience a "pain and happiness" workplace practice.

A store friend secretly broke the news: "If the task cannot be completed, our store managers are very busy! They have to write a review in the company system, and they have to rack their brains to write a short composition." What's even more funny is that before the Dragon Boat Festival this year, the friends in the store were "rolled" so that they bought rice dumpling gift boxes out of their own pockets. Why? Because "our store managers are still under the performance indicators!" This wave of operations is simply ridiculous

Part-time employees of another store also revealed that the store "is urging every day and meeting the standards by hour", which led to "everyone going crazy".

03 Second-hand platforms become flood discharge channels, employees pay for money and sell

Can the task be pressed? "Get money first" has become a sad alternative for workers! A bunch of "former Starbucks friends" suddenly appeared on Xianyu, and they were selling mooncake gift boxes crazily~

Six-pack luxury mooncakes with original price of 358 yuan? Now it’s 175 yuan and it’s still a turn! The eight-piece gift box of 468 yuan dived to 248 yuan, which is even more ruthless than supermarket promotions. An IP showed that the seller in Dalian was very bitter: "I have to pay for this price myself, otherwise I can't get it out at all!" (Xiaoshou bb: This is not a mooncake, it is obviously a discount on selling feelings)

In order to clear inventory, employees promote at a loss, and even pay for their own benefits. A common method is to give away personal "partner coupons". Someone sells a box of mooncakes with five drink coupons worth 100 yuan.

04 The problem of seven years old is repeatedly banned, and the response is being verified

Starbucks mooncake sales pressure is not a sudden incident this year, but a structural problem that has been formed over the years. Although this issue has attracted public attention and been reported in media reports many times, it has not been fundamentally resolved for a long time.

An old employee sighed: "Hey, this trick, I just played like this ten years ago!" In 2018, a store in Shanghai made a trick - asking employees to pay a "margin" to sell "Star Bing Zong", and even if they can't sell it, they will have to deduct the money. The company quickly cleared its relationship and said it was "some stores were messing around", and quickly stopped this slutty operation.

On September 11, a relevant person in charge of Starbucks responded to the relevant matters:">"We are verifying this matter. Starbucks does not allow advances to purchase self-purchase this behavior, which is a matter of principle."

05 Performance pressure and temptation of high profits

Starbucks promotes seasonal products such as mooncakes in the Chinese market, which is directly related to its performance difficulties.

Data shows that its market share in China plummeted from 42% in 2017 to 14% in 2024, and the downward pressure on low-price competition among local brands such as Luckin and Kudi doubled. In fiscal year 2024, China's market revenue fell by 1.4% year-on-year, same-store sales fell by 14% in the fourth quarter, and both customer flow and customer unit price fell.

The main coffee profit is under pressure, and high-priced non-coffee products such as mooncakes and zongzi have become new growth points, which can not only offset the impact of beverage price reduction, but also improve financial report performance.

06 Legal risks and employee rights protection dilemmas

The Labor Law prohibits units from forcing employees to engage in non-professional jobs. If a hotel imposes sales tasks and threatens such as salary deductions, it is a disguised mandatory force and infringes on the rights and interests of employees. However, the "2024 China Catering Industry Labor-Management Relations Report" shows that 72% of grassroots employees are forced to accept unreasonable tasks due to fear of unemployment, and because of "implicit coercion", the success rate of rights protection is less than 20%.

"Looking for a job is difficult to get to the sky. Who would fight against the company for a few boxes of mooncakes? You can only kill your teeth and swallow them. "This kind of workplace ecology that "dare to be angry but not speak" has made some companies more confident and put operating pressure on their employees.

Starbucks may retain 30% of its shares, and the remaining shares will be shared by buyers such as Boyu Capital, Carlyle Group, EQT and Sequoia China. The transaction has entered the final round of negotiations and is expected to be completed by the end of October. The controversy over mooncakes and business sales fermented simultaneously, highlighting the dual pressures of the Chinese market.

Old men, Mid-Autumn Festival is coming, do you have similar tasks? Welcome to discuss in the comment section!