A cup of everyday China

When a visitor from Singapore saw Call Me Panda's thermos cups at a Hong Kong trade fair earlier this year, it wasn't the price or the heat retention quality of the cups that caught her attention. It was how they looked.

The visitor told Gavin Xie Yunxu, the company's representative, that she wanted enough of the brand's cat-themed cups to match her outfit every day.

"When I take photos with these cups, the whole picture just feels more stylish," she told Xie.

The visitor left discussing plans to open a store in Singapore and explore an intellectual property licensing deal with the Beijing-based brand.

The encounter reflects a broader shift in China's vast thermos industry. China's thermos exports reached 5 billion yuan ($747 million) in the first quarter of 2026, according to customs data released by the State Council Information Office. But for a growing number of Chinese manufacturers, overseas demand is no longer only about price, scale or production capacity. It is increasingly about daily habits, personal style and products that also carry emotional value and cultural meaning.

Call Me Panda, a cat-themed lifestyle brand inspired by Artiart Studio, has been making drinkware of various types for 12 years. Xie said it was the company's work on custom orders for clients — including Starbucks — that made it realize combining original IP with products offered new opportunities abroad.

The company's coffee tumblers now see monthly overseas demand of close to 100,000 units.

"In the past, overseas buyers chose Chinese goods for price, manufacturing capability and supply chain efficiency. Now they are buying Eastern aesthetics, emotional value and companionship. We used to sell functional thermoses, now we export cultural products," he said.

A similar shift is unfolding in Wuyi county, Zhejiang province, which is home to Wuyi Tachiso Drinkware Corp, owner of the brand Tyeso.

The county is part of a manufacturing cluster with neighboring Yongkang and Jinyun counties that together account for over 70 percent of China's cup and bottle production and exports, the People's Daily reported.

For Tyeso, one early sign of changing overseas demand came in 2024, when a French short-track speed skater, who had competed in the ISU Speed Skating World Cup in Beijing, emailed the company to ask about purchasing more cups after receiving one in a competition gift bag. Back home, her family and boyfriend liked it and wanted their own. "We didn't even know she had posted about it," said Xia Hongqiao, general manager of Wuyi Tachiso Drinkware.

On social media, videos of foreigners drinking warm water, carrying thermos cups and adopting Chinese lifestyle habits have become increasingly common. But for Chinese manufacturers like Tyeso, the shift has been gradual rather than sudden.

In 2019, during a trade show in Thailand, Xia noticed how locals carried handle-less cups in bags, and often brought along disposable straws when cups did not include them.

That observation later led to designs with side handles, built-in straws and car-mount compatibility.

"A thermos is never just a container. It represents a lifestyle and a pursuit of quality. One customer who already owns 12 still wanted another," Xia said.

At the 2026 Canton Fair in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, the team again interviewed overseas buyers about how they used thermos cups. One answer surprised them.

"We always assumed thermoses abroad were mainly for iced drinks. But many buyers told us they also use them for hot water," Xia said.

The brand now ships to markets across Asia, the Middle East, South America and Africa, with trial sales underway in the United States. "Trends may fade, but repeat purchases come from reliable products. For Tyeso, quality is the foundation. It is what allows Chinese lifestyle habits, aesthetics and ideas about healthy living to reach global consumers through everyday products," she added.

Xiong Xinyi contributed to this story.