A bubble tea and ice cream chain has issued an apology after one of its promotional events in Sydney resulted in an Australian man being denied a free drink because he was not of Chinese descent. The incident, captured in a viral video, has led to backlash and Mixue Sydney ceasing its promotional collaborations with the organizing platform.
The giveaway was organized by Fantuan, a food delivery platform popular within Asian communities, which had supplied drinks from Mixue. In the video, a Fantuan promoter can be heard telling the Australian man that the free milk tea offer was "for Chinese people only." When questioned about how the promoter knew he wasn't Chinese, she asked him to speak Chinese. The man responded by speaking Japanese.
Mixue Sydney released a public apology, clarifying that the promoter was not an employee of Mixue and that the giveaway was organized independently by Fantuan, a company founded in Canada that launched in Australia in 2022. Despite this, the incident became associated with Mixue due to its products being distributed.
"We are aware of the recent video circulating online involving the distribution of Mixue drinks during a promotional activity, and we sincerely apologise for the concern and disappointment this has caused," Mixue said in its statement. "Following our review, we can confirm that the individual featured in the video was not employed by Mixue and was participating in a promotional campaign organised by Fantuan, an independent third-party delivery platform. The individual was not acting on behalf of Mixue."
Mixue, which has over 20,000 stores globally and operates in Sydney and Melbourne, emphasized that the comments did not reflect its values and that it welcomes customers from all backgrounds. To prevent further brand association with such conduct, Mixue Sydney announced it would immediately stop supplying products for Fantuan's promotional activities until further notice. Mixue has over 20,000 stores worldwide.