Great idea sells like hot cakes

By Qian Yanfeng and Wang Linyan (China Daily)
Updated: 2009-09-23 08:44

With Mid-Autumn c approaching, Li Haiying had a "brilliant idea" and decided to sell her own moon cakes online. It appears she could not have picked a better business idea.

Although there is still 10 days until moon cake-giving time begins, Li has sold thousands of the treats made all by herself.

The 28-year-old Beijing woman is proud her new business is gaining momentum. "It is a new trend, self-made moon cakes are much healthier and, may I say, more delicious than those sold in the supermarkets," she said.

"I never add preservatives in the cakes, even though that means they cannot be kept for a long time.

"But consumers support the idea as they become increasingly health conscious."

Li has managed to sell 1,600 cakes in a month and only charges 2 to 5 yuan ($0.3-0.7) per piece.

The cakes have traditional Chinese stuffing such as lotus seeds and yolk, and the jujube paste cake has been a huge hit.

Li is just one member of a growing legion of DIY-savvy Chinese who are celebrating traditional festivals in different ways.

The experience of making moon cakes is "a very unique way to fully experience the Mid-Autumn Festival", Li said.

Meanwhile, some people are attending bakery courses to learn from professional bakers.

Li Jing, who teaches bakery at Betty's Kitchen cooking school in Beijing, has seen her classroom filling up recently, and is now teaching three classes a week.

"It surely has something to do with the upcoming Mid-Autumn Festival," Li said. "People want to give a handmade delicacy as a token of love to their family."

Li has made more than 60 moon cakes this month to share with her family and friends. "They are fresh and has no additives. It's better than those on the market," she said.

Even overseas Chinese are jumping on the bandwagon.

One Chinese woman living in Ottawa, Canada has gone to great lengths on her blog to introduce the process of making different types of moon cakes. She shows pictures alongside.

And foreigners love moon cakes, too.

Monalisa Mabuya, a student from Zimbabwe studying Chinese at a university in Beijing, said she loved Chinese moon cakes, which are "nice and sweet", and that she would be very interested in trying cakes.

"Moon cakes are so unique to me as they bring different cultural experiences and perspectives," she said.

"For the past four years in Beijing I've been celebrating the festival together with my Chinese friends and I can have as many as three pieces a time."