ChaPanda's miHoYo collab crashed — app down, shelves bare, fans blacklisted brand

Tea brand ChaPanda deepened its partnership with developer miHoYo in 2026, launching limited-time collaborations across multiple HoYoverse titles including Tears of Themis, Zenless Zone Zero, and Honkai: Star Rail. The collaboration was a cornerstone of ChaPanda's aggressive expansion — its coffee business alone grew from 200 to 2,700 active stores in six months, and the miHoYo fanbase was a key growth target.

The May 2026 launch went wrong from the start. The mini-program ordering system crashed under gamer demand, leaving users unable to place orders. Physical stores had not stocked enough limited-edition merchandise to meet demand. Staff, untrained for the sudden influx of vocal gacha gamers — a demographic notorious for high expectations and low tolerance — struggled to manage orders and complaints. Quality complaints about the limited-edition merch added to the backlash.

The response from miHoYo's fan community was swift and unforgiving. Players compiled and shared 'avoid lists' of brands that had mishandled collaborations, with ChaPanda earning a prominent place. As one observer noted, gacha gamers do not say 'try harder next time' — they say 'I will never drink this brand again'. The reputational damage extended beyond the immediate collaboration and threatened ChaPanda's broader strategy of IP-driven marketing.

The case illustrates the gap between a brand's growth ambition and its operational capacity to serve a passionate, demanding fan community. Throwing IP money at a new audience does not work if the app, the stores and the staff cannot deliver on launch day.