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How it was like to be a Barista in 2007 in
China?

The daily routine of a barista in 2007 was more or
less the same as it is today, we got paid by hour, so the
more hours you did the more you got paid, we were trained
to make and serve coffee, tea and other beverages, as coffee
was not very common, we didn’t even have Starbucks until
2011 in Kunming, so we spent a lot of time explaining and
teaching our customers about every little coffee thing, i.e. ,
what is espresso, what’s the difference between an Ameri-
cano and a Latte. The latte art didn’t exist in our world then,
we were so proud if we made a heart shape for a latte. We
were also required to help with inventory, running a cash
register, coffee machine sanitation, cleaning and problem
solving on the daily basis. Most of us considered the job
more of a part-time job, something could fill the gap before Photo / designecologist
finding other full-time jobs.
How’s the barista job market today in
China?

Among baristas in China coffee industry, age between
19-25 years old account for the largest proportion while
the proportion of 26-35 years old baristas has been in-
creasing, and the number of female baristas takes up about
40%-43%. It seems normal that baristas change jobs more
frequently than other jobs. According to some reports,
this situation has improved slightly in recent years, which
indirectly shows that the profession is gradually stabiliz-
ing. The wage of baristas is generally between 3000 RMB-
6000 RMB, it varies from different cities in China. More-
over, the monthly break time of baristas has been
increasing year by year, and many baristas in Shanghai
started to gets 2 days off weekly, but in some other cities,
they may get only 4-6 days off every month.
Although we are seeing more and more coffee shops,
meaning more barista jobs are filled, but from what I
learned in the conversations I had, in reality, very few
would stay in the job for more than 3 years unless it’s

bigger coffee chains where they can move up or get into open their own coffee shop, or getting other jobs that
new roles in the company system. Or some baristas who are would give them life purpose. Because to many people
really passionate about coffee, they would choose a path of being a barista is often considered as a demanding, low
Very few would stay in the job for professional coffee career: participate in coffee competi- paid job, that’s why it usually gets picked as a short-term
tions, barista competition, cupping competition, Latte art
option because it’s hard to support pursuing a desirable
more than 3 years unless it’s a bigger competition, etc. Of course, any kind of competition then career. “Xiao Xiao, a barista near my office told me that
will require much more dedication and effort, in a result,
she is regularly asked by her parents and friends: “When
coffee chain where they can move up this will lead them into a different career path. are you going to get a real job?” No one asks a chef when
For baristas who work in the independent coffee
is she or he going to get a real job. I reckon that’s also why
or get into new roles in the company. shops, normally they would change positions in different so many baristas value the SCA certificates, it shows that
coffee shops, ending up going back to their hometown to it’s a skilled job that you get trained for.

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