On September 24, a day before the Mid-Autumn Festival (Tet Trung Thu), long lines formed outside traditional mooncake shops in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. Despite purchase limits, customers faced lengthy waits, with some waiting over an hour without securing their desired mooncakes. The scene resembled the popular Korean phenomenon of 'Seongsimdang open run,' as the queues grew, leading to the emergence of 'mooncake proxy purchases' as a side hustle during the holiday season.
Long Lines for Limited Mooncakes at 70-Year-Old Hanoi Shop
On September 24, in the Tay Ho district of Hanoi, customers lined up to buy traditional mooncakes. These pastries are a staple during the Mid-Autumn Festival, celebrated in Vietnam and China. The busiest shop was 'Bao Phuong,' which opened in 1954 and is now run by the third generation of the founding family, who learned baking skills in Haiphong.
According to local media outlet Health and Life News (SKĐS), Bao Phuong limited sales to one pair, or two mooncakes, per customer. A local resident, identified as A, reported waiting nearly an hour to buy six pairs but only managed to purchase one pair. He said, “My whole family loves the mooncakes from this shop, but this is all I could get.”
The limited availability is due to the shop's production method. Bao Phuong does not mass-produce mooncakes in advance; instead, they make only what they can sell each day. Sticky rice mooncakes have a shelf life of about five days, while baked mooncakes last about seven days.
As the festival approaches, demand outpaces production. On the afternoon of September 22, the shop sold out of its prepared products, posting a notice that they would resume sales at 9 p.m. B, a customer who has been buying mooncakes from this shop for over 20 years, remained in line even after learning he would have to wait an additional hour after already waiting 30 minutes.
The prices are not particularly low, with individual mooncakes costing between 80,000 and 110,000 dong (approximately $3.40 to $4.70), and a box of four selling for 360,000 to 380,000 dong (about $15.30 to $16.20). Nevertheless, customers return to the long-established shop for its familiar taste. Local media report that while traditional mooncake shops are bustling, some modern mooncake vendors remain quiet, indicating a clear market divide.
“We’ll Stand in Line for You”... Proxy Purchases in Ho Chi Minh City
In Ho Chi Minh City, long lines also formed outside traditional mooncake shops. In the Cholon area, home to Vietnam's largest Chinese community, customers flocked to 'Phuong Diem Tuan,' which opened in 1985, and 'Chieu Minh Hiep,' known for its Chaozhou-style mooncakes for nearly 80 years. On peak days, the line at Phuong Diem Tuan can exceed 100 people. Customers are limited to a maximum of three boxes, or 12 mooncakes, and popular flavors have additional quantity restrictions.
This inconvenience has given rise to 'proxy purchases.' VN Express found hundreds of posts on social media since the beginning of the lunar month, offering services like “We’ll buy mooncakes for you” and “We’ll stand in line for you.” This task is often taken on by ride-hailing drivers, university students, and freelancers.
C, who runs a small shop in Cholon, turned to mooncake proxy purchases as a side job due to increasing requests from regular customers. Customers specify the product and quantity, sending half the payment upfront, while C stands in line to make the purchase. The service fee ranges from 10,000 to 15,000 dong (about $0.43 to $0.64) per mooncake.
At the start of the season, customers could buy mooncakes in about 30 minutes, but since the lunar month began, waits have extended to over two hours. D, a ride-hailing driver, also uses his downtime to engage in proxy purchases, charging 15,000 dong per mooncake and earning about 100,000 to 150,000 dong (approximately $4.30 to $6.40) a day. He noted, “It’s not a lot of money, but it helps make up for lost income on rainy days when there are fewer rides.”
Meanwhile, Tran Trung Hieu, director of the FnB Academy in Ho Chi Minh City, explained, “Popular traditional mooncake shops have maintained their taste, quality, and prices for decades. Since this festival occurs only once a year, there is strong demand for established brands.” He added, “With limited quantities and long wait times, people living far away cannot stand in line multiple times, so what they are buying is not just mooncakes, but their time.”
* This article has been translated by AI.
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