by LI Ye

A brief shopping stop by UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has coincided with stronger Lunar New Year sales for a traditional Shanghai pastry.

During a visit to Shanghai on Jan.30, Starmer was photographed buying eight butterfly pastries at Lvbbolang in Yuyuan Garden. Images of the purchase spread on Chinese social media, leading some shoppers to look for the same product during the holiday period.

Staff at Lvbbolang said demand has increased in recent days, with extra batches baked each day. Customers at the takeaway counter included locals and visitors, some of whom took photos near a display featuring the British leader.

WU Lihua, a Shanghai resident, said butterfly pastries have long been part of her family's Lunar New Year shopping. "We've grown up eating them," she said. "I just wanted to try the ones he chose."

The sales rise comes amid a broader policy push to support the city's designated time-honored brands.

In late 2024, municipal departments introduced measures aimed at upgrading established brands. These include preferential retail arrangements in state-owned commercial properties and dedicated funds for product innovation. Officials have encouraged brands to blend traditional elements with contemporary "guochao", or China-chic, design, while also supporting overseas expansion.

Packaged food items that are easy to carry have drawn particular interest as Shanghai promotes inbound tourism, with long-established brands increasingly presented as part of the city's cultural identity and outward-facing image. Butterfly pastries, adapted locally from the French palmier into a sweeter "Haipai" style, are widely sold in commercial areas such as Nanjing Road and Yuyuan.

At Shanghai No.1 Department Store, a long-established food retailer on Nanjing Road, queues for butterfly pastries recently stretched across the ground floor. The store, founded in 1954, houses several long-established food brands.

The company said that in the 26 days before the 2026 Lunar New Year, daily sales of butterfly pastries reached 0.6 tonnes, generating more than 1.8 million yuan in revenue.

Gift boxes have been particularly popular. Staff said many customers bought multiple boxes for corporate or family gifting, with parcels shipped directly from nearby courier outlets. A courier at a collection point near the store said several hundred boxes linked to pastry sales are dispatched daily during the peak period.

Retailers said the increase in sales also reflects changes in branding and distribution in recent years.

Established brands have updated packaging, adjusted ingredients and expanded online channels. Shanghai No.1 Department Store said it has introduced simplified packaging under its own labels and launched co-branded gift boxes featuring city landmarks such as the Wukang Mansion. It has also expanded sales through WeChat stores, short-video platforms and livestreaming.

Lvbbolang has introduced packaging aimed at gift buyers and linked its products with cultural displays in the Yuyuan area.

For retailers, the focus now shifts to whether the publicity can translate into steadier year-round sales once the holiday rush fades.