Office workers have long kept potted plants on their desks to brighten their workspaces and ease stress. Nowadays, however, many young people are swapping plants for miniature landscapes.
These miniature landscapes have become a hit among young consumers and are selling briskly online. In Pidu district, Chengdu, southwest China’s Sichuan Province, a company selling miniature landscapes recorded annual revenue surpassing 100 million yuan (about $14 million) in 2024.
A livestreaming session on Oct. 27 in Donglin art village, Deyuan subdistrict, Pidu district, saw miniature green landscapes priced between 9.9 and 150 yuan fly off the shelves.
The livestream studio is operated by Chengdu Kechuang Media Co., Ltd., founded in 2021. Spotting a new consumer trend early on, founder Huang Ke and his team began tapping into the miniature landscape market.
In three years, they turned what was once a niche hobby into a bestseller, selling more than 4,000 miniature landscapes per day. The signature product, a 25-centimeter landscape tank, features a built-in miniature water pump that creates a gentle flow and is decorated with black pines, moss, rocks and small ornamental fish.
Most of the company’s sales come from livestream e-commerce, with customers mainly concentrated in Guangdong and Jiangsu provinces, as well as Beijing. The major buyers are men around 40 years old, though many urban white-collar workers and members of Gen Z have also joined the trend.
According to Huang, the company’s sales exceeded 100 million yuan in 2024.
He attributes the product’s success to growing consumer demand for purchases that offer emotional value.
The rise of miniature landscapes is also closely tied to Pidu district’s strengths as a production hub for Penjing, a traditional art in China. The district has long been famous for growing these plants, with abundant plant resources and skilled workers. These advantages have provided a strong foundation for developing and producing miniature landscapes.
According to a local official, Pidu district has rolled out policies to promote the high-quality development of its modern floriculture industry. Businesses with online sales exceeding 5 million yuan can receive one-time subsidies covering 40 percent of their logistics costs. Those surpassing 10 million yuan receive 50 percent, and those exceeding 30 million yuan receive 60 percent.
As the products continue to gain popularity, the once-niche industry is rapidly expanding. To stay ahead, Huang’s company now plans to move up the industrial chain by renting land to establish its own planting base and partnering with Sichuan Agricultural University to develop new plant varieties and standardize cultivation practices.
原文地址：http://en.people.cn/n3/2025/1103/c90000-20385558.html