Présentation détaillée
Many people think 'Sannei Croissant' is an internet-famous shop promoted by Xiaohongshu bloggers. In fact, this shop opened during the pandemic at the end of 2021. By mid-2022, purely relying on local customers, it had already become a very popular croissant shop and café. Even now, it remains a shop loved by the community.
Sannei Croissant is one of the most successfully operated shops in Dali. It requires no promotion or advertising at all. As a community shop in Dali, it holds a unique position. So, while introducing it, I should remind you that sometimes there are quite a lot of people, and you may need to queue.
They make good croissants, and their coffee is also quite serious. Their own adjacent shop, Sannei Ice Cream, is also very popular. Moreover, a significant feature is that from the very beginning, they were busy mainly with local customers. Gradually, many tourists came to check in, making it so lively that long queues formed. Some people (like me) stopped going as often, but there are still many local customers. Zhamao would definitely want to go again, because every time we went before, he enjoyed a small cup of 'dog cream' prepared by the shop.
Based on the limited information I know, the Sannei couple were originally middle managers at Starbucks (including later Seesaw Coffee). After changing their lives and moving to Dali, they started a new life. Opening a shop here is very different from working as managers in a big company: there aren't as many resources to use, and of course, there's no special need for marketing. Sannei began researching croissant making and baking techniques: after all, the cost and instability of hiring staff didn't suit their new life.
Initially, in early 2021, Sannei set up a studio at Shouhuo Coffee's Dali University branch, supplying croissants to the café and also to the resident community, receiving feedback. For example, Honghong was a loyal customer.
After getting through the technical mastery stage, they officially opened a shop using their own experience. They leveraged their management strengths to build a great young team, and then gradually grew. It's likely the combination of baking technique, understanding customer needs, and management thinking and experience that led to their current success.
In the early days of the shop, I went often and knew most of the Sannei team members, such as Bairu, Chenting, Xiao Wu, etc. In March 2022, we even went hiking and had a snowball fight together. They are truly wonderful young people. Working at Sannei, they must have learned a lot, being trained under efficiency and high intensity. Several of them later started their own small baking studios or shops, which is fantastic. An organization that has turnover, where people who leave can do things on their own, should be a point of pride. Being able to cultivate talent who can work independently is quite valuable.
From Zuogao Gaodi initially being remote with almost no commercial activity, Sannei Croissant single-handedly drove that area to become the most prosperous commercial district now. It's also a small myth in the community. It's probably both a trend of the times and individual capability.
A few years ago, when Sannei Croissant first opened its independent shop in Zuogao, I happened to write a passage in my daily records. Let me take a look at it now; it's quite interesting.
December 4, 2021
Excerpted from: 'One Morning'
'At around 9 in the morning, I ordered an American coffee at Sannei Croissant for 15 yuan. The sunshine was great and warm. In winter in Dali, there isn't much rain; most of the time it's sunny. When it rains at the foot of the mountain, it snows on the mountain. This shop had only been open for a few days, near the southernmost end of Cangshan Avenue, just above the village where I live (Guanyintang village), close to the foot of Cangshan Mountain. Most people hadn't been to this area before, because it's a new residential area with no decent shops.
This shop had built up a reputation over the past year, so as soon as it moved here, it became lively. Moreover, there is a wide open space in front where tables and chairs can be set up, without needing to avoid city inspectors. Previously, sitting in front of Pushi was very comfortable, but later the city inspectors didn't allow tables to be set up.
I also ordered a croissant side product, probably made from the leftover scraps of croissant ingredients, for 5 yuan. It's a quite distinctive product idea – cheap and tasty, but for some people, pairing it with coffee might be enough. Although it's just a small thing, it reflects the owner's intentions and values.
The newly opened Sannei Croissant, with its open baking workspace, simple and modern front counter, professional checkout mini-program, and ample service staff, is a shop that would be considered professional even in a city. This is also a change in Dali over the years: opening a shop requires increasing professionalism, modern management, and thoughtful service. Although there was once a culture of leisure and freedom, in essence, people still prefer thoughtful and detailed service and clean, tidy restrooms. Unstable business hours and overly assertive attitudes are mostly just a low-quality aspiration for individuality. In contrast, thoughtful and stable service is consistent and easily accepted. It's foreseeable that for a certain period, this shop will be widely popular.'
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As early as June 12, 2020, Honghong had already tasted the early internal-test croissants.
On April 6, 2021, Honghong received the croissant message in a group.
The studio and products at Shouhuo Coffee at that time:
Around early December 2024, the new shop opened, as recorded by Zhaohui of Vanilla Sweetheart Bakery.
According to Moments posts, in September 2022, a traveling guest 'Dingqiu' already thought it was an internet-famous shop.
In March 2022, we also went hiking and had a snowball fight together. After time and memory processing, it feels even more beautiful.
Even after becoming a very popular shop among tourists, Sannei Croissant remains a shop with strong community attributes.
In April 2024, a large and entertaining community latte art competition was held at Sannei. Many amateurs and professional baristas participated in this competition:
In January 2025, it was still one of Honghong's favorite shops, because they not only have dog cream but also dog croissants – all specially prepared for the community:
Xiao Wu is one of Sannei's earliest employees. Now he has his own 'Hongsong Bread Studio', without a storefront. Every week, he takes orders through a group-buying chain for community residents and also delivers to community coffee shops. #mini-program://Qun Jielong/LOKzXi4zJEnwSsp (copy to WeChat to open)
He returns to Sannei during the Spring Festival to take a joint photo, and also goes to Sannei to help out temporarily when needed. Sometimes he might use Sannei's good equipment to make some products.
Also, Sannei's reaction after seeing this introduction:
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