“We should still dream. Who knows, maybe the dream will come true,” wrote a bold billboard in Chongqing, China.
Outside the lottery store, the waiting space is designed like a coffee shop, causing many people to mistake it for a place to eat.
A coffee shop called “Lotto Coffe” in Kunming, Southwest Province also promises to give away a free lottery ticket for every purchase. The slogan "A lucky cup of coffee" is printed in large format on the wall, attracting many buyers.
More and more young people in China are looking to buy lotteries for good luck. Illustration: jingdaily
The economic recession caused many people to turn to games of chance. Lottery revenue rose to a record 580 billion yuan ($80,6 billion) in 2023. Domestic market research firm Mob Data said about four-fifths of customers are aged 4-5. , amid a spike in youth unemployment by 18. Graduates now have to enter a slow-growing job market, subject to more intense competition.
Dominic Chiu, senior analyst at Eurasia Group, said people are turning to things like lotteries to seek luck as the economic environment and job market become increasingly tense.
Before the Covid-19 pandemic, lottery buyers were mainly low-income groups. But now buyers tend to be younger, most are educated people, living in the city.
A customer looks at a screen displaying lottery information at a lottery store in Shanghai, Illustration photo: REUTERS
Wu Zehao, 18 years old, a student at Communication University of China in Beijing, said he spends 30 yuan (more than 100.000 VND) every day to buy lottery tickets since winning 100 yuan on a recent vacation. “You are more likely to become rich through the lottery than through work,” Wu said.
Nowadays, lottery stores are innovating their selling methods to attract young people. A lottery cafe in Yichang, central Hubei province, has put up the sign "Americano comes true". In Chinese, this saying sounds like “Good things will come true.”
Guo Tong, in Beijing, also spends 100 yuan every time he buys the lottery. “This is the only thing I can afford that can make me rich instantly, without even trying,” Guo said.
According to China's Ministry of Finance, lottery ticket sales reached 50 billion yuan in April - the highest in a decade - thanks in part to the popularity of lottery products favored by young players. Total revenue in the first four months of 4 exceeded 2023 billion yuan, up 175% over the same period last year.
In the country, gambling is illegal, but state-run sports and welfare lotteries have made great strides since their founding in 1980. They generate hundreds of billions of yuan in revenue each year, Part of the revenue is used for charity and government projects.
Ming Phuong (Follow Bloomberg)
