A household services platform in China rolled out a stand-in New Year's bow service ahead of Chunjie (Lunar New Year in China) but faced a wave of backlash and ultimately halted the service.
According to local media reports on the 11th, including Qianmian News and Hangzhou Daily, the platform, headquartered in Zhengzhou, Henan province, recently unveiled a stand-in New Year's bow package for the Chunjie holiday that bundled gift delivery and conveying New Year's greetings. The company said that when a user applies, a proxy visits the site, performs bows according to traditional etiquette, and records the greetings on video to send to the applicant.
The price was set at 999 yuan (about 210,000 won) for two hours. The company said the intent was to convey New Year's greetings on behalf of users who could not return to their hometowns or found it difficult to offer greetings in person, delivering them to parents or relatives.
But immediately after the service was announced, online criticism followed, including "Are you outsourcing filial piety now?" and "Holiday greetings have been reduced to formality."
As the controversy continued, the company issued an apology and withdrew the service. In a statement on the 11th, the company said it was meant "to ease the regret of those staying overseas or with limited mobility who cannot offer greetings in person," adding it "had no intent to damage traditional etiquette." It added, "To avoid misunderstandings and conflict, we have carefully reviewed the matter and are discontinuing the service."