Errand platform tests the "stand-in economy" during the Spring Festival

This article is reprinted from: Daily Business News

“Proxy New Year Greetings,” “Proxy Dating,” “Proxy Gatherings”—demand is surging

Errand platforms explore the “Stand-in Economy” during Spring Festival

UU Errand Platform’s “Spring Festival Greetings” Service Interface

Business News (Reporter Huang Shirui) This Spring Festival, carrying New Year goods to knock on someone’s door might not only be done by friends and family. Before the holiday, the same-city instant life service platform UU Errand launched services like “Doorstep New Year Greetings” and “Spring Festival Couplets Posting,” attracting considerable consumer attention. Besides proxy New Year greetings, proxy dating, proxy friends’ gatherings, and other “proxy services” have also become popular during the festival. Behind the countless “do it for me” demands is the emerging “Stand-in Economy.”

According to reports, UU Errand’s “Doorstep New Year Greetings” service was launched on February 9. Initially, the service included items like “Buying and delivering New Year gifts,” “Requesting red envelopes from elders and friends,” “Bowing three times on behalf of someone,” and “Sending blessings as specified,” with prices up to 999 yuan for two hours. On February 11, the bowing service was removed, and prices were reduced to 199 yuan for 2 hours, 249 yuan for 3 hours, 299 yuan for 4 hours, with a maximum of 10 hours at 599 yuan. The “Spring Festival Couplets Posting” service included “Buying Spring Festival couplets and 福 characters,” “On-site posting of couplets and 福 characters,” “Basic cleaning within 10㎡ at the door,” and “Photo proof after completion,” costing 39 yuan for 1 hour, 69 yuan for 2 hours, etc. As of 5 p.m. on February 24, these two services had sold a total of 4,050 units.

In fact, proxy New Year greetings orders appeared several years ago, but it was the first time that errand platforms designated it as a dedicated service category. After the removal of UU Errand’s “bowing” service, many netizens posted their own needs in the comments, such as “I really need a proxy for dating,” and “I have a friend’s gathering but can’t leave, can someone do it for me”…

Where there is demand, there is a market. During the holiday, many related “proxy services” also emerged on social media platforms, with proxy dating being particularly popular. Before the holiday, a post by a post-2000s girl from Shunde named Mengmeng on Xiaohongshu read: “My parents insist I go on a blind date for the New Year, but I don’t want to. Is there anyone in Shunde who can do it for me? The date is set for the evening of the fifth day of the Lunar New Year, and the price is negotiable.” Within a few days of posting, she received a comment from a netizen in Shunde claiming to be “ugly enough” to make the date reject a second meeting, offering 50 yuan per hour.

A search on Xianyu (Idle Fish) for related services revealed many listings priced between 50 and 200 yuan per hour. Descriptions like “ugly enough” and “guaranteed failure” appeared most frequently. Service details varied with price; for example, the 200-yuan/hour listings could include “bringing children to the blind date” or “flexibly portraying different personalities based on the employer’s requirements.”

Proxy for first meetings like dating? That’s just the beginning. This Spring Festival, “acquaintance gatherings” also saw “stand-ins.” On New Year’s Eve, a post-2000s boy from Jinhua named Xiaobao took a job to “stand in for a friend’s gathering game,” attending a classmate reunion on behalf of the employer and playing mahjong all night. “The employer is my high school classmate. The reason is I asked in my Moments if there were any activities on New Year’s Eve, and he came to me saying he had to go to the countryside for a family dinner and couldn’t attend the scheduled classmate gathering. He asked if I could help,” Xiaobao told reporters. The classmate paid him 200 yuan, and the wins and losses that night were credited to the employer. In the end, Xiaobao even helped the employer win 50 yuan.

From proxy New Year greetings and dating to gatherings, the endless demand for proxy services is making the market more defined and specific. A review of major errand platforms shows UU Errand listing services like pet care, event participation, and on-site cooking on its homepage. While Meituan Errand doesn’t list such “proxy help” services separately, consumers can create related orders through AI chat, allowing errand runners to complete their entrusted tasks.

Industry insiders believe that the rise of proxy services fundamentally reflects consumers’ practical choices to reduce social pressure and efficiently handle daily life, also revealing the diverse development of current consumption patterns.