7 Gifting Trends for the Mid-Autumn Festival 2024

1. Mooncakes with a Twist

Everyone knows that mooncakes are a staple for the Mid-Autumn Festival, and they’ve come a long way from the traditional lotus seed or red bean paste flavors. While traditional mooncake flavors are tried and true, there’s a whole host of other creative, innovative fillings as well, such as matcha, durian, coffee, tiramisu, mango, and chocolate to name a few. There are also snowskin or jelly mooncakes–usually with fruit fillings!–for those who prefer them unbaked, and don’t forget about health-conscious options as well, where mooncakes are made with alternative sweeteners or low in sugar, gluten-free, or even vegan. When it comes to mooncakes, you can truly take your pick: there’s something for everyone!

2. A Dash of Personalization

If you’ve read some of our other posts, you’ll know that personalization is huge in gifting today, and it extends to festive gifts as well. Mooncake sets make for an easy gift, but they can speak volumes with thoughtful personalization. Customizing the mooncake boxes or designing the packaging specifically is a great way to convey heart and effort, and the cherry on top is to pen a personal message to your recipients as well. People are more inclined to keep pretty packaging especially if they’re reusable, reminding them of you every time they use it, so it’s worth giving some thought into your gift packaging!

3. Making Your Own Mooncakes

If gifting mooncakes is too blasé for you, why not consider DIY mooncake-making kits? To put together a mooncake-making kit, here are a few essentials you’ll need:

• Mooncake molds
• Ingredients with pre-measured components e.g. flour, sugar, filling options
• Step-by-step instructions
• Flavorings and/or fillings depending on ingredient longevity
• Decorations e.g. sprinkles
• Packaging material

Pro tip: This would be the perfect gift for those who love baking or hands-on activities, rather than a general gift–make sure you know your recipient well enough before deciding on this gift!

4. Tea Collections

The mooncake-eating experience would be incomplete without tea to go along with it, which makes tea collections or tea sets an excellent gift as well. From oolong to pu-erh, jasmine to green, there’s a wide variety of tea available to choose from, ranging from premium to rare, packaged in everything from boxes to tin cans or even compressed into tea cakes, which are a round disc shape. Great as a gift on its own, or paired together with mooncakes for convenience!

5. Gift Baskets/Luxury Hampers

Speaking of pairings and convenience, who doesn’t like gift baskets or hampers, where one can get everything in relation to the festive season? Here are some items to consider including in your gift basket/hamper:

• Mooncakes
• Tea
• Dried fruits and nuts
• Premium snacks
• Artisanal chocolates
• Fine wines/spirits

You can also take it a step further by customizing the baskets/hampers with items you know your recipient(s) will really enjoy!

6. Home Decor with a Theme

All the gifts mentioned so far have been food-related, and with good reason, for who doesn’t love food? But if you’re looking for something else, themed home decor could be a good idea. Mooncakes aside, one other item that symbolizes the Mid-Autumn Festival are lanterns. Custom-made, beautifully-crafted lanterns make excellent, thoughtful gifts, as do decorative ornaments, themed tableware, or bespoke items featuring traditional designs or modern artwork, depending on the recipients’ preferences.

7. Experiential Gifts

Last but not least, to really take it a step further, gift your recipients with an experience, instead of material. If available, tickets to a Mid-Autumn Festival event like a cultural concert would be nice. Otherwise, consider workshops on traditional crafts, such as making lanterns or Chinese calligraphy. Cooking or baking classes or workshops focused on Mid-Autumn/traditional dishes are great options especially for groups, too!

And there you have the latest trends for Mid-Autumn Festival gifting! We hope you found it helpful, and don’t forget to shop for more gifts with us at Re:Crave! Happy Mid-Autumn Festival in advance!