Photo: VCG

Seeing off the last wave of customers of the day, 27-year-old teahouse owner Yao Qin begins responding to her client ­inquiries online. Standing close to Yao, her staffer is busy packing up some tea products. Later, they sit ­together at a tea table, chatting and enjoying a cup of tea after a day's hard work.

A careful observer may notice by the way they interact that their relationship seems much closer than boss and employee. 

This is because when Yao opened the teahouse last summer, the only staff she hired was her mother. 

Unlike older Chinese who managed to find stable employment with the help of their parents, today's Gen Z, who have more entrepreneurial enthusiasm, are more willing to start their own businesses soon after graduation. 

Some of them even hire their parents as employees, becoming a young boss in the family. 

"I will give my mom a raise when business gets better," Yao said with a smile.

Many Gen Z entrepreneurs reached by the Global Times said that they usually start with taking over their parents' businesses - such as a clothing shop - and then substantially transform it to meet the changing tastes of young people.

Yao's mother used to run an ­old-style teahouse in their hometown, a county in Yuxi City, Southwest China's Yunnan Province. Yao didn't like traditional smoke-filled teahouses, as most ­customers are over 40 and come mainly to buy tea products rather than settling down to enjoy a pot of tea.

'Outdated' concepts

"This is outdated," Yao commented, saying she prefers a quiet, café-like teahouse, where she can ­offer tea to younger customers as well as coffee or juice.

In Chengdu, Southwest China's Sichuan Province, 25-year-old fashion designer Guan Yishu took over her parents' clothing design studio, which once almost closed down due to poor business most likely stemming from old-fashioned designs.

Both Guan's parents are experienced tailors, especially her mother, who knows traditional Shu embroidery, an art known for its intricate patterns made of silk threads.

The two artisans had been running their design studio for more than 20 years, but the business went downhill, according to Guan, because their designs were "too in the box." 

"We really thought about closing down when they only got two customers in three months. Their designs were too old and outdated," Guan noted.

Yao Qin (left) and her mother drink tea at their teahouse. Photo: Courtesy of Yao Qin

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Compared to their parents, Gen Zs are more easily able to find information in the digital era, and are usually more sensitive to changes in the market.

Yao persuaded her mother to close the old-style teahouse. She then opened a new teahouse decorated with a combination of Chinese and Japanese styles in the downtown part of the city in May 2022. At Yao's teahouse, smoking is prohibited.

Yao said her teahouse focuses more on the tea drinking experience than on selling packaged tea products. At her teahouse, two people can enjoy a pot of cooked Pu'er tea for 35 yuan ($5).

"It's a very attractive price, as the tea I offer is a very good 10-year-old cooked Pu'er," Yao told the Global Times.

Currently, 90 percent of Yao's clients are under 30. 

"Some customers even write letters to encourage me," she told the Global Times. "Their support gives me confidence that I am doing this right."

Capitalizing on her family's love of Chinese fashion design, Guan gave her parents' studio a makeover by launching a "China chic" collection. 

The studio's "Sheer Moment" collection blends Shu embroidery with trendy designs. Shu embroidery inspired designs such as peony flowers and koi carp can be found on bomber jackets and rap inspired big jeans and bucket hats. 

Guan told the Global Times that these products have been particularly popular among young people. As part of her business strategy, she has also promoted their products through livestreaming to reach a broader customer base in China and even abroad.  

"When I posted my works on ­Instagram, I got a message that a trendy pop culture brand wanted to collaborate. I guess that's how Chinese culture saved me from bankruptcy."

Does money matter?

Sometimes, Gen Zs' involvement in a business can not only revive a shop, but also bring their parents a new life.

Jun Xiuming runs a milk stall in Zhengzhou, Central China's Henan Province, and has hired her mother as an employee. 

"My mom had been a housewife for decades. She never worked until I hired her. At first I thought, she might not be capable of handling too many things, especially ­calculations and ledgers," Jun recalled.

Yet her mother's management talent in running a store later impressed Jun with her familiarity with the products and gentle demeanor toward every customer that no other staff member in her shop can beat.

This was probably the most shining point of her mother that "could have been buried forever," Jun told the Global Times.

There are other benefits that go beyond the purely financial. 

For instance, Guan bought her parents a house with a small yard, which cost some 350,000 yuan.