Man jokes about getting his own Chagee standee at Northpoint — and actually gets one 5 months later
Muhammad Rifqi Solihin never expected a joke about having his own Chagee standee to become reality.
At first, the 25-year-old Yishun resident was simply hoping the Chinese milk tea chain, Chagee, would open a branch at his neighbourhood mall, Northpoint City.
He was surprised to learn that plans for a new outlet there were already underway.
He later joked about having a life-sized standee or banner of himself outside the branch — and his wish came true.
How it all started
Speaking to Berita Harian (BH), Rifqi said it all started in April, when he posted a few spontaneous videos about Chagee.
Known for his travel content, particularly from trips exploring China, Rifqi said his first Chagee video was just a way to take a break from producing his usual more “polished” content.
“I was a bit stressed out,” he explained.
“While I was in Kuala Lumpur for work, I woke up one day and felt like drinking Chagee. So, I thought, ‘Why not create some content about it?’”
In the video, he played the role of a customer, listed out his favourite drinks, and also joked about wanting Chagee to open a branch in his neighbourhood.
“Chagee Northpoint…I want Chagee at Northpoint,” he chanted in the video.
The video was well received, garnering around 9,990 likes, with many viewers describing it as funny and relatable.
The positive response encouraged Rifqi to make more of such content about the brand — eventually producing 16 Chagee-related videos.
It was only when Chagee Singapore’s official social media account began commenting on his posts that he realised a Northpoint City outlet really was on the way.
“Let’s meet at CHAGEE Northpoint… soon?” @chagee.sg teased.
Discovers an outlet in his neighbourhood is opening soon
A few months later, Rifqi posted a video of himself discovering the soon-to-open outlet at Northpoint City.
“I’m gonna have a cardboard cutout of myself here soon. Stay tuned,” he said in jest.
He didn’t think much of the joke until Chagee contacted him to say the idea of placing a standee of him outside the store had been approved.
“I was really shocked and couldn’t believe it,” he said.
Rifqi shared that he was traveling in Qingdao, China when Chagee contacted him, prompting him to arrange an impromptu photo shoot for the standee while he was abroad.
Weeks later, the standee was printed and placed outside Chagee Northpoint just in time for its grand opening in September.
Standee display period extended
In a video shared on Instagram, Rifqi can be seen celebrating the outlet’s opening, signing autographs and taking photos with customers.
Netizens were delighted to see his joke become reality.
“I don’t know you but I love this for you!!!!” said one user.
“Manifestation at it’s wildest,” said another.
According to Rifqi, the standee was initially meant to remain on display until Sept 29.
However, several friends who were overseas asked him if it could stay up longer so they could see it when they returned.
Rifqi passed the request on to Chagee — and once again, it was approved.
The life-sized standee will continue to be displayed outside the Chagee outlet at Northpoint City until Oct 13.
Looking ahead, Rifqi said he hopes to bring the standee to other outlets, visit Chagee’s factory in China and perhaps one day create his own drink with the brand.
While there are no confirmed collaborations for now, he described what has happened over the past few months as “quite extraordinary”.
“This is all wishful thinking, but I don’t think it’s impossible,” he said with a laugh.
“We’ll just have to wait and see.”
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