Butterbear, a Thai dessert brand mascot, opened its first Shanghai exhibition at the Bund Finance Center on July 3, launching a broader summer festival that connects the modern Bund waterfront with the historic Yuyuan Garden area.

Titled Butterbear Bakery Workshop, the exhibition features 32 bear installations across BFC. Visitors enter through a doughnut-themed checkpoint at the Fengjing Road entrance, take a bakery-themed elevator to the fifth-floor terrace, and encounter a giant bread delivery station overlooking the Lujiazui skyline and the Huangpu River.

An ice cream truck outside serves the brand’s first limited-edition Butterbear ice cream in China.

A series of interactive events continues throughout the summer. Butterbear’s sister character, Bianca, made her China debut on July 5 during a joint puppet meet-and-greet, with two additional fan sessions scheduled for July 31 and Aug 1.

From July 3 to Aug 16, a pop-up bakery in the south atrium offers more than 50 new bakery products, while a themed dessert shop, created in partnership with local brand Xuxia, is operating on the third floor.

From July 4 to 12, a Bund dessert market brings together 50 Chinese and international dessert brands, featuring a dedicated Butterbear zone.

The BFC North Plaza has upgraded its 1,000-square-meter summer water park into a landmark for cooling off. A shallow bubble pool for children under three allows parent-supervised play, while an obstacle-course water zone caters to family visitors.

For adults, the park introduces evening-only activities, including water parties and dusk micro-drink events, blending river breezes, lights, music, and water-based entertainment. The program offers daytime family fun and a vibrant nightlife atmosphere after dark.

BFC is also expanding its summer evening program. In partnership with the Royal Thai Consulate-General in Shanghai, it is hosting a Thai Culture Week featuring a traditional Songkran water festival, a Thai food market, Muay Thai performances, and handicrafts.

Running alongside these activities, the BFC Music Festival features daily jazz performances, open-air concerts, and stage shows set against the riverside skyline. Weekly rotating markets offer trendy goods and street food, while character performers bring an interactive atmosphere to the district.

Across the street, Yuyuan Garden Malls launched a parallel fantasy event named The Summer Yu-niverse, integrating four popular Chinese anime titles — Heaven Official's Blessing, A Record of a Mortal's Journey to Immortality, Link Click, and The Legend of Luoxiaohei — into the classical garden setting.

Source: Shanghai Observer