Spring Festival is also a time for big meals and happy gatherings, when snacks and beverages are in high demand.

Jessica Liu, a 30-year-old office worker in Beijing, usually buys various kinds of snacks with beautiful packaging for family members during the Spring Festival.

This year, she plans to buy some cookies, dried plums and marshmallows for herself and other young relatives, as well as nuts and melon seeds for the elderly.

"I will buy many snacks, fill the plates with food and put them on the table. This will create a joyful atmosphere during Chinese New Year," Liu said.

Eyeing the increasingly sophisticated demands from young consumers, Chinese snack makers are taking more effort in designing and marketing their products.

Snack maker Weilong Delicious Global Holdings launched gift boxes in advance late last year to prepare for Spring Festival.

The gift box is designed in the shape of a dragon and can be stretched, making it more fun when consumers try to open the boxes, the company said.

The company, which makes popular spicy snacks made of wheat flour and konjac, has also created a series of short videos to promote the gift box by combining the latest marketing trends and buzzwords, thus attracting the interest of young consumers in its gift boxes as well as other products.

Weilong said marketing for the Spring Festival needs to keep up with market changes, and brands need to directly tug at the emotions of young people, while sticking to the traditions and heritage of Chinese culture.

For many young people, the essence of Lunar New Year is returning home after a year of living away from parents and loved ones.

Liu Qin, 31, a brand director at a firm in Shanghai, is expected to spend the holiday with her parents in hometown Enshi, in Hubei province, following the customs of her Tujia ethnic group. "We will go to the local market and get some food ingredients," said Liu.

The Tujia celebrate by staying at home, preparing a grand dinner on the last day of the lunar year, and enjoying the first day of the Year of the Dragon with play and rest.

"I will start working overseas after the Spring Festival as our business has expanded to international markets. It is important for me to spend the holiday with my parents now," said Liu.

Contact the writers at wangzhuoqiong@chinadaily.com.cn