Shenzhen Staircase Aunties make a living in the cracks of the city

In the towering office buildings of Huaqiangbei, Shenzhen, a group of quiet yet indispensable workers dart through the corridors – they are the "Staircase Aunties." The women, mostly in their 50s or older, along with a few men, are the last-mile couriers in the southern Chinese city's food delivery ecosystem. They climb stairs, ride elevators, and navigate maze-like offices to bring meals from delivery riders to busy office workers.

Recently, a new TV drama filmed in Shenzhen spotlighted these women, drawing public attention to their often-overlooked role in the city's fast-paced life.

Huaqiangbei, one of the world's largest electronics markets, is home to dozens of highrise office buildings, tens of thousands of businesses, and hundreds of thousands of workers. At noon, the area is flooded with lunch deliveries.

For time-pressed delivery riders, entering a 50- or 70-story building – often with congested elevators – means risking late deliveries and penalties. That's where the Staircase Aunties step in.

They strive to make a living in the cracks of the city. They can be seen in every corner of Huaqiangbei.

Armed with markers and laminated QR codes hanging around their necks, the Staircase Aunties spring into action during the lunchtime rush, hustling between Huaqiangbei's skyscrapers.

For a fee of 2 yuan (US$0.278) per order, they brave dozens of flights of stairs, a daily grind that ensures Shenzhen's white-collar workers are fed.

When delivery riders arrive at the ground floor of an office building, the Staircase Aunties take over, swiftly heading upstairs. The riders scan the aunties' QR codes to pay the 2-yuan fee, and the aunties jot down the corresponding floor and room numbers for each order.

This arrangement allows delivery riders to save time that would otherwise be spent waiting for elevators and searching for room numbers, enabling them to complete more deliveries. Meanwhile, the Staircase Aunties consolidate multiple orders to maximize delivery efficiency.

SEG Plaza, standing at 355.8 meters with 72 floors, is the tallest office building in Huaqiangbei and is considered the main battleground for the Staircase Aunties.

Shao and his wife work as Staircase Aunties and have been in this line of work for three years.

"On a single trip upstairs, I can carry up to 30 meals," Shao told Nanfang Daily. He categorizes the meals by floor and packs them into large bags. Even in a crowded elevator, the meals he carries take up an extra person's worth of space.