The demand for bubble tea is exploding worldwide, and there’s never been a better time to dive into this exciting opportunity. If you’re wondering how to start a bubble tea business, you’ve come to the right place. We’ve got you covered with a step-by-step guide that will walk you through every part of the process.
Bubble tea businesses have become a popular favourite in the US and are still favoured in Taiwan. They have been growing in the international market these past few years.
But what is bubble tea? Bubble tea is pretty simple — black tea, milk, ice, and tapioca pearls (or “popping pearls”, as they may also be called). To help with production and marketing, many people simply refer to drinks like boba as “boba”.
Since boba refers to anything bubbly, you can also find it in smoothies or baked goods.
The latest statistics show that the bubble tea industry is growing rapidly and has impacted companies worldwide. For people who enjoy this drink, it’s proven to be delicious and healthy.
Create a SWOT Analysis: Identify your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.
Franchising makes sense if you want to start a multi-million-dollar bubble tea franchise. Franchising has the advantage that it’s straightforward to create a brand from a mere idea and negotiate or extend an existing brand contract. Lastly, you can enter the boba tea business without prior experience or knowledge.
And you should thank your lucky stars because Pearl Lemon Boba also has a franchising option! We can help you start a bubble tea business in no time (plus, we have training too!) Wanna know more about it? Check our bubble tea franchise.
But if you want to start a bubble tea business from scratch, you need to identify the concept of your store.
Start with a simple idea and work from there. Consider menu ideas, decor styling, back-end concept, and pricing possibilities. Once you’ve figured this out, it’s time to develop your business idea.
Before starting a business, figuring out the type of shop you want to run is necessary. It’s time to think about the overall concept. Will this be a carry-out, sit-down or self-service store? How elaborate is their menu? Do you want a personal interaction with your customer?
When you want to create a brand for your bubble tea business, you must research the target audience and competitors to understand better what they’re offering customers. You can do this by looking at the materials from these companies and researching the competition. To ensure your store name is genuine and meaningful, consider what themes or personal aspects make up your store’s story. You can incorporate it into the name if it reflects your individual story. This will be helpful if there are dominant features in the products that hint at where they were made (as with chocolate).
Create a logo and design concept that is versatile enough to be used in all your branding materials. Your logo must work well on your website, storefront, plastic drink cups, etc. Change the color of your logo to pop against any type of background. Monochrome logos can be hard to match when it comes to other colors, but with a bit of testing, you’ll be able, as long as your design is solid and straightforward.
Consider Foot Traffic: Look for a location with high foot traffic, such as shopping centers or busy streets.
Proximity to Your Target Audience: Locate your business near schools, colleges, or offices to attract your desired clientele.
Your bubble tea setup must overcome a challenge that most business folks have difficulty with. Picking a good place to start a bubble tea business.
Finding the best location for a bubble tea shop is essential. The ideal location must provide easy access, a big area and businesses where people can get the things they need day-to-day. Choosing a busy area with high foot traffic and parking spaces can directly benefit your store. If you plan to have a milk tea truck travelling to various locations, pick a location that allows plenty of parking space.
Your concept will affect the space you should choose for your restaurant. If you plan to have a sit-down restaurant and serve primarily take-out orders, you can opt for a more casual and spacious setting with plenty of parking options nearby. With so many types of restaurants out there, it is difficult to pinpoint what demographic would be attracted to your approach. According to the NYT, college proximity gives bubble tea shops an edge. It is becoming a popular trend for entrepreneurs to own a truck and drive around college campuses with their products to events or busy lunch spots.
Outline Your Vision: Include your business goals, mission, financial projections, and marketing strategies.
Consult With Professionals: Engage with accountants or business experts to ensure your plan is solid.
To succeed in the bubble tea business, having a well-thought-out business plan can help with planning, marketing, etc. Without a boba tea business plan, you’ll go nuts on how to open a bubble tea business- much more when you start managing it!
This document can be a strategic roadmap for you and help your brand plan and communicate with banks, sponsors, manufacturers, and the marketplace to better reach your goals. This is called ensuring that your plan works together effectively. This is also vital in the business creation process and should be considered carefully.
Explore Different Funding Options for your Boba Tea venture: Consider personal savings, bank loans, crowdfunding, or investors.
Create a Financial Plan: Have a detailed budget and stick to it.
Unless your business idea includes selling bubble tea, it is difficult to secure funding. That’s because most people don’t have the money to start a business. You can still work with banks and invest with or without a private investor — there are many options to consider. Many loan options are available to people, with most going through online lending, grants, and crowdfunding. Be prepared for an interview with potential investors who require professionalism and have succeeded in the general area.
Know your menu options when considering what food items to have at a drinking event. Many bubble tea varieties may be perfect for your event. Leveraging several different products and services in your industry can benefit your bottom line.
In a typical boba tea business setting, it is common to have a gas stove or electric induction heaters to brew tea and cook tapioca pearls and a refrigerator to keep your ingredients fresh. You must also have a water filter system in place so that your customers can enjoy the best-tasting boba teas possible. When serving cold accessories, don’t forget about an ice maker. Smaller items such as tea warmers, a fructose dispenser, and a cup sealer benefit your boba shop. The teas and drinks will stay hot, and the cups will stay sealed.
New machines, such as commercial espresso shakers or tea espresso machines, have helped business owners in a few ways.
In your boba tea business plan, this will probably be included but let’s talk about this anyway.
Offer a Variety of Flavors: Create a menu that includes classic and unique boba tea flavors.
Price Competitively: Analyze your competitors’ pricing to position yourself in the market.
You should start sourcing some ingredients for your bubble tea recipe. The essentials are iced tea, milk, and tapioca pearls. You need cups, straws, and lids to sell food. You can buy custom takeout bags if you want to expand your brand’s reach.
Obtain Necessary Permits: Apply for all required health, safety, and business licenses.
Stay Compliant: Keep up with local regulations and standards.
To start a bubble tea business means you will also deal with legal documents for your store to be legitimate. Your whole bubble tea setup can go under if you don’t deal with these legalities immediately. Primarily because the government will halt your operations for good. Now you wouldn’t want that, right?
Filing many types of inspection, licensing and permit paperwork can take a long time (e.g. at least two weeks). Start preparing as soon as you know you’re good to go with financing to be prepared in advance! Here are some standard licenses and permits: IRS identification number, Seller’s Permit, Health Operational Permit, and a Food Safety Certification. However, you must always check with your state and local government for a complete list of potential required permits.
Utilize Social Media: Build a strong social media presence.
Offer Special Deals and Discounts: Encourage first-time visits and loyalty.
Collaborate with Local Businesses: Partner with other local businesses for cross-promotions.
Now that you are established in your location and have a business to market, it’s time to start creating a website. Your menu should be included on this website and info such as prices, hours of operation, address, store images, and products. By following these steps, your customers can see where you are and what you offer. This is important for your company’s success and ensuring that the customer base grows and diversifies. It can be overwhelming if you want to start a new business, but breaking down the process into small steps can make it much more manageable.
The steps mentioned in the article are the most straightforward steps on how to open a boba tea business. But still, it always depends on how you strategise and execute the steps mentioned above!
Please do let us know how your boba tea business went and if you have found this guide helpful or not.
A tea shop owner makes an average of $11,000 a year. This is because the tea shop is a small business, and the owner has to do everything from the day-to-day operations. A small business owner can make anywhere from $1,000 to $100,000 or more depending on how much time and effort they put into it. However, opening multiple shops in different locations may be better if you are looking for a more reliable way of making money.
A tea shop owner makes an average of $11,000 a year. This is because the tea shop is a small business, and the owner has to do everything from the day-to-day operations. A small business owner can make anywhere from $1,000 to $100,000 or more depending on how much time and effort they put into it. However, opening multiple shops in different locations may be better if you are looking for a more reliable way of making money.
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