Are Mainstream Chains A Threat To Bubble Tea Shops?

The growth of bubble tea in the UK has been enormous in recent years. And this growth has shown no sign of slowing down. With every major city and many smaller towns now boasting a boba shop, it is undeniable that bubble tea is here to stay. But there is potentially a downside to this popularity. As boba gets more popular the larger, well-established café chains are starting to catch on and offer their own bubble tea. Costa Coffee is just one of these chains and some independent boba shops are worried that these large chains will start to take over the market. So, are mainstream chains a threat to bubble tea shops?

Mainstream Chains vs Independent Bubble Tea Shops

Whether you run an independent or franchised boba shop, or if you are thinking about getting into the bubble tea business; the rising popularity of boba in big chains is sure to interest you. It would be easy to see the emergence of bubble tea in large chains as a threat to smaller boba shops. The scale of these chains and their well established customer bases may seem like an insurmountable issue for the long-term growth of your own boba business. But, this is not the case.

Bubble tea is a growing business

As we have detailed in a previous post, bubble tea is a growing business. The UK bubble tea business is expected to grow at 8.5% CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) over the next 10 years. Put another way, the boba business is expected to grow in size by 50% in the next 5 days and 225% over the next decade. This makes bubble tea an attractive opportunity for investment and now a great time to get in to the boba business. So, it seems there will be plenty of space for boba shops in the years to come.

A sign of popularity

While you may think the rise of boba in big chains poses a threat to your bubble tea business, actually, the reverse is true. With the emergence of boba in big business the number of people exposed to bubble tea will increase dramatically. When this happens, there will be a large number of people with a taste for boba, looking for something just like your shop.

Differentiation is key

Think about it just for a second. Someone who gets a taste for bubble tea at a big chain will not just stick to that big chain. They will go looking for greater range and taste diversity. And they will find it at a specialist boba shop like yours. The differentiation of a dedicated boba shop will naturally draw customers to you.

There is a parallel here to the difference in scale of large coffee chains and independent coffee shops. Walk down any street in London and you will find a litany of boutique coffee shops. These small shops thrive by carving out a niche and offering a different experience to larger chains. Your unique boba shop can emulate this success. In this way, the rise of bubble tea in mainstream chains will actually be a huge benefit to your boba business. A rising tide will lift all boats.

Looking to the future

So what does this all mean? Looking to the future, the growing popularity of bubble tea in the UK is a huge opportunity. And this is an opportunity that your boba shop could take advantage of.

In order to position your bubble tea shop as an attractive place to be, read our selected Taipec blogs below:

Why Taipec?

Here at Taipec we are passionate about bubble tea and share with passion with our thousands of customers. We are the largest bubble tea supplier in the UK and have unrivalled experience in bringing the best of Taiwan to the UK. Contact us today to find out more. And check out our bubble tea service to find out what we offer.