Who to Hire First in Your Bubble Tea Business

As your bubble tea business grows, so do the demands on your time, energy and resources. Knowing when—and who—to hire can be the difference between smooth expansion and unnecessary stress. Whether you're just opening your first location or preparing for multi-site growth, building the right team is key to creating consistent customer experiences, maintaining quality and supporting long-term success.

The Importance of Hiring With Purpose

Every hire you make impacts your brand. The earliest team members help shape your customer service standards, workplace culture and even your shop’s reputation. Strategic hiring also helps prevent burnout and frees up owners to focus on growth rather than daily firefighting.

Rather than hiring reactively, think of each team member as an investment in your brand’s future. Who will improve your customer experience? Who can take pressure off the owner’s plate? Who helps the business run more smoothly as it grows?

First Hires When Launching Your Shop

At launch, your focus should be on delivering a consistent, high-quality product and a friendly, efficient customer experience. Your first hires form the foundation of your business, so choose carefully.

Key roles to prioritise:

Baristas or drink makers – Look for team members who can learn your recipes, follow procedures, and maintain drink quality under pressure.
Front-of-house staff – Essential for managing orders, operating the till and giving customers a warm welcome.
Part-time support – Bring in staff who can cover busy hours, weekends or holidays as needed.
Cleaning support – Maintaining hygiene is non-negotiable. This role may be part of other staff duties, or a dedicated position depending on shop size.

In the early days, attitude matters as much as experience. Seek people who are reliable, eager to learn, and enjoy working with others. Technical skills can be taught; a strong work ethic cannot.

Who to Hire Next as You Grow

As sales increase and operations get busier, the team will need more structure. This is the point where delegation becomes essential for efficiency and staff morale.

Consider adding:

Shift supervisors or team leaders – These staff members oversee day-to-day tasks, coach newer employees and maintain service standards.
Store manager – A dedicated manager can take over scheduling, inventory tracking, team communication and training, giving you time to focus on strategy.
Stock coordinator – Someone who manages ordering and stock rotation reduces waste and helps avoid product shortages.

These hires create space for owners to focus on marketing, partnerships or testing new products.

Support Roles That Help You Scale

With a steady operation, you can begin to focus on growth marketing, data tracking and business development. Support roles at this stage are usually part-time or outsourced.

Examples include:

Marketing support – A part-time assistant or freelancer can manage social media, run local campaigns and help build online presence.
Bookkeeper or accountant – Financial clarity is vital as turnover increases. A bookkeeper can manage payroll, expenses and help prepare for tax season.
Procurement support – Useful for managing stock levels as your product range expands or you start working with a bubble tea supplier like Taipec.
Admin or HR help – Someone who handles schedules, onboarding or contracts can take pressure off your core team.

At this stage, think carefully about which roles need to be in-house and which can be handled externally, especially if you’re not yet operating multiple locations.

Expanding to Multiple Locations: Strategic Hiring

If you're preparing to open a second or third store, your structure will need to evolve. Cross-location consistency becomes a challenge without the right leadership.

Important hires may include:

Area manager – Oversees performance, standards and staffing across multiple shops.
Training coordinator – Helps onboard staff quickly while preserving your brand’s approach to service and preparation.
Operations lead – Ensures smooth delivery schedules, stock control and equipment maintenance across locations.
HR manager – Handles hiring, policy updates and performance tracking as your staff size grows.

Strategic hires at this stage help protect your brand as you scale. Without them, quality can drop and growth can stall due to inefficiencies.

Building a Culture That Retains Staff

Retention is often more valuable than recruitment. Happy teams stay longer, learn faster, and serve customers better.

Simple steps to build loyalty include:

Fair scheduling with plenty of notice
Clear job expectations and regular feedback
Incentives or bonuses for top performers
Recognition schemes such as employee of the month or referral rewards
Transparent communication and team involvement in decisions

A positive culture reduces turnover, recruitment and training costs.

Outsourcing vs Hiring In-House

There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to building your team. For early-stage or specialised tasks, outsourcing is often more efficient.

Typically outsourced roles:

Freelance designers for branding, packaging or social content
Accountants for monthly reports and tax preparation
Equipment specialists for repairs or maintenance

Best kept in-house:

Customer-facing roles (store managers, baristas)
Marketing roles closely tied to your brand tone
Stock and inventory managers for daily consistency

The decision often comes down to cost, control and consistency.

Planning Ahead With a Scalable Team Structure

Don’t wait until your team is stretched too thin to plan your next hire. Build a simple hiring roadmap that aligns with your revenue and expansion goals.

Suggestions:

Plan hiring 6 to 12 months ahead based on sales trends
Review team structure quarterly and assess workload distribution
Document training steps to make onboarding faster
Build a skills matrix to spot capability gaps before they become issues

A proactive hiring plan helps avoid last-minute recruitment and ensures smoother business growth.

Grow With Confidence With Support From Taipec

Building the right team is a vital part of growing a successful bubble tea brand, but it’s only part of the puzzle. At Taipec, we support bubble tea business owners with everything from Bubble Tea Products and Private Label Customisation to sourcing and logistics.

As your team scales, we help you maintain consistency in quality, service and branding. Every drink your staff serves lives up to your brand promise.

Contact Taipec today to learn how we can support your business as it grows from a single store to a thriving brand.