17 March 2023
Under the Radar: All about Bubble Tea with Gong Cha Global’s Founder; Southeast Asia spent US$3.7 billion on bubble tea and similar “new tea” drinks in 2021; Gong Cha’s presence in Singapore; On competing in a saturated market and product differentiation; China’s bubble tea market to double that of coffee; Gong Cha’s Global Franchisee Convention; Expansion across the Americas and future plans
At this time of the day we want to ask the question - what’s for - not dinner, but what’s for tea break!
How about bubble tea? Speaking of bubble tea - here’s a fun fact. Did you know that Southeast Asia spent US$3.7 billion on bubble tea and similar “new tea” drinks in 2021?
That, by the way, is according to a report published by venture outfit Momentum Works and payments startup qlub, which also found that Indonesia’s bubble tea industry ranked first in terms of market size with an annual turnover of US$1.6billion.
Singapore, despite being the smallest nation in the region, came in fourth with an annual turnover of US$342 million.
The numbers tell us just how much Singaporeans or Southeast Asians love our bubble tea. But it also raised more questions as to what the sheer market size means for bubble tea chains and the expansion of their franchise operations.
Also with over 60 active bubble tea brands in Singapore and 31,000 stores and other retail channels in Thailand, is the market oversaturated now?
On Under the Radar, Drive Time’s finance presenter Chua Tian Tian posed these questions to Martin Berry, Founder & Chairman Gong Cha Global.

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Listen to his previous podcasts:

20 July 2020
The next great entrepreneurial wave
Black swan events, such as economic recessions and pandemics can and will change the trajectory of governments, economies and businesses, thus altering the course of history. Martin Berry, Founding Partner, DTRIBE Capital shares with us on why he looks into investing in early-stage tech companies and how the current COVID-19 pandemic will create a path for the next entrepreneurial wave.

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