Home: Message List - Bubble tea shop - is that a good idea? Or profitable?

Re: Bubble tea shop - is that a good idea? Or profitable?

DeanMalibu — Wed, 06 May 2009 15:44:13 GMT

+*your food cost is normally 25%....but in drink you might want to go as low as 15%.....also take your frozen fruits and cook them and turn them into syrups for lessened cost and more consistancy</s

Re: Bubble tea shop - is that a good idea? Or profitable?

rontowns25 — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 19:25:34 GMT

I think this could be a good idea if implemented correctly. This is a crowded space to compete in.

I suggest you further determine your desired outcomes for your business venture and then create a vision board. This is a tool that helps you structure your goals and outcomes.

Check out an example and a video here: www.TheVisionBoardKit.com

Re: Bubble tea shop - is that a good idea? Or profitable?

alogarcia — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 21:45:18 GMT

Thanks for sharing your knowledge NoBullFunding. Can you tell me if frozen yogurt franchises fall into the same category? I have started gathering more info on that type of franchise but wonder if it would be very difficult to obtain financial help.

Thanks

Re: Bubble tea shop - is that a good idea? Or profitable?

ArmyWife143 — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 02:16:16 GMT

I don't need a loan or anything. I have the funds to do the shop already, I just want to know what I'm doing before I do it. I don't want to just throw my money away. I want a good investement. Right now, I am a stay at home Mom and my experience prior to this is 15 years of graphic design. I want something profitable - - I just don't know where to turn. I loved the boba tea idea, but I don't know much about it.

Re: Bubble tea shop - is that a good idea? Or profitable?

NoBullFunding — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 22:50:16 GMT

Smoothie places are on the "prohibited" list of some lenders. They lump them in with ice cream shops, which are very seasonal and have high default rates. Smoothie franchises are hard to get funding for because of so-so financial results.

I hope I'm not being too much a wet blanket, but that's my experience with the industry as a lender.

Re: Bubble tea shop - is that a good idea? Or profitable?

ArmyWife143 — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 20:37:30 GMT

Hello everyone, I am new here and this article caught my eye. I too am interested in opening up a smoothie/boba tea place. I am originally from New Orleans and over there, Boba Tea is all the rage. I am now living in Northeastern Pennsylvania and there isn't any here. There isn't a smoothie place either. I have the funds to open up the business but lack the know-how. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks....

Jen

Re: Bubble tea shop - is that a good idea? Or profitable?

genious — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 21:19:11 GMT

"I prefer to use fresh or frozen fruit whenever possible. "

Hello there,
first of all, i think bubble tea is great, especially around student areas, campus, or mainstream shopping centers. Although, there are so many now, every other street has a bubble tea shop, whether they are only selling bubble tea specific or not. Also, the statement you wrote above that i quoted, if you are planning to open a business like this, do not change up powder to fresh fruit, because "possible" = big negative after advertising "always".

Thanks

Genious

Re: Bubble tea shop - is that a good idea? Or profitable?

MetroGal — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 21:17:06 GMT

Thank you so much Lighthouse24, I like the idea about co-locating with a complimentry business, especially if I can't afford to go at it alone initially if I want more space. That's a great idea.

Re: Bubble tea shop - is that a good idea? Or profitable?

Lighthouse24 — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 05:32:39 GMT

I gather from the question that you're on the East Coast, and see little or no competition in your region at present. If that's correct, I think this might be a great business to try. Franchises exist for this business, but they are selling sloooowly -- which could mean it's not that great an idea, or it could mean you'd be on the ground floor of a huge opportunity. Either way, I think that limiting your financial outlay to start with would be a good idea.

To do that, you could choose a location where trendy people pass by (university, downtown office area, upscale shopping mall, etc.) and perhaps start with a kiosk-based operation and rely on pass-by traffic rather than advertising. Your investment would be relatively small -- your cart, supplies, and the appropriate vendor license/permits. As you gained customers, you might be able to co-locate with a symbiotic or complimentary enterprise in the same area (the way coffee bars have co-located in bookshops). There's an Oriental furniture shop near me that has a traditional Japanese tea house in the showroom.

Your first wave of customers would probably include groups of people, only one of whom has heard of bubble or pearl teas, and he or she would have convinced the others to stop by your stand and try it. Since it is a bit of an acquired taste, you'd probably want to budget and plan for some giveaways and trial size servings early on. Success at this early stage would depend a lot on being personable and truly enjoying the process of helping individual customers learn about your product. I don't think you could just hire a kid who worked at "Dippin' Dots" last week and have this make it.

I hope this response was helpful. Best wishes!

Re: Bubble tea shop - is that a good idea? Or profitable?

MetroGal — Sat, 20 Oct 2007 18:41:37 GMT

Thank you WEBillions. I am trying to figure out my costs right now - e.g. cost to produce one drink using powder vs. cost to produce one drink using fresh fruit. Does anyone know what the industry standard is for mark-up? So, let's say it costs $0.75 to produce a bubble tea drink, including the cup, straw, napkins, etc - what percent do I mark the drink up? I still need to cover my rent and marketing costs too. I am guessing that the margins on beverages should be higher than food?