Ever wonder how consumers feel about your franchise? Franchise Times editorial staffers check out three brands in a different genre each month, and report back in FT Undercover.
“Brave As a Tiger,” reads the signage inside Tiger Sugar, and for someone unfamiliar with the range of ingredients within bubble tea culture, selecting a drink with cheese mousse or taro pudding required a dose of courage. A black sugar boba with coffee latte pearls and cream mousse ($6.25) and the taro pudding black sugar boba with taro chunks ($6.75) made the order cut from a dizzying array of choices. This shop near the University of Minnesota campus in Minneapolis had a lone kiosk for ordering, which actually made exploration of the menu easier and less stressful versus trying to digest a massive menu board. Within minutes, a smiling team member was assembling the drinks, which featured syrups and tapioca pearls made using an eight-hour cooking method. The result? A creamy taro pudding beverage with a flavor akin to less-sweet melted ice cream. The drink with coffee latte pearls and cream mousse, meanwhile, was tasty but almost too sweet, with no option via the kiosk to choose a sweetness level. Tiger Sugar, indeed.
The upshot: Despite fewer options to customize, Tiger Sugar is worth a visit. Now with more than 250 stores worldwide, the brand got its start in Taiwan in 2017. It has 64 domestic stores spanning 29 states. —L.M.
Parading around Times Square in June, nothing sounded better than a refreshing iced tea. Luckily, China-based HeyTea has a location on Broadway. The Coconut Mango Boom ($8) not only satisfied my craving for a cold, fruity beverage, but it was so good I went back another time. The mix of coconut and mango flavors was perfect for summer—or when you want it to feel like summer. Think tiki bar meets tea. The mango jellies were a delightful addition at the bottom of the cup. While the brand is emerging in the United States—with a handful of stores in the states of New York, California and Washington—HeyTea has about 3,400 tea shops in China, plus more in Australia, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, the United Kingdom and Canada. The initial service fee is $23,100 and the franchise fee is $50,000. The shop I visited was pretty small, with more space allotted for tea making than for customers. The to-go-only store was perfectly situated near some public seating, so the lack of chairs indoors was fine by me.
The upshot: What’s better than walking around a gorgeous city with a just-as-gorgeous drink in hand? Not much. HeyTea is a must visit, and a cheaper investment than some other beverage concepts. —E.W.
Greeted with a neon side that reads “Just the way you love it,” I ventured into the Minneapolis Bambu Dessert Drinks for a lunchtime tea. I ordered a bright purple taro iced tea with boba ($7 after tax). The drink was the perfect level of sweetness—tasty, but not overloaded with sugar. I prefer my iced teas fruity and refreshing, so next time I’d pick something like Bambu’s passionfruit or strawberry jasmine teas. Bambu doesn’t just sell bubble teas; there are smoothies, iced coffees and “ché,” a Vietnamese word for dessert drinks. The café opened about 15 minutes prior to my arrival, so I was the only one there this particular weekday. There was plenty of space to sit and people watch near the window, and the Vietnamese pop music playing over the speakers provided an upbeat vibe. The franchise has a lower initial investment cost—$159,000 to $328,000—than many food or beverage brands. Bambu doesn’t provide sales information in its Item 19, but it opened seven new stores, for a total of 69 at the end of 2023.
The upshot: With so many signature drinks and optional customizations, there is a seemingly infinite number of beverages someone could order. Next time, I’d opt for something sweeter. —E.W.