Taiwanese Bubble’s Tea Entry in London

Bubble tea is Taiwanese national drink. We can find a bubble tea store in London called Bubbleology. It is interesting that the founder, Assad Khan, is British. 

                  (Source: http://focustaiwan.tw/ShowNews/WebNews_Detail.aspx?         Type=aALL&ID=201104240005)

Assad Khan tried bubble tea in New York for the first time when he was a banker, and immediately got hooked. When he went back to London, he kept looking for bubble tea, but none of the bubble tea stores are authentic in London. Later, he decided to establish one not only because of his preference, but also his belief that Londoners would love bubble tea if New Yorkers were crazy about it.

According to the founder, the entire concept of Bubbleology is a vibrant, creative and experimental brand. He also creates an atmosphere of a scientist lab in the store on the website, showing that “making the perfect cup of bubble tea is an exact science – as you have to cook the tapioca and brew the tea to just the right degree to make the ultimate cup.”  

(Source: http://londonorca.blogspot.com/2012/01/restaurant-review-bubbleology-soho.html)

In addition, most of the ingredients in Bubbleology are from Taiwan. Assad Khan hopes that the tea there can be as authentic as Taiwanese bubble tea. Furthermore, “the equipmentand accessories, such as glass cups, wide straws to handle the tapiocaballs, shakers and cup-sealing machines are all imported from Taiwan, too.”

Initially, Assad Khan expected to sell 250 cups of bubble tea a day. However, the actual sales number turned out to be double of his expectation. He has already opened a new outlet in a department store in London. Next step, he will plan to expand to the whole European market.

It is very interesting to see Taiwanese bubble tea is presented in western country with different packages but authentic elements. In Taiwan, people view bubble tea as a very common drink, but it seems like the bubble tea Assad Khan presents shows a fun and high-end image.

Sources:

http://www.pinch-magazine.com/2012/01/international-food-trend-bubbleology-interview/

http://focustaiwan.tw/ShowNews/WebNews_Detail.aspx?Type=aALL&ID=201104240005

Taiwan-based 85°C Bakery Café’s successful entry in the US market

     

     85°C Bakery Café, referred to “Starbucks of Taiwan,” is very popular in Taiwan. They have already expanded to Australia and China, and subsequently entered the US market in 2008. So far it has stores in Irvine and Hacienda Heights, CA. It always has a huge lineup no matter what time of the day it is. There are several reasons to explain why 85°C Bakery Café can be so successful in California:

           

1.     The Right Choice of Location

85°C Bakery Café is Taiwan-based company. Therefore, the neighborhood with

Asian-dominant population would bring advantages for its market entry in the US. There are many Asian residents in California, especially in Irvine and Hacienda Heights.

2.     The increase popularity of Asian cousins in the US

My father said that it was not common to see many Asian restaurants in the US.

When my father and I visited Diamond Jamboree Shopping Center in Irvine, we noticed that there are many different kinds of Asian restaurants. This shows that customers are learning to eat sushi, Korean barbeque, and other Asian food. That’s why sea salt coffee can be accepted in the US. Another interesting phenomenon is that customers who came to 85°C Bakery Café are mostly Asian when the store just open. However, as time goes, the variety of ethnic groups among the customers becomes more diversified.

3.     Adaptation to American Tastes

85°C Bakery Café made an effort to localize their business in the US. For

example, the desert recipes are turned to taste sweeter than the ones in Taiwan. Also, cupcakes are required for American customers. In addition, they also develop a line of upscale sandwiches and salads for American customers. (Cold dishes are not popular in Taiwan.)

4.     Lower Price and Larger Range of Products

85°C Bakery Café offers larger range products and better price than Starbucks.

Starbucks had hiked prices on baked goods several times but made little improvement on the products. Thus, Starbucks has to watch out the threat of “Starbucks of Taiwan.”

            

      In conclusion, I think it is possible that 85°C Bakery Café has the potential power to prevail over the US market and shake the root of Starbucks.

The Potential Power of HTC’s Anti-Apple Strategy

                                  (Source: http://www.htc.com/us/smartphones/htc-evo-4g-sprint/)


Samsung and Apple are the leaders of the global smartphone market. However, HTC beats them as the top mobile phone vendor in the largest smartphone market, USA.

        Sprint Nextel wanted HTC to develop EVO, the first smartphone for a higher-speed wireless network. HTC designed and developed HTC EVO for a short period of time, and this brought two advantages for Sprint Nextel: Sprint Nextel carries this first fourth-generation phone in the U.S., and has Taiwanese manufacturer HTC as a good business partner.


        HTC, the Taiwanese mobile phone vendor, has different marketing strategies from Apple.

Apple	HTC
Secretive	Open
Exclusive	Works with all carriers
Customizes for no one	Customizes for everyone

The main challenge for HTC is that they have weaker brand awareness in the US than Apple, Samsung, and Sony because they lack the experience and resources for developing a global brand. However, HTC still stick to their strategy: They build and maintain good relationships with their business partners. HTC don’t limit their ambition in the US market, but have a broader goal of the global growth. They always care about the creation of the cutting-edge product more than good profit margins. HTC Corp. Chief Executive Officer Peter Chou believes “If you have a great product, business will come.” Thus, HTC has the potential to become the hottest global smartphone brand in the future.