Introduction:Tea Bakery has opened its second store in South Korea at Konkuk University Station in Seoul, following its first overseas outlet in Gangnam District earlier this year, showcasing the brand's proactive expansion strategy in the East Asian market. Over the past six trading days, its stock price has surged by nearly 70%, reflecting strong market confidence in its international growth. This article delves into how Tea Bakery has successfully attracted over 80% of its local clientele through Korea-exclusive products and localization strategies, while accelerating its store expansion and franchising plans.
Tea Bakery’s new store at Konkuk University Station in Seoul officially opened recently, drawing a lively crowd—even attracting customers who traveled from Busan to attend the launch event. This marks the brand’s second branch in the Seoul area, following its first overseas store in Gangnam District earlier this year, demonstrating its commitment to deepening its presence in the Korean market.
This store opening is a significant step in Tea Bakery’s overseas strategy. Faced with intense competition and near-saturation in China’s new-style tea drink market, many brands are turning their attention overseas for growth. Southeast Asia and Japan/Korea, due to their geographic and cultural proximity, have become priority markets. However, Tea Bakery’s choice to debut in Korea came as a surprise to the market, yet also highlighted its strategic approach to differentiated expansion.
Co-founder Gu Jilin has stated publicly that Korea, as a developed economy within the East Asian cultural sphere, serves as an ideal market to test the brand’s overseas store model. By operating in Korea, Tea Bakery aims to develop best practices that can be applied to other similar markets, laying a solid foundation for future expansion.
On January 26, 2024, Tea Bakery launched its first overseas store in the core commercial district of Gangnam, Seoul. The store design incorporates panda elements, and its product offerings include classic drinks such as jasmine fresh milk and mango pomelo sago, alongside Korea-exclusive beverages—like fruit teas made with locally sourced Hallaeng Peak ingredients—which have received positive feedback from consumers.
The Korean RTD milk tea market has traditionally focused on pearl milk teas with non-dairy creamer, offering relatively limited variety and with freshly made tea drinks using fresh fruit and milk not yet widely popular. After entering Korea, Tea Bakery not only highlights the “fresh” element in its store displays but also emphasizes the health attributes of its drinks through social media, successfully capturing local consumer interest.
According to local customer feedback, the Konkuk University store offered a “buy one get one free” promotion during its first three days, with chances to win souvenirs like traditional Chinese fans through checkout raffles. After the official opening, the store continued to run diverse promotions, including a “second drink half off” deal with receipts and giveaways like limited-edition fridge magnets, attracting large numbers of visitors.
Tea Bakery has also introduced a Korea-exclusive product, “Purple Grape Freeze Slush,” made with hand-picked Korean Kyoho grapes, paired with Yunnan summer black grape juice, a jasmine tea base, and Q弹 (chewy) freeze cubes. It has become a new addition to the Purple Grape series and is highly favored by consumers.
Wang Huan, head of Tea Bakery’s Korea market, stated that currently over80% of the brand’s customers in the region are local, with arepurchase rate as high as 45%. He further revealed that the brand will continue to accelerate its store expansion in Korea and, in compliance with local regulations, gradually open up its franchise business to further broaden market coverage.
The capital market has responded positively to Tea Bakery’s overseas expansion. According to reports from Zhitong Finance, Tea Bakery’s stock (02555) has risen nearly70%over the past six trading days, significantly reflecting investor recognition of its overseas growth potential. Recently, the stock price has risen again by over9%, currently trading atHK$6.89, with a gain of8.68%, and a trading volume ofHK$8.5231 million.
The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.
