Opportunity Belief
I believe that there is an opportunity for a bubble tea business to flourish near campus. Bubble tea is very popular across the United States and the demand for this product from what I have seen has been growing over the past decade, especially among college students. This need is highest among the Asian student population however I know individuals of all ethnic backgrounds drink and enjoy bubble tea. At the moment, people who want bubble tea can choose from Tea Stori or Kung Fu Tea, both of which are about a ten minute car ride away from campus on south 34th street. I am about 70% sure that there lies an opportunity here to create a unique and cozy new bubble tea business.
· Do you think there is a need for a boba tea place closer to UF?
· Where do you get boba tea now and are you satisfied with it?
· Do you crave boba tea ever and if so, how often?
· Is Bento a satisfactory place for boba?
· Do you have any ideas of similar businesses that you wish existed in Gainesville?
· Would you go to a new boba place if it opened in midtown?
Korean American Student
· Do you think there is a need for a boba tea place closer to UF?
“Yes”
· Where do you get boba tea now and are you satisfied with it?
“Tea Stori/ Lollicup”
· Do you crave boba tea ever and if so, how often?
“Probably once every two weeks”
· Is Bento a satisfactory place for boba?
“Definitely not.”
· Do you have any ideas of similar businesses that you wish existed in Gainesville?
“Cheap Korean or Southern style fried chicken.”
· Would you go to a new boba place if it opened in midtown?
“Oh for sure”
Reflection: So far though from the answers I have gotten from the first interview I believe that at least some people would choose this place over the new Bento going in under the standard. Competition is always good.
Iranian American Student
· Do you think there is a need for a boba tea place closer to UF?
“Yes. Just because there are a lot of immigrants near the other places, it doesn’t mean that there are immigrants and students alike who do not have transportation that like boba tea.”
· Where do you get boba tea now and are you satisfied with it?
“Depends…Tea Stori usually.”
· Do you crave boba tea ever and if so, how often?
“Depends but yeah around 3 times a month.”
· Is Bento a satisfactory place for boba?
“Satisfactory? Yeah Sure.”
· Do you have any ideas of similar businesses that you wish existed in Gainesville?
“Korean Food”.
· Would you go to a new boba place if it opened in midtown?
“Definitely.”
Reflection: This shows that different kinds of people would go to a boba place but also that some people are fine going to Bento for boba. I believe from his answers that a Korean restaurant could be a profitable business if it also specialized in boba, or had a boba tea place tacked onto it.
White Female Student:
· Do you think there is a need for a boba tea place closer to UF?
“Yes for sure!”
· Where do you get boba tea now and are you satisfied with it?
“Kung Fu Tea” (Boycotting Tea Stori since it is no longer Lollicup)
· Do you crave boba tea ever and if so, how often?
“Yes I go at least three times a week”
· Is Bento a satisfactory place for boba?
“No.”
· Do you have any ideas of similar businesses that you wish existed in Gainesville?
“Yes. A cute Asian style bakery would be perfect.”
· Would you go to a new boba place if it opened in midtown?
“Yes 1000%.”
Reflection: I like the idea of a bakery also being a boba tea place. Sweet Buns Bakery is the only one semi close to UF and I know they do really well so I am sure a similar business that sells boba tea could work.
Summary:
I still believe that a boba place could be a great business opportunity to satisfy the University’s student population’s needs for boba. Not every student has transportation to Tea Stori or Kung Fu tea and I believe that with the diversity of Students at UF, this business could be profitable, especially if paired with something else. At first personally I was considering just a small boba tea place maybe where Mochi used to be however after seeing what other people thought, maybe boba shouldn’t be the sole product sold. I believe the original opportunity is still there. While I do believe in assuring in people’s business ideas, I also do think that it is important to make sure customers’ needs are met. I just believe that it is important to interview more than just a couple people, and to ask relevant questions.
I found this very interesting for a few reasons. The first being that I have never heard of Bubble Tea so that grabbed my attention to learn about something new. I am an older student and coffee drinker although grew up in the UK drinking tea which used to be the norm. Looking at the responses and origin that this would be most successful in areas with a high Asian population although other cultures may frequent the tea shop from time to time. I agree that more research is needed, and you seemed to get a few responses focused on food rather than tea. To avoid serving everyone everything my advice would be to target locations that have a high immigrant population – mainly Asian – and dig a little deeper into Boba tea and what types of food they would like to have along with it.
ReplyDeleteTommy, I agree that the need for a closer boba place is strong and would be very profitable. Personally, I love boba and related to many of the interviews where they said that the transportation to TeaStori is annoying. I liked how you got feedback from the interviews about pairing boba with something, because, in addition, I agree that with being an entrepreneur comes adapting to customer wants.
ReplyDeleteHi Tommy,
ReplyDeleteVery good opportunity belief. I had never heard of bubble tea and I have been a tea drinker my whole life. I lived in both Europe and Asia, so Tea has always been popular for me and I am excited to try this tea. I know that Starbucks has been very interested in making Tea a priority in its stores in countries where tea is more common in the culture. I am curious if any of the franchises will offer these teas in their coffee shops.
Hello Tommy;
ReplyDeleteMy best friend is a student, and he was born in Asia—needless to say, he is a bubble tea addict. I believe he cannot go a day without having one. Based on that and reading your post, I agree with you that there lies an opportunity for a bubble tea business to grow near campus. Lastly, you wrote in your summary the same thing I wrote on mine—that the original opportunity is still there. Go Gators!