Gong Cha to open in Takashimaya and Northpoint on 7 and 11 December
The wait for the return of bubble tea chain Gong Cha is finally over with the opening of its 33-seater flagship store at SingPost Centre on Friday (1 December), but fans can already look forward to two more outlets opening at Takashimaya Department Store and Yishun’s Northpoint City mall on 7 and 11 December respectively.
Additionally, Gong Cha will open in NUS University Town and Westgate mall between January and February 2018. The brand aims to open a total of 50 stores across the island in the next five years, with 10 to 15 of them at prime mall locations.
Speaking to Yahoo Lifestyle Singapore during the media preview of its flagship store, which is also the first cafe concept for the brand, franchisee Kang Puay Seng shared his excitement over his plans for Gong Cha.
“There will be a good mixture of cafe and takeaway kiosks. If there’s no luxury of space, we’ll go for kiosk,” said the 57-year-old.
“I think we offer very good and top quality teas and services, as well as unique experiences. We will always find ways to differentiate the brand and products in the market,” added Kang, who spoke in relation to the increased bubble tea competition in the Singapore market, with new brands such as LiHO and PlayMade.
Kang has brought in a new list of teas and smoothies, on top of the previous menu. New bubble tea beverages include the Matcha Milk Tea Latte with Red Bean, Purple Sweet Potato Milk Tea, Brown Sugar Fresh Milk Oolong and Strawberry Popcorn Fresh Milk Tea. All drinks are priced from $4.50.
“To be honest, I do not drink as often as I should be. From now, I will try to drink as much as I can and try to sell as much as I can,” said Kang. When he does feel like a cup of bubble tea, he prefers the Royal Milk Tea with the occasional pearls.
Gong Cha’s reopening took place after nearly six months of absence. The brand, which originated in Taiwan, was replaced by homegrown brand LiHO, a bubble tea chain helmed by local entrepreneur Rodney Tang. The 46-year-old was the former franchise owner of Gong Cha in Singapore before closing all of its 84 outlets islandwide, replacing them with his very own brand.
However, Unison Capital, the parent company of Gong Cha, later announced in June that it would return to Singapore.
*We previously mentioned that Gong Cha will open at Northpoint City mall and Takashimaya Shopping Centre on 7 and 11 December, respectively. In fact, Gong Cha will open at Takashimaya Shopping Centre on 7 December while its Northpoint City outlet will open on 11 December.
Related stories:
Gong Cha bubble tea to open at SingPost Centre on 1 December
Taiwan’s PlayMade bubble tea comes to Singapore with unique flavoured pearls
Singapore bubble tea brand LiHO to open first overseas stores in Hong Kong
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