Global Taiwanese bubble tea brand looking to expand outside Central London as it launches franchise offer

Bubble tea brand The Alley plans to expand outside Central London by launching a franchise offer across the UK

Since launching in London in 2019, The Alley has opened six sites across the capital, including its first two pilot UK franchise stores in Westfield Stratford and Westfield White City, which are owned by a multi-brand franchise investor.

The brand, which has more than 450 stores globally, will officially launch its franchise offer at the start of next month, ahead of the National Franchise Exhibition in Birmingham, and has brought food and beverage franchise specialist Krishma Vaghela on board.

“We’re looking for more multi-unit operators with experience in food and beverage and first-time ambitious entrepreneurs, regardless of whether they have franchise experience or not, to grow The Alley in high footfall areas through high street stores, and kiosk concepts in shopping centres or travel hubs,” Vaghela told Propel.

“As the bubble tea market continues to experience strong demand and rising popularity, it has yet to peak in the UK, sitting alongside the coffee market as an addictive beverage. The Alley has a lot more opportunity for scalability than its rivals, and we’ve already had interest. We want to take it outside of Central London, UK-wide but England first.

“Although it’s a premium drinks offer, we’re looking at university towns like Brighton, Oxford, Cambridge, Leeds, Bristol, Manchester and Birmingham, and we hope to open the first new franchise store next year. We see big opportunities in travel hubs and brand partnerships, and we see takeaway being the highest percentage of revenue.”

The Alley also offers food and branded merchandise and is fully halal certified.

This article has been provided courtesy of Propel Hospitality.