By: Alyssa Deguzman

For most students, August is when back-to-school season officially commences. They begin preparing for the school year and fall back into daily and weekly schedules. Their routines may include satisfying their bubble tea cravings with a group of their friends or after school.

Boba shops seem to be a trendy hangout and study spot throughout the school year. Ensure you’re ready for the demand by stocking up on all items. This will benefit your business for those afternoon and weekend rushes.

Boba Shop Essentials
When shopping for all things boba, LollicupStore is the best one-stop shop to purchase all essentials for any bubble tea shop. Enhance your menu by using the highest quality ingredients for all your food and beverages. Stocking up on supplies will prevent you from selling out of popular products.

Necessities for bubble tea shops include:

• Food and Beverage Supplies

The most crucial products to have keep fully stocked aside from food and beverages are cups, lids, and straws. While what’s on the menu is valuable to customers, packaging is just as important. Consumers prefer sleek and clean packaging when it comes to picture taking, especially for students who use social media.

Using clear cups are perfect for any beverage and allow drinks to be showcased. Sealing firms are ideal lid alternatives because they’re spill proof and are great for layered drinks that need to be shaken to mix. Drinks with topping inclusions need wider straws so boba straws are needed. If your shop sells food, fold to-go containers are a must-have as well.

Find out how to custom print cups, sleeves, sealing firms, and containers here.

• Toppings/Add-Ons

Toppings are a fun and unique way to enhance any beverage. Offering more than just boba allows consumers to customize drinks to their liking. Students can also be more particular with what they prefer, so tapioca balls might not be their go-to topping.

Though boba is the most common add-on, there are people who aren’t too fond of the taste and texture. A couple alternatives include jellies and popping pearls. There are various flavors to choose from so including these toppings into your creations is guaranteed to enrich any drink

• Syrups

Syrups are great for adding sweetness to any drink. They’re also perfect for creating dimension and layers, making beverages colorful and exciting. Syrups can be mixed into black teas, green teas, milk teas, or smoothies. These are important to have because it allows you to have a selection of flavors for any type of drink.

• Powders

Powders are a perfect base for both cold and hot drinks. Using powders is a convenient and effortless way to make delicious drinks. The best part is they’re not just limited to drink bases. Powders also come in seasonings that can be used to create snacks that pair off excellently with beverages.

A common bubble tea shop snack is popcorn chicken. Tea Zone Original Meat Marinating Powder is the key ingredient to make the best. Follow the recipe and incorporate it into your menu. It goes well with any beverage and is almost always a favorite seller.

What are the Best-Selling Boba Flavors?
As a boba shop, it’s advantageous to be informed of all the latest trends and cater to consumers. Keeping a record of your shop’s best-selling flavors is effective because it helps determine what works and what does not for your shop.

A few global bestsellers include:

• Taro (Milk Teas and Slushes)
• Strawberry (Milk Tea and Slushes)
• Classic Milk Tea
• Thai Tea
• Matcha Milk Tea
• Brown Sugar Milk Tea (Tiger Milk Tea)
• Mango Slush

Incorporating any of these popular sellers into your menu will gravitate consumers toward your bubble tea shop. Having a versatile menu with different flavor combinations that set you apart from other boba shops will help your business gain attention. Mixing classic flavors with new flavors can also motivate customers to try something new.

Tips to Prepare for Back-to-School Season

• Keep the best sellers fully stocked.
• It's always better to have more product than less.
• Make sure to keep track of all inventory and order ahead once ingredients for best-sellers start running low.
• Offer Limited Time Offers (LTOs) for students. Have them show their school ID for a discount.
• Create fun and unique beverages that encourage students to post pictures on social media.