{"id":128740,"date":"2026-01-16T05:02:49","date_gmt":"2026-01-16T05:02:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/chinese-tea-brands-boom-in-us-as-mixue-heytea-draw-long-lines-in-new-york\/"},"modified":"2026-01-16T05:02:49","modified_gmt":"2026-01-16T05:02:49","slug":"chinese-tea-brands-boom-in-us-as-mixue-heytea-draw-long-lines-in-new-york","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/chinese-tea-brands-boom-in-us-as-mixue-heytea-draw-long-lines-in-new-york\/","title":{"rendered":"Chinese tea brands boom in US as Mixue, HeyTea draw long lines in New York"},"content":{"rendered":"

BEIJING, China, Jan 16 \u2014 On the day before New Year\u2019s Eve, powerful gusts swept through New York, battering the city with brutal winter weather, making it feel like \u2014 10 C. But outside a newly opened Mixue store in Koreatown, dozens of customers waited in line patiently.<\/strong><\/p>\n

In a stark contrast to the freezing streets, the storefront felt unusually lively. Two staff members dressed in Mixue\u2019s signature snowman costumes greeted customers and passersby, while the brand\u2019s upbeat theme song played in the background, repeating its familiar refrain: \u201cI love you, you love me, Mixue Ice Cream and Tea.\u201d<\/p>\n

Among those waiting in line were not only Asian customers, but people of diverse ethnic backgrounds, most of them young. Customers stepped out with drinks in hand and, unexpectedly, many of them held ice cream cones.<\/p>\n

Inside, the store was crowded with customers waiting eagerly for their orders. Behind the counter, seven employees were in constant motion, taking orders, preparing drinks and calling out numbers without pausing.<\/p>\n

Compared with a typical Mixue store in China, the New York location is more than twice the usual size. The second floor is currently under renovation as the store prepares for heavier customer traffic. Despite the larger footprint, the New York store retains the brand\u2019s familiar design and layout.<\/p>\n

Affordability remains one of Mixue\u2019s key selling points. A digital screen above the counter displays the menu ranked by popularity, with prices prominently shown. The top-selling item is a $1.19 ice cream cone, followed by fresh lemonade priced at $1.99, and peach oolong tea at $3.49.<\/p>\n

Mixue\u2019s pricing is difficult to match. According to the food guide Eater NY, the average price of a cup of coffee in New York City ranges from $6 to $7, with non-caffeinated beverages typically priced at a similar level. By contrast, Mixue\u2019s prices remain largely below that range.<\/p>\n

However, affordability is not the only factor driving interest in Chinese tea brands. At other chains such as HeyTea, where drinks average around $10 each, high prices have not deterred crowds, with customers continuing to line up for beverages.<\/p>\n

Customers line up to buy drinks at a Mixue store in New York\u2019s Times Square on Dec 20. SELENE ZENG\/FOR CHINA DAILY<\/p>\n

Bubbling along<\/strong><\/h2>\n

How have these beverage chains, once a common sight on China\u2019s streets, found a foothold in the United States?<\/p>\n

Mixue is not alone in its overseas push. In recent years, a growing number of Chinese new-style tea brands, including HeyTea, Naisnow and Molly Tea, have expanded into the US market, often targeting major cities with large and diverse consumer bases.<\/p>\n

Observers say the trend may reflect intensifying competition at home, as well as rising interest among younger US consumers in global food and beverage cultures. The US market also carries symbolic value for Chinese consumer brands seeking international recognition, they said.<\/p>\n

HeyTea\u2019s Times Square store, which opened earlier this year, sold more than 3,500 cups on its first day, with average daily sales exceeding 2,000 cups, according to company figures.<\/p>\n

By comparison, independent coffee shops typically sell 200 to 300 beverages per day, while large chains such as Starbucks sell up to 700 cups daily at high-traffic locations, according to the National Coffee Association.<\/p>\n

HeyTea\u2019s expansion in the US illustrates the global acceleration of Chinese tea brands\u2019 spread. After opening its first US store in New York in late 2023, HeyTea has grown its footprint rapidly, increasing from just a couple of locations in early 2024 to more than 30 stores today.<\/p>\n

Other brands have reported similar early success. Chagee sold more than 5,000 cups of tea on the first day its US store opened. Auntea Jenny\u2019s first US location, in the Flushing neighborhood of Queens borough in New York, recorded 3,024 orders and gross merchandise value of $65,000 during its initial opening period.<\/p>\n

Molly Tea has also posted strong figures. The company said its first New York store generated average monthly revenue of about $480,000, while its San Francisco Bay Area location earned $28,000 on opening day and $82,000 within its first three days, setting a new benchmark for Chinese tea brands overseas.<\/p>\n

The number of bubble tea shops in the US has risen rapidly in recent years, according to market research firm IBISWorld. There were 3,096 bubble tea shops nationwide in 2022, a 23.4 percent increase from the previous year. By 2024, that number had grown to 6,635 locations, and is expected to double again by 2028.<\/p>\n

A decade ago, bubble tea in the US was largely confined to Asian neighborhoods and college towns. Today, it is increasingly part of mainstream urban consumption.<\/p>\n

During a recent visit to HeyTea\u2019s Times Square store, staff told China Daily the brand\u2019s growing appeal is reflected in its day-to-day operations.<\/p>\n

Jiovani Arroyo, a barista at the location, was seen unloading boxes of ingredients outside the busy shop, many of them labeled in Chinese, suggesting the supplies were imported directly from China. \u201cYou would think that customers would be Chinese or Asian, but it\u2019s actually a good mixture of different cultures,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Arroyo said some customers go straight to the pickup counter, while others are still getting familiar with Chinese tea drinks. He noted that the most common questions from customers are \u201cwhat\u2019s your favorite drink\u201d and \u201cwhat\u2019s the popular drink inside the store\u201d, adding that afternoons tend to be the busiest time.<\/p>\n

While the brand comes from China and the company\u2019s headquarters are there, \u201cit still feels like another business in America\u201d, he said.<\/p>\n

Around 60 percent to 70 percent of the store\u2019s employees are Chinese, and Arroyo said management has made an effort to hire more local staff. \u201cThe manager tries his best to see if he can bring in more locals than just people from China. \u2026 We don\u2019t want there to be a language barrier here for people who are feeling uncomfortable,\u201d he said, noting that the store aims to be international rather than staffed only by Chinese employees.<\/p>\n

Customers wait in line to get drinks at a HeyTea store in Times Square on March 26. LEVINE-ROBERTS\/IMAGO<\/p>\n

Reminder of \u2018home\u2019<\/strong><\/h2>\n

For many Chinese nationals living abroad, Chinese tea beverages offer more than just flavor. They provide a taste of home, evoking familiarity and personal memories.<\/p>\n

Audrey Xu, a millennial living in New Jersey, traveled into the city to visit Mixue after feeling homesick.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve always loved milk tea, and back in China I used to go to Mixue all the time,\u201d she told China Daily. \u201cSeeing Mixue here makes me feel closer to home.\u201d<\/p>\n

Carrying several drinks in paper bags, Xu said she planned to sit down somewhere during lunch to enjoy them.<\/p>\n

While the menu offers fewer choices than Mixue stores in China, she said the essentials remain unchanged. \u201cThat\u2019s enough for me. It helps ease my homesickness,\u201d she said. \u201cThe core products are still the same.\u201d<\/p>\n

Xu, who was born and raised in China and has lived in the US since 2017, said she has noticed a steady increase in Chinese tea drink brands opening across the country. With Mixue\u2019s arrival, Xu added that it has now become the first place she plans to bring friends when introducing them to Chinese-style tea drinks because of its low prices.<\/p>\n

Some customers were drawn to Mixue by its well-known reputation in China, while others noticed the store through its extensive online promotion. The busy location itself also served as a marketing tool, generating attention even before the store officially opened.<\/p>\n

College student Ishtiyaq Shajahan told China Daily he and his friends visited the area before the store was renovated and wondered what was going to be built at the site.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy friend came last week and it was just opening up, but the line was crazy long. So we came back today with a couple more friends,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Shajahan visited the store with his brother, Aqib Shajahan, and their friend James Gonzalez, all of whom are college students and Brooklyn natives. Gonzalez, who had previously visited a Mixue store in Singapore, said he was familiar with the brand.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it does a good job setting up other bubble tea franchises. A lot of them tend to be pretty expensive. I think this one\u2019s more affordable. And it just feels more warm and welcoming, more friendly,\u201d Gonzalez said.<\/p>\n

Compared with traditional beverage chains such as Starbucks, Ishtiyaq Shajahan said Chinese tea drinks offer a different flavor profile centered on the tea itself. He began drinking Chinese-style tea beverages several years ago, initially trying Thai tea at Gong Cha before becoming more adventurous.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can try different Chinese items like pandan jelly, grass jelly or different fruits like lychee \u2026 that\u2019s why I like it. I like those more different kinds of flavors,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would say (Chinese tea beverages are) a little bit sweet, aromatic. I like the tea fragrance, the milk tea, and it\u2019s just refreshing, very soothing.\u201d<\/p>\n

He added that Chinese tea beverages have become increasingly mainstream in the US.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is pretty popular now. I think it\u2019s equally as popular as a lot of other drinks. Americans used to drink a lot of energy drinks or coffee, and they are kind of changing it up a little bit\u2026 It\u2019s definitely gotten way more popular over the past five, six years, especially after COVID,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Customers rush to buy Chagee beverages on the opening day of its US flagship store in Los Angles, California, on May 9. [Photo\/Xinhua]<\/p>\n

Social lubricant<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Beyond taste and affordability, the group also pointed to the role Chinese tea beverage shops play in everyday cultural exchanges. In many ways, these brands have become part of everyday life, offering familiarity and choice to a generation already shaped by global tastes rather than explicitly presenting \u201cChinese culture\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s definitely good for cultural exchange. People get to see a glimpse of diversity and different cultures,\u201d Ishtiyaq Shajahan said.<\/p>\n

Analysts said the growth of the Chinese tea drink market has been driven in part by younger consumers.<\/p>\n

An article in the Michigan Journal of Economics noted that in the US, where multicultural food traditions are widely embraced, boba tea has gained popularity as an alternative to coffee, particularly among younger consumers.<\/p>\n

Industry data points to similar trends. A 2021 CLSA consumer survey found that 94 percent of adults age 20 to 29 had purchased bubble tea in the previous three months.<\/p>\n

Aqib Shajahan said shifting consumer preferences have created space for international brands.<\/p>\n

\u201cRight now, people just want a change of pace, you know, they want more diversity, more variety, more options,\u201d he said, adding more US consumers are trying to branch out into \u201cdifferent international things\u201d.<\/p>\n

For more visit\u00a0China Daily<\/a><\/p>\n

For subscriptions on news from China Daily, or inquiries, please contact China Daily Africa Ltd on +254 20 6920900 or write to enquiries@chinadailyafrica.com<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

BEIJING, China, Jan 16 \u2014 On the day before New Year\u2019s Eve, powerful gusts swept through New York, battering the city with brutal winter weather, making it feel like \u2014 10 C. But outside a newly opened Mixue store in Koreatown, dozens of customers waited in line patiently. In a stark contrast to the freezing […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-128740","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","entry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/128740","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=128740"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/128740\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=128740"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=128740"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=128740"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}