Buried in the belly of ChinaTown on a weekday afternoon, a small bubble tea shop is brimming with customers. Some are taking photos and some stand alone with two drinks for themselves, one for now and one for later; begging the question, “What kind of customer do niche bubble tea shops attract?”

In 2017, the first Tiger Sugar opened in Taichung, Taiwan, claiming to have created the first ever brown sugar bubble tea with cream mousse.

After proving to be an incredible success in Asia, they now have over 40 storefronts worldwide, opening their first NYC location in Flushing this past May. In just four months, they have expanded with additional locations in ChinaTown and South Brooklyn.

Known for its “tiger striped” cup, their brown sugar tea has four simple ingredients: milk, brown sugar syrup, tapioca pearls, and a creamy sugar mousse. The brown sugar syrup, which the tapioca pearls and boba are soaked in, goes in first, coating the sides and base of the cup. Next, the milk and ice are added and topped off with a creamy dollop of mousse.

Their menu is mainly different variations of the signature brown sugar bubble tea, only offering four kinds of non-brown sugar tea.

At 4:00 p.m. on a Wednesday evening, the Canal Street location had a line nearly out the door. Those who had their tea were snapping pictures, and those still waiting or in line, seemed to be getting cameras ready.

Within 45 minutes of hanging around the store, nearly 35 orders had been placed, not to mention the 15 orders still waiting upon entering the store. Yet somehow, no one seemed to wait longer than five minutes for their tea.

With six employees on the clock, Tiger Sugar runs like a well-oiled machine. The line never appears to slow down or stop; a surprising scene in an area like ChinaTown, which has nearly a different bubble tea store at every corner.

People in line ordering the Tiger Sugar. || Photo credit to Meg Capone

Angela Jiang, a NYC high school senior and bubble tea enthusiast who lives in Flushing said, “I live near their first location and the hype there is ridiculous. For the first few months it seemed like the lines were constantly out the door.”

According to Eater NY, the demand for drinks at the first location was so high, it required them to limit each customer to four drinks per order. Some reported waiting over an hour in line within the first month of the Tiger Sugar opening.

Today was only Jiang’s second time at Tiger Sugar, but she’d already decided to bring friends.

Mihrab Niloy, one of Jiang’s friends had come to Tiger Sugar for the first time, not only because of her recommendation, but because he had seen pictures of their tea all over Facebook.

“The lines have been so long,” Niloy said. “So when I saw they were a little less busy, I knew today would finally be the day to try it.”

Upon taking his first sip of tea, he remarked, “It’s exactly what I want in a bubble tea: Chewy tapioca pearls, creamy and extra sweet, just how I like it!”

Jiang and Niloy both agreed that their favorite part of the Tiger Sugar experience is the aesthetic of the tea. Niloy admitted to having a hard time shaking up his tea to mix it because he wanted to preserve the instagrammable content.

Bubble tea has proven its popularity in the marketplace. According to the Analytical Research Cognizance, the “bubble tea market,” is valued at just under $6 million in 2018, is said to grow by 9.3 percent between 2019 and 2025, reaching $11 million in just seven years.

The growth in demand for the product in general has allowed for businesses like Tiger Sugar and other niche bubble tea stores to flourish, especially in big cities like New York.

Sophie Pol, an international student at King’s from Cambodia, commented on the niche bubble tea trend.

“It doesn’t take very much to start a trend. If enough people buy it and post about it, it’s bound to catch on,” Pol said.

She found Tiger Sugar on Instagram and decided to try it strictly based on the aesthetics of the photos she’d seen, proving the strong effects of bubble tea culture on social media.

Other niche bubble tea locations like Tiger Sugar continue to pop up across NYC and prove successful, but the appearance of the product doesn’t seem to be the only reason for their popularity. The aesthetics certainly bring customers in, but it has to be about more than that in order to justify spending $5.95 so often on a drink.

“No, I don’t think I would pay this much for a drink if it didn’t taste so good,” Pol said. “It’s the quality and taste of the product itself which keeps the lines out the door.”

Tiger Sugar Bubble Tea: Taiwanese trend hits New York City