Teahouses still lack that winning blend

Operators must do more to win new customers, report suggests

China's teahouse operators should do more to win consumers and cash in on the nation's economic boom as its rival coffee chains do, according to a new report.

The number of cafes in China doubled from 15,898 in 2007 to 31,783 in 2012.

In contrast, the nation's teahouses grew by only 4 percent to 50,984 during the same period, the report by UK-based research company Mintel said on Wednesday.

Source: QQ Survey/Mintel                                    LI YI/CHINA DAILY

The market value of the nation's cafes and teahouses rose from 31.8 billion yuan ($5.05 billion) in 2007 to 71.6 billion yuan in 2012. Mintel predicts this will rise to 121.69 billion yuan between 2012 and 2017.

"The lack of strongly branded chains among traditional teahouses means the sector has so far failed to meet the challenge posed by the rise of cafe chains, while the few existing chains have focused on a very narrow, higher-end, generally older consumer segment," said Matthew Crabbe, director of Asia-Pacific research at Mintel.

Most teahouses target high-end consumers with expensive teas, food and service, but lack individual character. As a result, they are not well prepared to meet the challenge posed by mushrooming cafe chains, said Crabbe.

Source: QQ Survey/Mintel                                      LI YI/CHINA DAILY