At Gong cha, we utilize a master franchise model, whereby a person or group controls the rights to the Gong cha brand in a country, and they sub-franchise stores to individual people.

Gong cha made its first foray overseas in 2009, when it expanded to Hong Kong in a bid to build on the popularity of the brand with tourists visiting Taiwan. The popularity continued to grow and the brand quickly spread around Asia, starting with the Philippines.

In 2011, Mr. and Mrs. Martin Berry fell in love with the brand after visit a store in Singapore, and flew to Taiwan to discuss ways to bring Gong cha to the Korean market. Once the brand arrived in Korea, things really took off. In just three years, Gong cha spread from a single store in Hongdae to 250 locations nationwide, with customers clamouring for more from the popular tea brand.

After Korea, Gong cha’s global expansion spread outside of Asia. Branches in Australia, the United States, Mexico, Canada and the United Kingdom opened over the following years, as well as a rapidly expanding operation in Japan. Gong cha Japan set a sales record of more than 3,000 cups a day when it opened, with Gong cha Vietnam going on to hit 4,000 cups a day.

Just as Gong cha Hong Kong prompted the Asia expansion and Gong cha Korea pushed things further, the success of Gong cha Japan caught the attention of Cristina, who arrived the brand to Central and South America with the establishment of Gong cha Mexico. With each new step Gong cha takes, the brand gains the momentum to spread further afield, taking its refined taste and quality all around the globe.

In the midst of this massive global expansion, Gong cha opened its global headquarter in London in 2020, laying the groundwork for the establishment of an active, central globalisation strategy. Gong cha now operates nearly 1,800 stores around the world, and has continued to expand despite the Covid-19 pandemic.

Gong cha Taiwan still adheres to that commitment to taste and quality that the founder first established in his tea shop nearly 30 years ago, carrying that vision through to supervision and support of all current production and management of raw material and techniques. With this product, Gong cha is looking to significantly expand its footprint across Europe, the Middle East, the United States and Africa.