“MARKETING STRATEGIES OF MILK TEA

SHOP OWNERS’ IN ALICIA, ISABELA”

 CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
THE BUBBLE MILK TEA CHAIN IS ONE OF THE FAVORITE
DRINKS AND PLACES TO HANG OUT AMONG THE YOUNGSTERS.
IN 2019, WITH OVER 49 BRAND EXISTING IN MALAYSIA, THESE
BUBBLE TEA CHAINS ARE SPRINGING UP LIKE MUSHROOMS
AFTER THE RAIN (BUBBLETEAMALAYSIA.COM,2019). THIS CAN
BE SEEN BY THE PHENOMENA OF SS15 SUBANG JAYA,
MALAYSIA WHERE THE BUBBLE MILK TEA CHAIN HAS
EXPANDED FROM UNIT TO NOW EIGHT UNITS WITHIN A FEW
MONTHS (MICHAEL, 2019).
MILK TEA IS A FAMOUS TEA-BASED DRINK THAT
ORIGINATED IN TAINAN AND TAICHUNG, TAIWAN. IN THE
1980S (SANGWAI AND DESHMUKH 2021). IT WAS INVENTED BY
A TAIWANESE TEA SHOP OWNER, LIU HAN CHIEH, AND HIS
PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT MANAGER, LIN HSUI HUI. THE
MILK TEA THAT WE KNOW TODAY WAS DISCOVERED BY
ADDING DIFFERENT INGREDIENTS SUCH AS FRUITS, SYRUPS
AND TAPIOCA PEARLS INTO DIFFERENT TEA WITH MILK
BEVERAGES. MILK TEA FIRST GAINED POPULARITY IN 1990S
THROUGHOUT ASIA AND BECAME MORE POPULAR IN THE
UNITED STATES AND EUROPE IN THE 2000S (ALEXANDER
2001).
ACCORDING TO THE ASEAN POST TEAM (2023) THE
POPULARITY TURNED INTO A GLOBAL PHENOMENON
DUE TO THE VERSATILITY AND FLEXIBILITY OF THE
TOPPINGS AND FLAVOR COMBINATIONS THAT
CONSUMERS COULD CHOOSE FROM. DATA FROM
(HTTPS://WWW.ALLIEDMARKETRESEARCH.COM/BUB
BLE-TEA-MARKET 2020) WITH THE GLOBAL
PHENOMENON OF MILK TEA, IT EVENTUALLY HIT
THE MARKET WITH A $2.4 BILLION VALUE IN 2019 AND
IS ESTIMATED TO REACH $4.3 BILLION BY 2027.
THE DIFFERENT BRANDS OF MILK TEA BECAME A HUGE OPTION
AMONG CONSUMERS. ( CONSUNJI AND CAPILI 2011 ) FOUND
THAT CONSUMERS WOULD PREFER MILK TEA FOR ITS
AFFORDABILITY COMPARED TO OTHER POPULAR BEVERAGES
SUCH AS COFFEE. ACCORDING TO THE DATA DERIVED FROM
(
HTTPS://WWW.GRAB.COM/PH/BLOG/BUBBLETEA-CRAZE-ON-
GRABFOOD/2019), MILK TEA BECAME THE LARGEST
BEVERAGES TREND STARTING IN 2011. IN ASIA, MILK TEA'S
POPULARITY SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED IN 2018 WITH A 3500%
GROWTH. LEE AND YIM (2019) THEN REVEALED THAT THE
PHILIPPINES AND THAILAND RANKED SECOND AFTER A HUGE
DIFFERENCE FROM INDONESIA IN SOUTHEAST ASIA WITH THE
THIS IMPLIES THAT SEVERAL MILK TEAS BRANDS, EITHER
LOCAL OR INTERNATIONAL, ARE BECOMING MORE POPULAR.
AS FILIPINOS RANK THE SECOND HIGHEST MILK TEA
CONSUMERS IN SOUTHEAST ASIA, IT'S EVIDENT THAT MILK TEA
HAS BECOME ONE OF THE FAVORITE DRINKS OF THE FILIPINO
PEOPLE DESPITE BEING A FOREIGN BEVERAGE FROM TAIWAN.
MILK TEA ORDERS IN SOUTHEAST ASIA SAW A 3,000% INCREASE
IN 2018. IN THE PHILIPPINES ALONE, ORDERS INCREASED BY
3,500% FROM JUNE TO DECEMBER 2018 ACCORDING TO
ICHIMURA (2019). DUE TO THE TREND AND RAPID GROWTH OF
MILK TEA BUSINESSES IN THE COUNTRY, MANY
ENTREPRENEURS ARE PURSUING THIS KIND OF BUSINESS.
AS THE LOCAL MILK TEA INDUSTRY STARTED BEING
KNOWN BACK IN 2012 (PILAR & CASTRO, 2019), THE
COMPETITION AMONG MILK TEA SHOPS BECAME
TIGHTER, WHICH REQUIRED THEM TO DO BETTER
TO SATISFY THE DEMAND. MARKETING IS VITAL TO
BUSINESSES AS IT IS ONE OF THE FEW WAYS TO MAKE
PROFIT. IT IS NOT JUST SELLING OR PROMOTING;
IT'S BOTH. THIS REQUIRES STRATEGIC PLANNING
FOR BUSINESSES TO SUCCEED. WHILE MARKETING IS
METICULOUS, TRENDS CHANGE FROM TIME TO
TIME.
HAVING HOMOGENEOUS PRODUCTS RESULTS IN
GREATER COMPETITION. ACCORDING TO LEE AND
VEGA (2018), IN ORDER TO BE AHEAD OF OTHERS, ONE
MUST HAVE A UNIQUE CONCEPT AND AN EFFECTIVE
STRATEGY TO ATTRACT CUSTOMERS.
COMMUNICATION BETWEEN BUSINESS OWNERS AND
CONSUMERS IS ESSENTIAL. KNOWING THE TARGET
MARKET THOROUGHLY IS VERY CRUCIAL. THE STUDY
OF CONSUMER ACTIVITIES, INTERESTS, AND OPINIONS
CAN HELP AFFECT MARKETING STRATEGIES (WHITE,
2018).
AS MILK TEA BUSINESSES BECAME KNOWN, STUDENTS ALSO
GREW TO LOVE THE DRINK. IT IS APPARENT HOW MULTIPLE
MILK TEA SHOPS STARTED DOING BUSINESS IN THE CITY
DURING THE PAST YEARS. THUS, THE MILK TEA CONSUMPTION
OF STUDENTS ALSO INCREASES. LEE AND VEGA (2014) STATED
THAT MOST HIGH SCHOOL AND COLLEGE STUDENTS CONSIDER
MILK TEA AS A REFRESHING DRINK THAT CAN QUENCH THEIR
THIRST. WHILE THIS CAN BE ONE OF THE REASONS WHY MILK
TEA SHOPS CONTINUE TO BE PROFITABLE, IT IS ESSENTIAL FOR
THEM ALSO TO KNOW HOW THEY CAN MAINTAIN OR IMPROVE
THEIR SALES. STRATEGIC MARKETING INCLUDES
DETERMINING THE BEST WAYS TO REACH THE MARKET
THE RESEARCHERS CONDUCT THIS STUDY BECAUSE IT HAS
BEEN DISCOVERED THAT THE MILK TEA INDUSTRY HAS
BEEN BOOMING OVER THE RECENT YEARS WITH ITS
IMPROVED MARKETING STRATEGIES THAT WERE
IMPLEMENTED BY THE BUSINESS OWNERS. FURTHERMORE,
THIS STUDY ATTEMPTS TO DETERMINE THE DIFFERENT
MARKETING STRATEGIES USED BY THE MILK TEA SHOP
OWNERS AND TO FIND OUT THE LEVEL OF EFFECTIVENESS
OF THOSE MARKETING STRATEGIES ON THEIR BUSINESS
AFTER BEING IMPLEMENTED. THERE ARE ALSO OTHER
FACTORS AT PLAY TO KEEP THE GOOD FLOW OF THE MILK
TEA BUSINESSES AT ALICIA, ISABELA THAT THE
PROPONENTS ARE FOCUSING ON.
 1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
THE STUDY FOCUSES ON MARKETING STRATEGIES MADE BY MILK TEA SHOP
OWNERS, IT’S LEVEL OF EFFECTIVENESS, AND THE FACTOR THAT HELP THE BUSINESS
TO BOOST THEIR SALES. THE FOLLOWING QUESTION BELOW ARE THE RESEARCHERS
GUIDE TO GET INFORMATION
1. WHAT IS THE DEMOGRAPHIC AND BUSINESS PROFILE IN TERMS OF THE FOLLOWING:
A .POSITION
B. AGE
C. SEX
D. YEARS OF OPERATION
E. STARTUP CAPITAL
F. NUMBER OF EMPLOYEE
G. NUMBER OF BRANCHES
2. WHAT ARE THE MARKETING STRATEGIES
THAT THE OWNERS DO TO SUSTAIN THEIR
MILK TEA SHOP?
3. WHAT FACTORS HELPS THE OWNER TO
UPLIFT THE BUSINESS’ SALES?
1.3 CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

PROCESS
INPUT
OUTPUT
INTERVIEW THE
WHAT ARE THE MILK TEA SHOP
FACTORS THEY OWNER SUSTAINABILITY OF
CONSIDER IN CONCERING THEIR THE PRODUCTS ARE
MAKING THESE RECOGNIZED.
MARKETING
PRODUCT? STRATEGY, AND
PRICING PRODUCT PROFILE
THAT WOULD BEST
WHAT ARE THE
CAPTURED OF THE
IMPORTANT GIVE NEEDS OF THE
FEATURES OF QUESTIONNAIRES CUSTOMER IS
MILKTEA? TO RESPONDENTS DETERMINED.
OF EACH SELECTED
MILK TEA SHOPS
1.4 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
THIS STUDY IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT TO THE BROAD RANGE OF MILK TEA
COMPANIES AND MARKET WHERE THE PANDEMIC AFFECTS THEM AS IT IS
STILL ADJUSTING AND COPING UP TO THEIR NEW MAEKETING STRATEGIES.

•CONSUMER-IT WILL GIVE THEM KNOWLEDGE OF WHAT COULD BE THE

STRATEGIES LAID OUT BY BUSINESS OWNERS TO ATTRACT THEIR CUSTOMER
•MARKETING STRATEGIES- A MARKETING STRATEGY REFERS TO THE
OVERALL PLAN FOR REACHING POTENTIAL CUSTOMERS AND TURNING THEM
INTO ACTUAL COSTUMERS.
•MILK TEA SHOP OWNERS- IT WILL BENEFIT THE OWNER TO FURTHER
IMPROVE THEIR SALE STRATEGIES BASED ON THEIR MARKETING
STRATEGIES’ LEVEL OF EFFECTIVENESS
• READERS AND TO THE COMMUNITY- IT WILL GIVE THEM BRIEF
INFORMATION ON DIFFERENT MARKET STRATEGIES THAT
MILK TEA SHOP OWNER IMPLEMENTED, ITS LEVEL OF
EFFECTIVENESS, AND OTHER FACTORS AT PLAY TO BOOST
THEIR SALE.
• RESEARCHERS OF THIS STUDY- IT WILL BROADEN THEIR
INDIVIDUAL KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS ON RESEARCH
ACTIVITIES, MAKING THEM MORE EQUIPPED FOR FUTURE
RESEARCHER.
• FUTURE RESEARCHERS- IT CAN BE USED AS A BASIS FOR
FURTHER STUDIES REGARDING THE MILK TEA INDUSTRY.
1.5 SCOPE AND LIMITATION
THIS STUDY AIMS TO DETERMINE THE STRATEGIES
USED BY MILK TEA SHOP OWNERS, STRATEGIES’ LEVEL
OF EFFECTIVENESS AFTER THE IMPLEMENTATION, AND
FACTORS THAT AFFECT THEIR BUSINESS IN BOOSTING
THEIR SALES AROUND ALICIA, ISABELA WHEREIN THE
RESPONDENT WILL BE MILK TEA SHOP OWNERS OR SHOP
REPRESENTATIVES. THE RESEARCHERS LIMITED THE
RESPONDENTS TO 5 RAMDOM MILK TEA SHOP OWNERS
OR REPRESENTATIVES AS RESPONSES WILL BE
COLLECTED THROUGH QUESTIONNAIRES AND SURVEYS.
1.6 DEFINITION OF TERMS
THE FOLLOWING ARE THE DIFFERENT TERMINOLOGIES USED
IN THIS RESEARCH TO PROVIDE THE READERS ADDITIONAL
GUIDANCE IN ORDER TO UNDERSTAND IT.
• CONSUMER- ARE PEOPLE OR ORGANIZATIONS THAT PURCHASE
PRODUCTS OR SERVICES. THE TERM ALSO REFERS TO HIRING
GOODS OR SERVICES. THEY ARE HUMAN OR OTHER ECONOMIC
ENTITIES THAT ARE USE A GOOD OR SERVICE.
• ENTREPRENEURS- IS DEFINED BY THE PERSONAL RISK THEY
TAKE ON IN PURSUIT A NEW BUSINESS, INNOVATION, OR SOME
OTHER FORM OF ENTERPRISE. IN EXCHANGE FOR TAKING ON
THAT RISK, THEY OFTEN PROFIT MOST SIGNIFICANTLY FROM
THEIR INTERPRISE’S SUCCESS.
•MILK TEA- REFERS TO SEVERAL FORMS OF BEVERAGE FOUND IN MANY
CULTURES, CONSISTING OF SOME COMBINATION OF TEA AND MILK.
THE TERM TEA IS USED FOR BOTH HOT AND COL DRINK THAT CAN BE
COMBINED WITH VARIETY KINDS OF MILKS AND VARIETY OF SPICES.
•PREFERENCES- IT IS THE RIGHT OR CHANCE TO CHOOSE SOMETHING.
•STRATEGY- IS A GENERAL PLAN OR SET OF PLANS INTENDED TO
ACHIEVE SOMETHING, ESPECIALLY OVER A LONG PERIOD.
•OWNER OF THE BUSINESS- REFERS TO INDIVIDUALS WHO ESTABLISH
AND OPERATE AN ENTITY THAT IS ENGAGED IN COMMERCIAL,
INDUSTRIAL OR PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES WITH THE PURPOSE OF
DERIVING PROFITS FROM ITS SUCCESSFUL OPERATIONS.