The History of HEYTEA: From Humble Beginnings to Global Tea Empire

Introduction

HEYTEA is one of the leading modern Chinese brands of the 21st century. HEYTEA has been recognized as the “cheese tea” pioneer and has revolutionized the Chinese tea culture into a trendy and Instagram-worthy experience, expanding from a small shop in a southern Chinese city to a worldwide brand with hundreds of stores in Asia, Europe, North America, and the Middle East. It is a tale of a new consumer culture for China, the influence of social media marketing, and the development of the “new tea” industry.

Founding and Early Years (2012–2015)

Nie Yunchen  established HEYTEA in 2012 in the prefecture-level city of Jiangmen in Guangdong Province. When Nie was 22, a new graduate from the university. He, like many other young entrepreneurs, was inspired by the food and beverage culture in the Pearl River Delta of Guangdong.The first HEYTEA store opened in the 20 square meters shop in Wanda Plaza, Jiangmen. Initially, the brand was called (Royal Tea). The initial menu was mostly of traditional Hong Kong-style milk tea, fruit teas and cheese-topped beverages. The “cheese tea” — a frothy cream cheese tea topped with tea cream cheese — wasn’t an unfamiliar idea, but Nie perfected the recipe with good imported cream cheese and with a balance of sweetness and saltiness. This signature beverage was later to be the breakthrough product for the brand.

The brand started to gradually grow its presence in Guangdong Province in 2013-2014. But, the true tipping point was in 2015 when Nie decided to rebrand. He renamed it “Royal Tea” to 。 The new name was simpler, more modern, and with a positive connotation: is Chinese for “happiness” or “joy. The brand’s name change came with a minimalist black and white design, combining elegant Chinese calligraphy elements with the colorful and cartoonish designs of most bubble tea stores at the time.

The Cheese Tea Revolution and Explosive Growth (2016–2017)

HEYTEA’s meteoric rise took place in the year 2016. The brand has its first flagship store in the innovation capital of China, Shenzhen. It was an instant sensation in the upscale mixC shopping mall. Long lines (often several hours) emerged. Social media channels, especially the Weibo and more recently Xiaohongshu (Little Red Book) were all important. A viral phenomenon was created when influencers took pictures of the cheese foam tea and young consumers responded with their aesthetically pleasing photos of the tea.HEYTEA has expanded its stores to first-tier cities such as Guangzhou, Shanghai and Beijing by the end of 2016. The firm had its first major funding round in 2016 from IDG Capital and other investors. This $7,500,000 capital enabled HEYTEA to grow rapidly with a high level of quality assurance. HEYTEA refused to use artificial tea leaves and mixes, preferring to use genuine tea leaves (often from famous tea regions in China), fresh fruit and top quality dairy.

HEYTEA became a cult band in 2017. “喜茶” has come to represent the trendy lifestyle of the Chinese millennials and Gen Z. The brand was responsible for introducing several innovations:

• Cheese foam (delicious) on various tea bases (oolong, black tea, green tea, matcha).
• “Dirty” Drinks – fancy drinks with messy, artistic toppings.
• Limited editions that generated FOMO (fear of missing out) and urgency during that season.

At the end of 2017, HEYTEA reached more than 80 stores and had a valuation of more than RMB 1 billion (about $150 million).

Maturity, Challenges, and Strategic Expansion (2018–2020)

The quick success meant opportunities and challenges. HEYTEA had its first major crisis in 2018 when it was accused of taking elements from another brand and complained of the quality in some stores. In response, Nie Yunchen tightened the quality standards, introduced more stringent franchise-like controls (most stores continued to be directly operated) and invested heavily in supply chain and R&D.The company has raised a series of additional funding rounds, totaling more than $500 million in investments, in 2018-2019. Notable investors were Tencent, Meituan and Hillhouse Capital. This capital went into establishing a high-tech cold chain logistics system and a central kitchen model to guarantee uniformity in hundreds of locations.

Also, HEYTEA started to expand internationally. In 2019, it opened for the first time in the overseas market in Singapore, Malaysia, Cambodia, and the Philippines. The brand took the time to tweak its menu to suit local tastes but without sacrificing its essence.
In 2020, the company has faced a hard test in the form of the COVID-19 pandemic. As with most F&Bs, HEYTEA experienced a decrease in foot traffic. But the brand turned swiftly to delivery platforms (Meituan, Ele.me) and came up with new product lines that are more appropriate for takeouts, such as bottled drinks and ready-to-drink products. At the end of 2020, HEYTEA was fully recovered with over 500 stores in China.

Global Ambitions and New Era (2021–Present)

Starting from 2021, HEYTEA started expanding its operation worldwide. It has joined the U.S. competitive market in 2021 with its flagship location in the Flatiron District in New York City. The launch generated a lot of excitement, as evidenced by the long queues that were seen during the event, which were reminiscent of the early days in Shenzhen. The brand subsequently grew to Los Angeles, Boston, Chicago and other large cities. It has also spread to a few European countries, Australia and Canada.
The company has also made a remarkable leap in 2022, reportedly becoming a unicorn for the second time in its history, with a peak valuation of more than $2 billion following new funding. But the company also had to contend with other brands such as Nayuki (奈雪的茶), Chagee (茶颜悦色) and many other small businesses. To out-innovate the competition, HEYTEA dabbled in product innovation, such as coffee drinks with tea, low sugar coffee drinks, and even tea cocktails for evening use.

The brand emphasized on the topic of “digitalization” and sustainability for the years 2023 – 2025. It created its own mini-program and loyalty app, added more plant-based milk varieties and promoted ethical practices in tea leaf procurement. For several years, Nie Yunchen, who had been mostly silent, started spreading his ideas on the “modernisation” of Chinese tea culture and its introduction to the global public.In 2026, HEYTEA has more than 1200 stores around the world, most of which are still in mainland China. The brand has managed to succeed in changing its business from a milk tea store in Guangdong to a modern lifestyle brand that embodies the young people’s culture in China. Its signature cheese tea is still in demand, but there are hundreds of SKUs, seasonal collections, and collaboration with fashion labels, artists and even luxury labels.

Cultural Impact and Legacy

In addition to its success in the marketplace, the most significant impact HEYTEA has had is to promote Chinese tea culture. For so long, the Chinese had the idea that tea was limited to old-fashioned tea houses or low quality bubble tea. HEYTEA transformed high-quality tea into a cool, photogenic and desirable social item. It helped to launch the entire “new tea drinks” category, worth more than $100 billion in China alone.
It was also the first to introduce several of the features that are commonplace in the industry today:

• Aesthetic store design is a type of marketing.
• Limited-edition drops and scarcity marketing
• Constantly heavy use of social media Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs)
• Traditional Chinese tea and Western tea-making techniques are integrated.

Conclusion

HEYTEA’s history is a modern entrepreneurial success story. The brand was launched by its founder Nie Yunchen in 14 years, it already had a great success in sale and even reshaped the way a generation drinks tea. From the small shop in Jiangmen to the presence in dozens of countries, HEYTEA is the confidence, creativity and ambition of the new consumer economy in China.
The brand is still evolving and growing, and its principle is still the same: to bring happiness (“喜”) to people with exquisite tea. From the classic cheese foam oolong to the new and exciting ones, HEYTEA has made it clear that tea, one of the oldest drinks in the world, is ever as fresh, fashionable and surprising.