Thanks to building a personal brand on social networking platforms, Mr. Nguyen Ba Tung (30 years old, living in District 9, Ho Chi Minh City) can sell 800 cups of tea, equivalent to nearly 200kg of fruit every day.
“He sells tea to feed the whole family”, the funny sign makes everyone passing by Nguyen Xien Street (District 9, Ho Chi Minh City) curious and stop their eyes.
Few people know that before owning a tea shop of this scale, Mr. Tung started his business with just a cart bought with borrowed money.
With a new sales strategy, the owner increased revenue to 800 cups of tea, equivalent to 200kg of fruit per day during hot weather.
Starting a business with 0 dong and the pressure of “having to support a wife and children”
In early 2023, facing the difficult situation of the company, Mr. Tung proactively quit his office job. His source of income was interrupted while he was in debt, and his wife had just given birth to their first child, putting him in an extremely difficult situation.
During the days of unemployment during the peak hot season in Ho Chi Minh City, Mr. Tung immediately thought about starting a food business . Meanwhile, hearing that their son quit his stable desk job and had the opportunity to get promoted to work with his hands, Tung’s family firmly opposed.
“The name of the shop “He sells tea to support the whole family” was born in that harsh reality. Empty pockets forced me to always try hard, at least to support my wife and children,” Mr. Tung said.
The first half month, Mr. Tung took the bus to visit famous tea shops in Ho Chi Minh City. For each type of drink, he observes, analyzes the ingredients and takes careful notes in a separate notebook.
Grasping the trend of young people increasingly concerned about health and limiting fat and sugar, Mr. Tung created a tea that can be combined with fresh fruit. He researches the characteristics of each type of fruit, then chooses a method of cooking, making sauce, and soaking in sugar in certain quantities to create a different flavor.
From bringing to sales of 800 cups of tea/day
Immediately after finding a satisfactory formula, Mr. Tung borrowed 22 million VND to rent space on the sidewalk of Nguyen Xien (District 9, HCMC). On the first day of selling, people were not familiar with this new drink, so for 4 hours, Mr. Tung’s tea cart did not have a single customer stopping by.
“That day I was very discouraged because I spent the whole night cooking tea, and in the morning I stood in the hot, extremely harsh sun without any customers! If I had any money left, I would have towed the car back, but at that time I had already emptied my pockets so I had to do it.” determined not to allow myself to give up,” Mr. Tung said.
The brewed tea could not be brought home, so in the end, Mr. Tung decided to give it all to the surrounding pubs and restaurant owners. Unexpectedly, after seeing the taste of the tea to their liking, people came to support the owner of the fruit tea cart on the sidewalk.
After 2 weeks, the car “He sells tea to feed the whole family” has attracted young people from everywhere to film and take photos. By sharing the entrepreneurial journey of an office worker on social networks, Mr. Tung also quickly had a TikTok channel with nearly 100,000 followers.
After 3 months of starting his business, Mr. Tung decided to rent a large space so customers could sit and drink tea, and open mixing classes. Every day, his tea cart always reaches 500 cups of tea, especially during hot weather: 800 cups, equivalent to 200-250kg of fresh fruit.
“Up to now, I have not only paid off all my debt, supported my wife and children, but also created jobs for my family members,” Mr. Tung said.
In the midst of popularity, we have to worry when the trend recedes
According to Mr. Tung, the good consumption of tea is because he chose the right time of peak heat to open the shop. In addition, what determines 80% of success is taking advantage of communication strengths and introducing yourself on social networking platforms.
Initially, when there were no customers, Mr. Tung thought about doing something to attract attention. Immediately, he set up a fanpage, a TikTok channel, and produced content about his journey of quitting a salaried job to start a business… Stories describing Mr. Tung’s daily life attracted millions of views, reaching more than 5 million people. million social network users.
“I appreciate perseverance and effort, because in the most difficult circumstances , when forced to go out to make money, I somehow have twice the strength. Previously, I studied at the Academy of Journalism and Communications. traditional, never learned how to mix and really just built this business model in the mindset of needing a job to make money,” he said.
After becoming famous on social networks, Mr. Tung regularly organizes free workshops, sharing experiences for young people pursuing small business activities.
In the fruit tea business, according to him, workers do not need too much capital. Mr. Tung advises entrepreneurs to choose a safe level of startup capital so that even if they fail, they will not lose everything. In addition, it is necessary to be equipped with basic knowledge about drinks, calculating costs, capturing customer files, building a brand…
Fruit tea, toast, coin cake… are all hot trending foods and drinks that will eventually decline. In order to maintain his business, Mr. Tung said he is constantly being creative with his products.
With the source of fruit ingredients, Mr. Tung has tinkered with making many types of drinks and other foods to prepare for the change.
“Each product has its own cycle of ups and downs, forcing business people to always be alert. Right when fruit tea was popular, I researched new dishes such as kombucha tea, dried fruit, and sauces. fruits… All are based on the same raw materials but with different processing methods and different products to create new trends,” Mr. Tung said.
($1=24,000 VND)
Photo,Video: Internet (Vinlove.net)