Less than four months into 2021, Beijing-based business data company Qimingpian counts 14 fundraising deals in China’s tea and coffee market.
These deals include investments in Hey Tea and Nayuki, tea-based beverage companies that have each reportedly reached valuations of about $2 billion or more in the last several months.
In December, Chinese business news site 36kr reported that Shanghai-based Manner Coffee received another round of investment that valued it at more than $1 billion.
“Entry of new competitors to the specialty coffee market in China” was one of the business risks Starbucks listed in its annual report filed in November.
But the market for tea drinks was twice as large as that of coffee in China and that gap is expected to expand this year, Meituan said citing industry data.
Hey Tea is second to Starbucks in China’s specialist coffee and tea shop market, with an 8.8% share, according to Euromonitor.