While Ho Chi Minh City’s milk tea market is heating up in the mass segment with rising price competition, the premium tier is following a very different playbook. The rivalry between Koi Thé and Gong Cha highlights two distinct approaches to creating consumer value.

Based on real receipt data, i-Panel analyzes milk tea purchasing behavior in Ho Chi Minh City in the second half of 2025 to unpack this dynamic.

✨ 𝐁𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐏𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠: 𝐀 𝐖𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐆𝐚𝐩
In H2 2025, Koi Thé and Gong Cha were among the few premium brands remaining in the top 10 by both penetration and value share in Ho Chi Minh City.
Koi Thé reached 13.72% penetration, nearly double Gong Cha’s 6.95%, and led the market with 9.86% value share, compared to 2.56% for Gong Cha (ranked 7th).
👉 Scale in the buyer base forms the first layer of Koi Thé’s value advantage.

✨ 𝐏𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐁𝐞𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐨𝐫: 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐀𝐝𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐈𝐬 𝐍𝐨𝐭 𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐏𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐞
Operating within the same premium segment, average price per item does not differ significantly between the two brands. The real difference lies in how consumers spend and return.
– Spend per trip: Koi Thé (135,863 VND) vs. Gong Cha (103,384 VND)
– Items per trip: Koi Thé (2.37) vs. Gong Cha (1.95)
– Purchase frequency: Koi Thé (1.42 times/month) vs. Gong Cha (1.18 times/month)
👉 Stronger performance across all purchase dimensions allows Koi Thé to accumulate value faster over time, translating into a clear advantage in value share.

✨ 𝐒𝐡𝐨𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐫 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐟𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐬: 𝐓𝐰𝐨 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐞𝐫 𝐁𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐬, 𝐓𝐰𝐨 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐭𝐡 𝐏𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐬
Shopper profiles further clarify these divergent paths.
– Koi Thé over-indexes among younger consumers (15–29) who are single and without children—a group with higher spending capacity and purchase frequency driven by flexible lifestyles and experience-oriented consumption. However, this group is also more experimental, resulting in less stable long-term loyalty.
– Gong Cha attracts more consumers aged 30 and above, many of whom are married with children. While they purchase less frequently, this group tends to show higher loyalty, lower brand switching, and more stable value contribution over time.
👉 These demographic differences not only shape brand perception, but also directly influence each brand’s long-term business performance.

The Koi Thé–Gong Cha comparison shows that in the premium bubble tea segment, success is driven not just by how many consumers enter the brand, but by how often they return.

🚀 See you next week on Weekly Insight, as i-Panel continues to track market movements.

#MilkTea #ShopperBehavior #KoiThe #GongCha
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