The encyclopedia · Strategy & Leadership · Strategic decision · 2009–2025
Gong Cha shuttered all 29 Singapore outlets when the global parent refused to renew
Gong Cha Global declined to renew its Singapore master franchisee, closing all 29 outlets and exiting the market for a 2026 relaunch.
Gong Cha · Gong Cha Singapore · 2025-10-02
What happened
On 2 October 2025 Gong Cha closed all 29 of its Singapore outlets, ending an on-and-off presence in the market that began in 2009. The local entity was no longer a franchisee of the brand from 1 October.
The closure was a franchise decision, not a market failure. Gong Cha Global chose not to renew its agreement with incumbent master franchisee Gong Cha Singapore, headed by Kang Puay Seng, co-founder of Mr Bean.
The brand's Singapore history was already chequered. It first entered in 2009 under RTG Holdings, whose 84 outlets were converted to the homegrown LiHO brand in June 2017; Gong Cha re-entered in December 2017 under Kang's new franchisee.
Gong Cha Global framed the exit as temporary, citing strong results in Japan and South Korea, and said it would relaunch in Singapore in 2026 with new local franchisees under its global 'Gong Cha 2.0' revamp. Global CEO Paul Reynish called it 'not a goodbye, but a see you soon.'
Why it happened
- The global brand owner judged the incumbent master franchisee was not the operator it wanted for the relaunch, so it let the agreement lapse rather than renew.
- Gong Cha's '2.0' revamp, already rolled out overseas since 2024, gave the parent a reason to reset the whole Singapore network with new franchisees.
- A master franchise relationship is a single point of failure — when the brand and the operator disagree, the entire national network closes at once.
- Years of on-and-off brand management, including the 2017 handover to LiHO, left the brand without a stable local operator to build on.
The lesson
A brand that operates through a master franchisee puts its whole national footprint in one contract — when the brand and the operator diverge, the market vanishes overnight, not gradually.
Aftermath
Gong Cha closed all 29 Singapore outlets on 2 October 2025, with the local entity ceasing to be a franchisee from 1 October. The brand had entered the market in 2009 under RTG Holdings, whose 84 outlets were converted to the homegrown LiHO brand in June 2017; Gong Cha re-entered in December 2017 under a new master franchisee led by Kang Puay Seng. Gong Cha Global said it would relaunch in Singapore in 2026 with new local franchisees under its 'Gong Cha 2.0' revamp, citing strong results in Japan and South Korea.
Sources
- Channel News Asia — Bubble tea brand Gong Cha shuts all outlets in Singapore ahead of global relaunch (2 Oct 2025)
- The Straits Times — Gong Cha ceases operations in S'pore, shuts all stores islandwide (2 Oct 2025)
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