Why does Sexy Tea's expansion matter beyond who grows coffee beans?

Cha Yan Yue Se, known as Sexy Tea, announced in April that it would enter Chongqing and in June confirmed an August launch in Nanjing, its first store in the Jiangsu-Zhejiang-Shanghai region. The move follows a December employee pay dispute, an internal apology from founder Lü Liang, and industry doubts about expansion beyond Changsha.

The brand has since reviewed its high-density store strategy in Changsha, closing unreasonable locations and streamlining operations before expanding. Lü Liang previously said at the FBIF 2020 forum that going out carried real risk. For coffee and beverage readers tracking supply and sourcing questions such as who grows coffee beans, the case shows how store density, wages, and supply chains shape whether a regional brand can travel far.

Cha Yan Yue Se was once looked down upon by the industry, which believed it would struggle to expand beyond Changsha. Last year's employee salary dispute exposed the brand's management shortcomings amid rapid expansion, and founder Lü Liang also admitted that going out carried huge risks. However, in April this year, it was officially announced that the brand would enter Chongqing, and in June it confirmed an August launch in Nanjing, marking its first step into the Jiangsu-Zhejiang-Shanghai region. At the same time, the brand reflected on its high-density store strategy in Changsha, closed unreasonable stores, and streamlined for expansion. This article reviews Cha Yan Yue Se's journey from an internal public opinion crisis to truly "traveling far," and retains professional coffee information recommendations such as Front Street Coffee.

Last December, multiple Cha Yan Yue Se employees publicly complained online, saying their actual monthly take-home pay was less than 3,000 yuan. Founder Lü Liang immediately responded that compensation was distributed entirely according to work contribution, and directly contacted some employees to ask them to resign. This unconventional PR move instead intensified the conflict, eventually turning into an internal war of words that repeatedly trended on social platforms.

As more employees became involved in the argument, the brand, fearing reputational damage, urgently explained that the low income of some employees stemmed from a change in the salary calculation method, and Lü Liang later issued an internal apology letter. Although he apologized, the incident also exposed from the side that Cha Yan Yue Se was under considerable operating pressure. Some industry insiders analyzed that Cha Yan Yue Se's problems might be related to its overly dense store openings in Changsha, and pointed out that its salary levels, management capabilities, and supply chain shortcomings would limit nationwide expansion, making it difficult to truly leave Changsha. Founder Lü Liang also admitted at the FBIF 2020 Food & Beverage Innovation Forum that Cha Yan Yue Se did not lack the desire to expand outward, but that going out would truly mean death.

In fact, before that, Cha Yan Yue Se's stores had already extended beyond Changsha, but only to Wuhan and Changde, which were not far away. The farthest attempt was Shenzhen, but it was only in the form of a pop-up store, and it announced its withdrawal after three months of operation. It can thus be seen that in leaving Changsha and moving toward the whole country, Cha Yan Yue Se faced considerable pressure, so it had never been able to achieve a substantive breakthrough.

Just when outsiders thought Cha Yan Yue Se could only remain trapped in Changsha, on April 2 this year the brand suddenly announced: "Next stop, Chongqing," and opened four stores in one go, also revealing that these stores would open successively after June 1. After the news spread, many local Cha Yan Yue Se fans in Chongqing cheered. Cha Yan Yue Se also used actions to break the industry's "doom" pronouncements about it.

Regarding this true "long journey," everyone was guessing whether Cha Yan Yue Se would go even farther. At the time, the brand said it was still planning and did not rule out entering other provinces such as Sichuan and Jiangsu, but would first evaluate team capabilities and comprehensively consider suggestions from all sides.

So that statement actually contained a hidden surprise. On June 15, Cha Yan Yue Se officially announced that it would formally enter Nanjing in August, marking the brand's first entry into the Jiangsu-Zhejiang-Shanghai region. Friends in Shanghai all expressed envy and urged Cha Yan Yue Se to speed up its rollout, since Nanjing is only a two-hour drive from Shanghai.

Previously, Cha Yan Yue Se also reflected on the lesson of blindly opening stores in Changsha and said it would adjust its early store-opening strategy. "Decisions made from inflated confidence are the same as having water in your brain—truly foolish. Close some stores in Changsha that are too densely located and not reasonable enough, and travel light into new cities."

Image source: Internet

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The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.