How to open a bubble tea shop in the UK (plus dessert and juice bars)
Updated 19 October 2026
To open a bubble tea shop in the UK, decide between a franchise and going independent, find a busy unit near students or shoppers, register with your council at least 28 days before opening, and get your allergen information right: milk, soya and gluten hide in many toppings and creamers. A kiosk typically costs £25,000–£60,000 to open and a high-street shop £50,000–£150,000 (typical estimates). Bubble tea's margin is high, so the business lives or dies on footfall and speed.
The same steps work for dessert shops (waffles, gelato, cookie dough) and juice and smoothie bars. We flag the differences as we go.
Not legal or financial advice. Based on FSA, HMRC and planning guidance checked on 11 October 2026. Check planning and licensing with your council, and VAT with an accountant.
Step 1: Franchise or independent?
| Franchise | Independent | |
|---|---|---|
| Upfront cost | Franchise fee + fit-out to brand standard (often higher) | Your own fit-out (can be cheaper) |
| Ongoing cost | Royalties and marketing levy, often a % of sales | None |
| Recipes and suppliers | Provided; you may have to buy from them | You choose and negotiate |
| Brand recognition | Instant | You build it |
| Freedom | Limited | Full |
Before you sign a franchise: ask for the full franchise agreement and financials, speak to at least three existing franchisees, check whether the franchisor belongs to the British Franchise Association, and get a solicitor who knows franchising to read the contract.
Step 2: Pick your location
Bubble tea and dessert shops depend on footfall and impulse buys. Good spots:
- Near universities and colleges. Students are the core bubble tea market.
- Shopping streets and centres. A kiosk in a mall can beat a side-street shop.
- Evening food areas for dessert shops. Peak trade is often 7pm–11pm.
- Gyms, stations and offices for juice and smoothie bars, with morning trade.
Count passers-by at the times you'll be busiest, and check how many similar shops already trade nearby.
Step 3: Budget your start-up costs
| Cost | Kiosk or small unit (estimate) | High-street shop with seating (estimate) |
|---|---|---|
| Rent deposit and legal fees | £3,000–£10,000 | £6,000–£20,000 |
| Fit-out, plumbing, electrics | £8,000–£25,000 | £20,000–£60,000 |
| Equipment (see Step 4) | £6,000–£15,000 | £10,000–£25,000 |
| Signage and branding | £1,000–£4,000 | £2,000–£8,000 |
| EPOS, card readers, ordering tools | £0–£2,000 | £0–£3,000 |
| Opening stock and cups | £1,500–£4,000 | £2,000–£5,000 |
| Working capital (3 months) | £8,000–£20,000 | £15,000–£35,000 |
| Rough total | £25,000–£60,000 | £50,000–£150,000 |
Typical estimates for 2026. Franchise fees are extra.
Step 4: Buy your equipment
| Equipment | Typical cost (estimate) | Used for |
|---|---|---|
| Automatic cup sealing machine | £400–£2,500 | Bubble tea |
| Tea brewer or urns | £300–£2,000 | Bubble tea |
| Fructose or syrup dispenser | £300–£1,500 | Bubble tea, consistent sweetness |
| Shaker machine | £300–£1,200 | Bubble tea |
| Pearl cooker or induction hob and pots | £200–£1,500 | Tapioca pearls |
| Commercial blenders (×2) | £300–£1,500 | Smoothies, slushes |
| Ice machine | £1,000–£4,000 | All drinks |
| Under-counter fridges and freezer | £1,500–£5,000 | All |
| Waffle or crêpe makers | £300–£1,500 each | Desserts |
| Gelato or soft-serve display | £3,000–£15,000 | Desserts |
| Cold-press juicer | £1,000–£6,000 | Juice bars |
Suppliers: buy tapioca pearls, teas, powders and syrups from established UK distributors. They handle import checks and English labelling, so you get full ingredient and allergen details for every product.
Step 5: Check planning and licences
- England: cafés and shops are both in Class E, so a vacant shop can usually become a bubble tea or dessert shop without planning permission. A hot food takeaway is "sui generis" and needs permission. A shop selling mostly hot waffles and crêpes to take away could be treated as one, so ask the council early.
- Wales: shops are Class A1 and cafés A3, and changing a shop to a café needs planning permission. Scotland: shops are Class 1A and cafés Class 3. Since 31 March 2023 many Class 1A shops can become a café without planning permission, with exceptions (for example, close to homes), so check with your council.
- Northern Ireland: cafés and hot food takeaways sit outside every use class, so a shop becoming a café needs planning permission.
- Late night refreshment: in England and Wales, selling hot food or hot drinks between 11pm and 5am (hot waffles, crêpes, hot chocolate) needs a premises licence. Cold bubble tea and ice cream alone don't. Scotland uses a late hours catering licence.
- Signs: illuminated signs often need advertisement consent.
- Music: playing music to customers usually needs TheMusicLicence.
Step 6: Register and set up food safety
- Register with your council at least 28 days before opening. It's free.
- Food safety system: Safer Food, Better Business (CookSafe in Scotland) or a HACCP plan. Include:
- Tapioca pearls: cooked pearls only keep for a short time. Set a holding time from your supplier's guidance and bin leftovers.
- Ice is food. Clean and sanitise the ice machine on a schedule, and use a scoop, never a cup.
- Fresh fruit and milk in the fridge at 8°C or below by law (5°C or below is good practice).
- Soft-serve and gelato machines: follow the maker's cleaning cycle every day.
- Juice bars: freshly pressed, unpasteurised juice can carry harmful bacteria. Wash produce well, keep juice cold and set short use-by times.
- Training: Level 2 food hygiene for all staff is the usual standard.
Step 7: Get allergens right
Bubble tea and dessert menus are an allergen minefield because customers customise every drink.
| Ingredient | Allergens to check |
|---|---|
| Milk teas, creamer, cheese foam | Milk. "Non-dairy" creamer can still contain milk protein, so read the label |
| Soya milk, some toppings | Soya |
| Oat milk, waffles, cookies, cones, biscuit toppings | Cereals containing gluten |
| Nut syrups, praline, Nutella-style spreads | Nuts, often peanuts too |
| Waffles, crêpes, custard | Eggs, milk, gluten |
| Some toppings and mochi | Sesame, soya |
| Dried fruit | Sulphites |
Build a full chart with the allergen matrix maker and read our 14 allergens guide. Online and app orders must show allergen information before purchase and at delivery.
If you take orders through Menuthere, you can tag any of the 14 allergens, the calories and a halal mark on each drink and dessert, on every plan including Free. Customers see them when they open the item, so the details are there before they pay. Keep your full allergen matrix too, and tell staff to check toppings when a customer changes their order.
Step 8: Price your menu (and watch the VAT)
Worked example: a 500 ml milk tea with pearls (typical estimate)
| Cost per cup | |
|---|---|
| Tea | £0.08 |
| Milk or creamer | £0.25 |
| Syrup | £0.05 |
| Tapioca pearls (60 g) | £0.18 |
| Cup, sealing film, straw | £0.22 |
| Ice | £0.02 |
| Total cost | £0.80 |
| Price inc VAT | £4.95 |
| Price ex VAT (if standard-rated) | £4.13 |
| GP | about 81% |
VAT is tricky for these shops. Rules only apply once you're VAT-registered (above £90,000 turnover):
| Product | Takeaway | Eaten in |
|---|---|---|
| Ice cream, frozen yoghurt, sorbet | 20% | 20% |
| Fruit juices and smoothies | 20% | 20% |
| Cold milkshakes | 0% | 20% |
| Hot waffles and crêpes (heated to order) | 20% | 20% |
| Cold cakes and cookies (not chocolate-covered biscuits, which are 20%) | 0% | 20% |
| Bubble tea (milk tea, fruit tea) | Check with your accountant | 20% |
Bubble tea doesn't fit neatly into HMRC's categories. Cold milk drinks and tea can be zero-rated to take away, but HMRC standard-rates soft drinks that contain tea as only one of several ingredients, and syrups for standard-rated drinks. So agree the rate for each drink with an accountant before you print prices. See our VAT on takeaway food guide and check every item with the GP calculator.
Sugar tax? The Soft Drinks Industry Levy applies to packaged soft drinks made or imported by producers. Drinks made to order in your shop are outside it. From 1 January 2028 the levy also covers pre-packaged milk-based drinks with added sugar, but open-cup drinks made in cafés stay out of scope.
Step 9: Speed up the queue
A bubble tea order has many choices: size, sugar level, ice level, toppings. Taking them at the till slows everything down.
- QR ordering lets customers choose every option on their phone while they wait. Try our free QR code menu or a table ordering system for seated dessert shops.
- Order ahead for collection for students between lectures and office workers.
- A loyalty card for every tenth drink. Make one with our loyalty card maker, or use digital loyalty points (Menuthere Pro). Once you have daily regulars, your own bubble tea app with points and push offers is on the Branded App plan (US$99 a month).
CTA: let customers build their own drink on their phone. Menuthere gives your shop a commission-free ordering page and QR menu with sizes and add-ons, so sugar level, ice and toppings are picked before they reach the counter. QR codes, an ordering page and allergen and calorie details on every item are free (50 orders a month). Lite adds unlimited orders, card payments through your own Stripe account and coupons, from US$17 a month (billed in US dollars; your bank converts it). Create your free ordering page or see Menuthere for cafés.
Step 10: Launch and grow
- Social media sells this category. Post colourful drinks and new flavours on Instagram and TikTok.
- Seasonal specials (mango in summer, brown sugar and hot drinks in winter) give people a reason to come back.
- Delivery apps can add sales, but they charge around 30% plus VAT when they deliver. Use your own ordering page for regulars.
- Hire and pay fairly: the National Living Wage is £12.71 an hour (21+) from April 2026.
Thinking of ice cream on wheels instead? Read how to start an ice cream van business.
Rules across the UK
| England | Wales | Scotland | Northern Ireland | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Register food business | 28 days before opening | 28 days before opening | 28 days before opening | 28 days before opening |
| Shop / café planning class | Class E | A1 / A3 | Class 1A / Class 3 | Café is outside the use classes (needs permission) |
| Hot food or drink 11pm–5am | Late night refreshment licence | Late night refreshment licence | Late hours catering licence | Licensing Act 2003 doesn't apply; check opening-hour conditions with your council |
| Hygiene rating display | Voluntary | Required by law | FHIS (Pass / Improvement Required) | Required by law |
FAQs
How much does it cost to open a bubble tea shop in the UK?
As a typical estimate, £25,000–£60,000 for a kiosk or small unit and £50,000–£150,000 for a high-street shop with seating. Franchise fees are extra.
Is a bubble tea shop profitable?
The GP per cup is high, often around 80%, but rent and wages are big costs. Shops near universities and busy shopping streets with fast service do best.
Should I buy a bubble tea or dessert franchise?
A franchise gives you recipes, suppliers and a known brand, but you pay fees and royalties and have less freedom. Talk to existing franchisees and get legal advice before signing.
Do I need a licence to open a dessert shop?
You must register as a food business 28 days before opening. In England and Wales, you need a late night refreshment licence to sell hot food or drinks between 11pm and 5am. Check planning if you'll sell mostly hot food to take away.
What allergens are in bubble tea?
Commonly milk (including in "non-dairy" creamers), soya, gluten (oat milk, biscuit toppings), and sometimes nuts, peanuts, eggs and sesame in toppings. Check every ingredient label.
Is there VAT on bubble tea?
Eaten in, it's 20%. Takeaway bubble tea is less clear-cut, so agree the rate with your accountant. Ice cream, juices and smoothies are always 20%, and cold milkshakes to take away are 0%.
How do I open a juice bar in the UK?
Follow the same steps: location, registration, food safety and allergens. Take extra care with unpasteurised juice: wash produce, keep juice cold and set short use-by times. Juices and smoothies are standard-rated for VAT.
Sources (9)
- GOV.UK / FSA, Starting a food business and Register a food business (accessed 11 Oct 2026).
- FSA, allergen guidance for food businesses and distance selling (allergen information before purchase and at delivery), food.gov.uk (accessed 11 Oct 2026).
- HMRC, VAT Notice 701/14 Food products and VAT Notice 709/1 Catering and take-away food, gov.uk (accessed 11 Oct 2026).
- Licensing Act 2003, Schedule 2 (late night refreshment), legislation.gov.uk (accessed 11 Oct 2026).
- HM Treasury / HMRC, Soft Drinks Industry Levy policy paper and Soft drinks industry levy changes (packaged drinks only; changes from 1 January 2028), gov.uk; UKHospitality SDIL guidance (accessed 11 Oct 2026).
- The Town and Country Planning (Use Classes) (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2020 and Use Classes Order 1987 art. 3(6), legislation.gov.uk (accessed 11 Oct 2026).
- Welsh Government, Planning permission: use classes and change of use, gov.wales; Town and Country Planning (Use Classes) (Scotland) Order 1997 as amended by SSI 2023/35; Planning (Use Classes) Order (Northern Ireland) 2015 art. 3(4), legislation.gov.uk (accessed 11 Oct 2026).
- HM Treasury, Changes to the Soft Drinks Industry Levy policy paper, gov.uk (accessed 11 Oct 2026).
- British Franchise Association, guidance on choosing a franchise, thebfa.org (accessed 11 Oct 2026).