Vietnamese tea chain Phuc Long is to make international debut, opening its first US store launching next month.
Founded in 1968 as a tea brand, Phuc Long opened its first brick and mortar store in Ho Chi Minh City in 2012, from which it also sells coffees. The tea chain now operates more than 82 stores, mainly in HCMC.
Located at Garden Grove, California, the new store will feature a design inspired by traditional Vietnamese houses. The store layout will follow the same interior style as in Vietnam. The exact launch date and location have not yet been unveiled.
The chain’s launch follows the recent acquisition of a 20-per-cent cornerstone stake by the country’s FMCG-turned-retail conglomerate Masan. Since the acquisition, Phuc Long has begun rolling out a new retail model installing kiosks inside Massan’s 2200 Masan’s Vinmart+ outlets across the country (which are progressively being rebranded Winmart+), further expanding its reach to customers via takeaways.
Phuc Long is not the first Vietnamese retail brand to enter the US this year. Last month, Vietnamese coffee brand King Coffee opened its first store in the country – at Orange Grove in California – targetting 20 outlets in the US this year and 100 by the end of next.
