Cai Ca has debuted with outlets at Lot One, Bugis Junction, NUS UTown, King Albert Park, Northpoint City, and Century Square, with another planned at the National University of Singapore.

Former Gong Cha Singapore CEO Kang Puay Seng, who also co-founded the local Mr Bean soy milk chain, said he and his team drew on their past experience to develop the new tea brand in roughly a month, as reported by Channel News Asia.

Cai Ca’s menu offers drinks made with Japanese soya milk and tea, with items such as Osmanthus Soy Milk Tea, Toffee Chewy Pearl Soy Milk Tea and Da Hong Pao Soy Milk Tea, according to AsiaOne.

It also offers fresh milk tea and other tea options and plans to launch healthier drinks and snacks to pair with its beverages.

Gong Cha, founded in Taiwan, was one of the first bubble tea brands to enter Singapore, opening its inaugural outlet in 2009 and quickly gaining popularity. The brand briefly left the market in June 2017 before returning six months later under franchisee Gong Cha Singapore.

It closed all 29 of its Singapore outlets early last month but plans to return in 2026 with new local franchisees, bringing its updated Gong Cha 2.0 stores to the city-state.

Despite the shake-up, all of Gong Cha’s more than 20 full-time staff were retained and are now part of the team at Cai Ca.

“From the first day we ended operations, every member of the team faced unimaginable pressure. Day and night, they worked tirelessly, running together towards building our in-house brand,” Kang said, as quoted by The Straits Times.

“We want to first build a strong brand image and product quality, then expand gradually.”