A CASE STUDY: MILK TEA BUSINESS EFFECTIVE IMPLEMENTATION OF QUALITY

MANAGEMENT SYSTEM IN THE AMIDST OF PANDEMIC COVID-19

Bulacan State University - Bustos Campus

Cruz, Mark Janssen V., Dela Merced, Gabrielle B., De Vera, Adrian C.,
Ramos, Jerickson M., Trinidad David Brian R., Vigonte, Florinda G.

Email Address:Adrian.devera.c@bulsu.edu.ph;Davidbrian.trinidad.r@bulsu.edu.ph;
Gabrielle.delamerced.b@bulsu.edu.ph;Jerickson.ramos.m@bulsu.edu.ph;
florinda.vigonte@bulsu.edu.ph;Markjanssen.cruz.v@bulsu.edu.ph

Abstract attention of many financial and economic

This research is derived from a depth
study on the Milk tea business around Bulacan
using the survey as a method of data collection.
It will present and discuss the findings of the
Milk Tea Business: Effective Implementation of
Quality Management System in the Amidst of
Pandemic Covid-19. The purpose of this study is
for future entrepreneurs for them to have
knowledge on what is the importance of a
Quality Management System in every business,
even if it’s small or big business, and it can also
be a guide for them on how to run a business in
the middle of a pandemic. This study shows the
encouragement for the future entrepreneurs to
keep on running the business and learn many
things, especially on how they can attract
customers’ during this time of the pandemic
Introduction
In early 2020, a new and infectious
disease called COVID-19 started in Wuhan,
China. With its widespread prevalence
worldwide, most countries have suffered from
its destructive economic effects (Song et al.,
2021). Substantial evidence has suggested that
the economic crisis raised by Coronavirus is
entirely different from past financial ones
considering its reason, range, and severity (Song
et al., 2021; Ding et al. 2020). Hence, the
importance of the economic effects of the
COVID-19 Pandemic currently has attracted the
researchers around the world. In times of
monetary crisis, one of the appropriate solutions
to get rid of financial problems is to make the
right decisions regarding working capital
management policies (Salehi et al., 2019). With
the entry of the COVID-19 crisis in the early
part of 2020, normalcy and life-as-usual scenario
in the Philippines was upended in never-before-
seen ways.
Many businesses had collapsed
inevitably during the year 2019 until now when
COVID-19 Pandemic occurred. However, not all
business owners have decided to close their
company; instead, they think of another business
that may help them support their financial needs
even in the middle of the Pandemic. The first
milk tea shop in the Philippines, named
"Serenitea," opened in December 2008 and is
owned by Peter and Juliet Chen. They lived in
Taiwan and introduced the tea blend to the
Filipinos. Though, it has not been that popular
before for Filipinos to prefer coffee to tea.
This study is all about the effectiveness
of quality management system to the milk tea
shops here in the Philippines, especially during
this time of Pandemic and to contextualize the
quality management in the market and the
activities related to quality function as well as
discussing marketing and business management
analytical models that'll help analyze the current

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situation of the online environment in the
Philippines' food industry to enable existing and
potential e-commerce businesses to optimize
their growth potential at a maximum-possible
level.
The milk tea business is a famous tea-
based drink that originated in Tainan and
Taichung in Taiwan in the year the 1980s. It was
invented by a Taiwanese tea shop owner Liu
Han-Chieh, his product development manager
Lin Hsiu Hui. The milk tea that we knew today
was discovered by adding different ingredients
such as fruits, syrups, and tapioca pearls into
other tea with milk beverages. Milk tea first
gained popularity in the 1990s throughout Asia.
It became more popular in the United States and
Europe in the year the 2000s. The popularity
turned into a global situation due to the
versatility and flexibility of the toppings and
flavor combinations that consumers could
choose from. The global phenomenon of milk
tea In the same article, the projection of the
increase in the market will be in North America
followed by Asia-Pacific, Europe, and LAMEA.
For North America, it is said that the U.S. will
be at the top, followed by Canada and Mexico.
For Europe, places like the United Kingdom,
Germany, France, and Italy will be the top
regions. Moreover, Asia-Pacific has China as the
whole country, followed by Japan, India,
Australia, and Taiwan. LAMEA will cover
Brazil, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, and Turkey.
Considering the components of milk tea,
its sweet and original flavor was its selling point
in different regions. With its sweet flavor, it
captured people's hearts and eventually entered
the beverage market. Milk tea shops eventually
spread throughout malls, parks, and
neighborhoods. With that, the significant spread
of milk tea shops has been observed worldwide.
Shops from different Asian regions like the Cha-
time group, Co-Co, Gong-Cha, all of which are
from China and Taiwan, and Tiger Sugar from
Korea, spread. These brands eventually went
international, and people in those countries
capitalized on the trend and made their brands.
Fortune Business Insight included the U.S.
brand Boba-Loca Inc., Lollicup USA, Inc., and
Kung Fu Tea. Moreover, the United Kingdom
has its brand called Happy Lemon.
The coronavirus disease health crisis
may have decreased the economy. However,
many Filipinos still have the natural resilient
spirit and resourcefulness in making ends meet
and even rising amid the Pandemic. In the
present day, Milk tea shops are trendy, and the
researcher of this case study sees it as an
opportunity to contribute to the falling economy
of the Philippines. Milk tea shops can be found
on seemingly every corner, so milk tea shops
owners need to establish an identity for their
establishments. This means identifying the type
of customers you want to attract. For example,
do you aim to cater primarily to the "hipster"
crowd, the "stroller brigade" of young parents
looking for a place to congregate with friends or
people who work in nearby offices? Once you've
determined who your target audience is, prevent
an "identity crisis" by doing everything from
choosing a name and location to set a menu with
that audience in mind.
The purpose of this study is for future
entrepreneurs to know the importance of a
Quality Management System in every business,
even if it's small or big business. It can also
guide them on how to run a business in the
middle of the Pandemic. This study shows the
encouragement for the future entrepreneurs to
keep running the business and learn many
things, especially on how they can attract
customers' during this time of Pandemic.
The following are the objectives of this case
study research:
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1. To better understand the current state of
an entrepreneur in the middle of a pandemic.
2. Identify the importance of the QMS
quality management system in the business.
3. To understand how quality management
benefits business.
This study will solve the economic
recession in the Philippines as it will provide
appropriate solutions and recommendations on
how milk tea shop owners can attract more
customers and establish identity regardless of
the COVID 19 situation—for instance,
implementing a quality management system in a
small business such as a milk tea shop.
Implementation of a Quality management
system in a small business like a milk tea shop is
valuable as QMS helps the company achieve
specific goals and objectives. Furthermore, QMS
will continuously improve the business'
effectiveness and efficiency in the economy.
Literature Review
Quality control is part of many aspects
of life. It dates back to medieval Europe, where
artisans began organizing into unions called
guilds in the late 13th century (ASQ, 2020a).
American acceptable experts, W. Edwards
Deming. Deming created 14 factors of Total
Quality Management (TQM) that offer a
framework to expand understanding within side
the place of job and can use that to guide long-
term business plans (British Library, 2016).
Many companies focus on tools and practices
rather than creating quality control
infrastructures with positive long-term results
(Johansson, 2007). The COVID19 Pandemic
affects all aspects of food security that the
United Nations defines as food availability,
accessibility, use, and stability (Niles et al.,
2020).
International delivery chain troubles have
created a national boba scarcity. North Texas
companies who rely upon this cherished
beverage topping are scrambling to fulfill the
growing call for as summertime season begins.
Demand for distant places merchandise and a
scarcity of employees to dump shipments
because of the Pandemic has precipitated ships
to be caught on the Los Angeles and San
Francisco ports for approximately a month,
stated Abdul Rasheed, strategic control global
enterprise professor.
The Boba scarcity is the cutting-edge
instance of the world delivery chain troubles
which have been a defining feature of the
closing 12 months and a half. The 2019
Coronavirus Disease (Covid19) Health Crisis
may have caused an economic disaster. Still,
many Filipinos cannot achieve their goals and
even stand up during a pandemic rich in
resilience and wisdom.
Hello's Kit Tea Garden owner, Catz Alejo. All
means are available to ensure that their company
survives the current crisis. Mr. Alejo talked
about the milk tea business as quarantine
restrictions banned or restricted the foodservice
industry had survived thanks to online delivery
services. (Nepomuceno 2020)
Methodology
The case study method is a learning
method that supports the milk tea business
where the student has faced a particular case
problem. The case study is a genuine issue
within a defined context, using various data
sources (Baxter et al., 2008). In general terms,
the case study analyzes a problem of an actual
situation. It uses accurate information as a
methodological tool. In this chapter, the
researchers of this case study use a qualitative
approach to determine the fundamental problem
of establishing a Milk tea business amid the
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COVID-19 Pandemic. The purpose of the
question scattered by the researchers to some
Milk tea Owners is to achieve valuable
descriptive data by gathering observations
without intervening.
The way to achieve the data is by using
the online platform "Google Forms" to virtually
send the questionnaire without having personal
interaction between the researchers and the
participants. The researchers also did not include
their personal information for their privacy. The
survey consisted of 5 questions. The aim was
about 10 Milk tea Managers, but 2 of the
participants could not answer the survey.
Participants were given limited time to fill in the
survey anonymously, and 8 Milk tea Owners
responded. All respondents fully completed the
study included eight survey results in the
analysis. The researchers used the survey to
select participants who belonged to the target
group (Milk tea Owners).
The following are the questions used in the
survey to achieve the data that will interpret in
the Result and Discussion;
1. Who are the Primary Competitors in the
Industry?
2. How is the solution different from my
Competitors?
3. Who Is your Ideal Customer?
4. As the business manager, how do you
define success after the First Year?
5. What is your Milk tea different from
other Milk tea Businesses?
Results
This chapter describes the results and
analysis of an online survey questionnaire
regarding the study entitled "Milk Tea Business
Effective implementation of Quality
Management System in the Amidst of Pandemic
Covid-19".
The researchers received eight
respondents from the targeted ten respondents,
which constitutes an 80% response rate for the
survey. Out of 8 respondents, 100% have
completed all the questions required to be
answered. Furthermore, data presentation,
analysis, and interpretation will not proclaim any
confidential information that the researchers
have promised to keep private.
This chapter focuses on presenting the
gathered data in a meaningful way to facilitate
the discussions shown in the following chapter.
The following are the responses of milk tea
business owners on who are their primary
competitors in the Industry.
Respondent no.1: “Primary competitors are
those businesses who offer products similar to
what you offer or similar target market.
Examples: Macau Imperial, Gong Cha & Lucky
Bunny”
Respondent no.2: “I love Milk tea & Tastes
from the Greens.”
Respondent no.3: “Covid-19 and other milk tea
shop”
Respondent no.4: “Shake and other Milk tea
brand”
Respondent no.5: “Iced coffee and other
milkshakes”
Respondent no.6: “Other Sellers.”
Respondent no.7: “Manga Shake”
Respondent no.8: “Café Shop”
The following are the responses of each milk tea
business owner on who are their ideal
customers.
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Respondent no.1: “Teenagers and people in the
village”
Respondent no.2: “My ideal customers are
those people who love milk tea.”
Respondent no.3: “My ideal customers are
milk tea lovers.”
Respondent no.4: “Low budget customers”
Respondent’s no.5 & no.6: “Minimum
earners”
Respondent no.7: “People, young or old”
Respondent no.8: “Poor people”
The followings are the responses of the milk tea
business owners on what strategies and
techniques they could implement that will make
them stand out among their competitors.
Respondent no.1: “Offering discounts and
promo deals, offering unique flavors, free
internet and having a comfortable atmosphere”
Respondent no.2: “We offer free milk tea when
you purchase five xl size milk tea from our
shop”
Respondent no.3: “Apply social distancing and
improve the business”
Respondent no.4: “Promo like buy one take 1”
Respondent no.5: “Our solution is a low cost”
Respondent no.6: “Our solution was budget-
friendly”
Respondent no.7: “Our solution has more
ingredients”
Respondent no.8: “Promo on the product that
we sell”
The followings are the response of the
milk tea business owners on how is their product
differs from the other Milk tea business or
shops.
Respondent no.1: “It differs in a way that my
milk tea business focuses on offering excellent
milk tea products while gaining profit and
ensuring customers satisfaction.”
Respondent no.2: “We prioritize the customer
satisfaction and provide excellent customer
service”
Respondent no.3: “Delicious and affordable”
Respondent no.4: “It is cheaper but quality at
the same time.”
Respondent no.5: “Our milk tea is budget-
friendly”
Respondent no.6: “Our milk tea was good for a
budget-friendly price”
Respondent no.7: “It is more delicious, and
also it’s cheap.”
Respondent no.8: “It is cheap.”
The following are the manager's
responses on how they define success after the
1st year of running the business.
Respondent no.1: “As a manager, I will
promote my shop so that people will notice and
buy more”
Respondent no.2: “If you are making a profit”
Respondent no.3: “If the customers keep
patronizing your products”
Respondent no.4: “If the product’s name
became popular”
Respondent no.5: “I think if our capital
returned.”
Respondent no.6: “If your business blooms”
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Respondent no.7: “I’ll define it successful
when it has more than two franchise stores in a
year”
Respondent no.8: “If we create a name in the
industry”
Discussion
The researcher's goal is to find the
familiar competitors of the milk tea business in
the market and know how to implement new
strategies and techniques to stand out from other
competitors and milk teas that differ from other
companies or shops. According to the answers
that we gathered on our survey questionnaires,
the most common competitor of the milk tea
business are the stores that sell these products:
fruit shakes, iced coffee, other milkshakes, and
café shops. For the small shops of milk teas,
these stores can affect the milk tea industry
because people don't want to drink milk tea most
of the time. People crave something based on the
weather or sometimes their cravings.
The second question on the
questionnaire is who's the ideal customer of
these milk tea shops are? And according to the
answer of the respondents on the survey
questionnaire that we gave to them, most of the
solutions that the ideal customers of these milk
tea shops are the people who love milk teas,
teenagers, and the low budget customers that can
only afford low priced milk teas. These are the
good things about having low-priced milk teas
because everyone can afford them. This can also
be the answer to the third question on the survey
questionnaire. Because the third question is what
strategies and techniques they could implement
that help their business to stand out among the
other competitors, the researchers found out that
most of the answers are having a low priced
milk tea and having a better taste product that is
for everyone. They also have promos even if the
tea is low priced.
The fourth question on the survey
questionnaire is how your product differs from
the other milk tea business or shops? Most of
them answer that having a low priced and
quality taste milk tea differs from other shops
"budget-friendly" and satisfy the customers by
providing excellent service. The last question on
our survey questionnaire is how they define
success after a year of running the business?
Most of the answers are if they create a
name in the market, if the capitals returned to
them and if they have successfully added two or
more franchises. Through this survey
questionnaire, the researchers conclude that
running a milk tea business in this kind of
situation that the world is facing right now is
very difficult because there are many factors that
you need to consider to make your business
successful. At the same time, you need to serve
and provide quality products to your present and
future customers.
Conclusion
The milk tea business involves serving
mouthwatering, flavorsome, and genuine
experiences of affordable yet quality beverages
and snacks. Although so many companies offer
the same promising services and products, our is
not a very typical business. Our business
provides services that you can rely on quality,
affordability, and convenience. As we can see,
the implementation of QMS was a great idea to
start, and it resulted in a massive plus for the
business.
After implementing this, the researchers
found out the customers' sweet spot and how the
shop can please them more—also has an
affordable price. Many people can afford the
product we offer and many other choices.
For our plans, we are thinking of
listening more to our client's suggestions to
show that we can satisfy our customers than our
competitors even if ours was more.
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References

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• Barrett, C.B. Food Security, and Sociopolitical Stability. (2014). In Food Security and
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001.0001

• British Library. (2016, January 19). W Edwards Deming: Total quality management thinker. The
British Library. https://www.bl.uk/people/w-edwards-deming.

• Center for Disease Control. (2020a). CDC COVID data tracker. Centers for Disease
ControlandPrevention.https://covid.cdc.gov/coviddatatracker/?CDC_AA_refVal=https%3A%2F
%2Fwww.cdc.gov%2Fcoronavirus%2F2 019-ncov%2Fcases-updates%2Fcases-in-us.html.

• Hobbs, J. E. (2020). Food supply chains during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Canadian Journal of
Agricultural Economics, 68(2), 171–176. https://doi.org/10.1111/cjag.12237

• Huynh, M. & S. S. (2021). A pandemic causes boba shortages lost business for local bubble tea
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local-bubble-tea-shops/article_35d78742-a2c6-11eb-a70a-8720b475af0f.html

• Jribi, S., ben Ismail, H., Doggui, D., &Debbabi, H. (2020). COVID-19 virus outbreak lockdown:
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• Wang, C., Horby, P. W., Hayden, F. G., &Gao, G. F. (2020). A novel coronavirus outbreak of
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• Nepomuceno, P. (2020). Milk tea shop owner determined to survive Covid-19 impact. Philippine
News Agency.com. https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1112588

About the Authors:

Adrian C. De Vera is from Malamig, Bustos Bulacan Philippines

3007. He is a Bachelor of Science Major in Industrial Engineering Student in
Bulacan State University (Bustos Campus). He has interest in collecting anime
figures, photography, art and crafts. He likes to watch anime, drawing, playing
basketball, free flight my birds, taking photos, singing, and finding interesting
things.

David Brian R. Trinidad is from Poblacion, Baliuag, Bulacan,

Philippines 3006. He is a 3rd year Industrial Engineering student of Bulacan
State University, Bustos Campus. He is interested in Photography, editing and
Korean Related things.

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 Florinda G. Vigonte is from Tambubong, San Rafael, Bulacan,
Philippines 3008. She is a Doctor of Philosophy in Educational Leadership and
Management with Specialization in Management Research at La Consolacion
University, Philippines; currently pursuing her second doctoral in Ph.D. -
Business Administration; earned units in Online Distance Learning (ODL)
course at De La Salle University, Manila (2020); and an Instructor I at Bulacan
State University (BulSU), Malolos City, Bulacan, Philippines. She authored
different books in Jimczyville Publications and Jo-Deh Publishing. An
Associate Member of the National Research Council of the Philippines
(NRCP); a member of the Philippine Association of Researchers and Statistical Software Users
(PARSSU), and a Scopus author.

Gabrielle B. Dela Merced is from Tangos, Baliwag, Bulacan

Philippines 3006. He is a Bachelor of Science Major in Industrial Engineering
Student in Bulacan State University (Bustos Campus). He has interest in
reading books & articles, art and crafts. He likes dogs, drawing, playing
basketball.

Jerickson M. Ramos is from Caingin, San Rafael, Bulacan,

Philippines 3007. He is a 3rd year Industrial Engineering student of Bulacan
State University, Bustos Campus. He has interest for music, outdoor games.

Mark Janssen V. Cruz is from Bonga Menor, Bustos, Bulacan,

Philippines 3007. He is a 3rd year Industrial Engineering student of Bulacan
State University, Bustos Campus. He has interest for music.

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