Subscribe to our newsletter!

Stay in the loop about our new flavors, events, buildouts and more!

3491 19th St
San Francisco, CA 94110
USA

415-967-2622

We grew up drinking milk tea and to this day are still obsessed about it. We started Boba Guys as a way to share the milk tea we remember from our childhood (only this time with fresh ingredients; none of the powdered stuff).

We use only the finest ingredients: Straus Family Creamery organic milk accompanied with homebrewed heirloom organic tea from Five Mountains. Our syrup and almond jelly is homemade and we use Grade A balls. (We just like saying that. )

Price Increases 2022

PRICING UPDATES

Boba Baes, 

Welcome to the wonderful world of pricing. ;) In the past, we’ve updated the public on company-wide price increases via this page (now archived). It’s been a bit harder to communicate such complex messages as we’ve grown, but we’re going to do our best to keep our Radical Candor promise.

To cut to the chase, we will be making gradual pricing changes over the next year to adjust for the changes in the marketplace. We’re sure you’ve heard of all the supply chain issues. t is just the tip of the iceberg that has rocked our industry. So to continue our spirit of transparency, here are all the factors informed our decision:

  • Surge in ingredient prices. You’ve seen enough articles about this. We use % increase to protect the pricing matrix of our vendors. Overall, drink costs are +25% if you roll it all up. Examples of prices Pre-Pandemic vs. Current:

    • Rice Milk (for Horchata and Strawberry Rice Milk): +26%

    • Dairy Milk: +7-11%

    • Frozen Fruit: +11%

    • Tapioca Balls: +38%

    • PET Cups (plastic cups): +45-54%

    • White Cane Sugar: +37%

    • To-go Trays: +16%

    • Food Service Gloves: +200%

  • We’re moving to compostables! We’ve started with biodegradable bamboo fiber straws and are looking for better alternatives for all of our single-use plastics. It is true- plastic alternatives are more expensive (our biodegradable straws alone are 4x as much as plastic straws) but they are a step forward towards a more sustainable future. It’s the right thing to do. PLA compostable cups are on the way, but— you guessed it— supply chain issues.

  • The cost of waste management has increased. Refuse collection rates have gone up in most of our regions in the last two years. With our move towards compostables, we also spend more time (labor) dedicated to properly sorting our trash, compost, and recyclables in stores.

  • Trade tariffs. Many of our goods are imported, our teas included. Changes in tariffs are meaningful, impacting the cost of making our drinks. Shipping containers costs are 8-10X to pre-pandemic prices.

  • Lastly - we are committed to improving compensation and benefits for our team. We want to make sure we take care of our team, because they are the ones who take care of you. Since 2019, our average base compensation package has increased by over 17%. We pay our bobaristas above the minimum wage (i.e. adjust relative to current minimum wage.) In addition, we provide more benefits to our team members than two years prior including 100% coverage on health care premiums (for all HQ/Managers), HealthiestYou, and Employee Assistance Program. These programs are well-past industry norms.

Let us know if you have any questions or comments, we'd love to hear from you. You can reach us at support [AT] bobaguys.com