Actor Simu Liu blasted a pair of Quebec entrepreneurs last week who went on Canada’s version of “Shark Tank” to pitch a drink they say has “transformed” boba tea.
via: Mashable
In the latest episode of Dragon's Den, Québec City entrepreneurs Sébastien Fiset and Jess Frenette sought a $1 million investment from the Dragons in exchange for 18 percent of their ready-to-drink bubble tea business Bobba. Describing their business as "unique," the duo expressed a desire to sell their pre-prepared boba company to Pepsi for $1 billion within the next five years.
Unfortunately for them, Shang-Chi actor Simu Liu is a guest Dragon this season. And as the show's first Chinese-Canadian Dragon, he actually knew enough about bubble tea to have reservations about what they're doing to this very Asian drink.
First, Liu pushed back on Fiset and Frenette's description of bubble tea as "that trendy, sugary drink that you queue up for and you're never quite sure about its content," and their bold declaration that "those days are over with Bobba."
"Hang on, hang on, I'm quite sure about its content, but continue," Liu interjected.
Though it varies depending on the specific flavour, standard bubble tea is quite famously made from tea, milk, brown sugar, tapioca starch, and water.
Fiset and Frenette then stated that Bobba has "transformed this beloved beverage into a convenient and healthier ready-to-drink experience," claiming that they were "disturbing" the boba market with "high quality tea, fruit juice, and our famous popping boba." Setting aside judgements regarding the quality of the tea, none of these ingredients are new to boba, and can easily be found at any standard bubble tea shop.
"I'm concerned about this idea of disrupting or disturbing bubble tea, because it's something that's very near—" started Liu.
"Why?" Minhas interrupted, cutting Liu off while he was in the middle of explaining exactly why. "There can be new takes on things."
"Sure," said Liu. "But I'm looking at —"
"Not everything has to be traditional," said Minhas.
"Then there's also the issue of cultural appropriation," Liu continued. "There's an issue of taking something that's very distinctly Asian in its identity and quote unquote 'making it better,' which I have an issue with."
Liu did state that he was open to hearing Bobba's pitch before forming a solid opinion, with Dragons Wes Hall and Minhas making light of his "heavy" approach. However, the entrepreneurs' presentation ultimately failed to satisfy Liu.
"[I]t's not an ethnical [sic] product anymore," said Fiset. "Not with the popping bobas. So we took the version, the Asian version, and we made it with fruit, with juice."
Fiset and Frenette did note that they have a partner in Taiwan after Liu asked what respect was being paid to bubble tea's Asian origins. Even so, this wasn't enough to address his apprehension about the venture.
"I am studying your can, and I am looking for anything that tells me where boba came from, and where boba came from is Taiwan," said Liu, explaining why he would not be investing in Bobba. "I started this venture company [Markham Valley Ventures] for a lot of reasons, but really primarily to uplift minority entrepreneurs. And not only do I feel like this is not happening here, but that I would be uplifting a business that is profiting off of something that feels so dear to my cultural heritage. I want to be a part of bringing boba to the masses, but not like this."
Despite Liu's concerns, Bobba received investment offers from Dragons Arlene Dickinson, Michele Romanow, and Minhas. Fiset and Frenette ultimately accepted Minhas' agreement to their originally proposed terms, seemingly securing $1 million in exchange for 18 percent of the company.
"The popping boba is new," Minhas commented, displaying a complete lack of knowledge about bubble tea. "I can't say I've had that."
Popping boba is in fact not new, which will be immediately apparent to anyone who does a quick Google search of the phrase. Fiset even stated that he initially got into the bubble tea business after seeing data indicating that popping boba was rising in popularity.
Despite Liu's misgivings, the entrepreneurs happily left the stage with encouraging words and the promise of a $1 million deal from Minhas. However, the discussion still wasn't over. Liu and Minhas then continued to talk about Bobba, with the former stating that its success actually saddened him.
"It makes me sad that people are — you know, they're drinking boba with the raccoon with the [sunglasses]," said Liu, referring to Bobba's promotional imagery.
Minhas then responded that Bobba had the opportunity to change, with Liu countering that he refused to invest without knowing they were willing to do so.
"They didn't say no," said Minhas, despite the fact that they didn't say yes either. "The collaboration that they've had to this point is with their supplier in Taiwan. And if nobody else has told them that before, you can't put that all on them."
One would think the onus would be on the entrepreneur to research their chosen industry, rather than wait for others to come along and educate them. Then again, I'm not a venture capitalist, so maybe that's the accepted standard of due diligence when making million-dollar deals.
Since the report and the online backlash, I have heard that Manjit Minhas has withdrawn her $1 million investment offer.
In case you missed it, check out the full clip below.
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