When Vyoma was in Hong Kong for her undergraduate degree in Economics and Finance, she fell in love with the wonderful food scene in the city, and bubble tea was one of her favourites. So, coming back to Delhi after finishing her degree was disappointing – though the food scene is bustling in Delhi, there is no bubble tea! How was she to get her daily fix now?
In October 2020, Vyoma went with a friend to a Halloween party where she met Armaan. When he told her about his plans to set up a bubble tea store with his friends, she was super excited, and they spent a whole hour talking about bubble tea! She was so excited, she went home and tried to recreate some bubble tea with sabudana (sago), but it wasn’t the same. She started following Got Tea on social media, hoping to get some authentic bubble tea as soon as the store opened.
And when she did get some bubble tea from Got Tea, she felt like she was back in Hong Kong. So, when she saw Got Tea advertising for vacant positions they were hiring for, she thought it was meant to be – she sent her CV across to the team, got in touch with YuSung, and was hired!
She started working at Got Tea in March 2021. Though her official title is “Customer Experience and Events Manager,” Vyoma has been helping around the store in many different capacities. Since there are only limited events that she can work around, given the current situation of the pandemic, she has been focusing on ways to enhance the customer experience. Over the last few months, she has been working with the Got Tea team on the Got At Home project, helping with designing the product in a way that is most useful for the customers.
She has also been working with the management team to re-open the store soon. Got Tea is hoping that they can open by 1 July and are planning the ways in which the store can be opened safely, following all health and safety protocols.
As for events, Vyoma hopes to be able to bring the bustling indie art scene in Delhi to Got Tea – there is a great artist community in the city, and she wants to be able to host them in the Got Tea space, to make the space one where people come together, share their art, and enjoy a nice drink of bubble tea! Recently, Vyoma organized an Instagram live with Nazariya, a queer feminist resource group – she had wanted to organize something with the organization even before the second lockdown came into place, and she didn’t let the lockdown restrictions prevent her from putting something together.
She believes that there is a market across India for what Got Tea is envisioning, and she hopes that the business is able to expand to different cities soon. She also thinks the working environment at Got Tea is great for young people – though she got other job offers, she stuck with Got Tea because she related to the vision and felt that the team would support her creativity and allow her to grow.
When she isn’t working at Got Tea, Vyoma likes to sip on some Scarlet Jamong (or, if she wants something a little heavier, she goes for either Ivory Silk or Taro Purple), while she plays her guitar or putters around the piano. The next time you visit the store, make sure you say hi to her!
This journal is an ongoing series tracing the story of Got Tea, the latest bubble tea store launched in India, located in South Delhi, now available on Zomato and Swiggy. Want to know what happens next? Stay tuned – new episodes come out every week!