Getting the right blend: Chaayos seeks to scale up by McDonaldinising tea

The tea chain follows a simple rule of thumb - customise if you want to rule

Last week’s trending hashtag #MyRahulBose- Moment — which documented Indians en masse sharing their experiences of paying extra for stuff, mainly food — reaffirmed how price sensitive this market is. Having tasted initial success in selling the costlier, glammed up avatar of the ubiquitous chai and looking to scale up now, tea café chain Chaayos has its work cut out.

The Tiger Global Management-backed chain is on the cusp of entering a new territory in Bengaluru and is aiming to increase its current store count of 60 five-fold over the next five years. To scale up, the company is banking on