Nayuki or Naixue?
That’s the question that has the premium tea world buzzing these days, as one of China’s leading bubble tea chains appears to be struggling with a sort of identity crisis involving its name. We’re being a little cheeky here, as obviously Nayuki Holdings Ltd. (2150.HK) knows exactly what it’s doing with its name, even if it’s not making public statements about it.
In this case the name issue isn’t trivial either. Nakyuki sounds distinctly Japanese, and the company almost certainly picked the name in an attempt to make consumers think it was a Japanese brand, which are generally considered higher quality than their Chinese counterparts. By comparison, Naixue is simply the pinyin spelling for the company’s Chinese name.