Loob Holding, the owner of top regional lifestyle tea brand Tealive, today announced it has successfully made a strategic move upstream with the commissioning of a RM10 million state-of-the-art tapioca pearl plant in Malaysia.
Loob founder and CEO Bryan Loo said this success underscored Loob’s vision and unwavering commitment to excellence, transformation and innovation in the beverage industry in Malaysia and beyond.
“As a Malaysian corporate entity, Loob Holding believes in reinvesting locally to help transform Malaysia into a hub of excellence for the food and beverage industry. With the support of our China-based partners, we are happy we have helped to bring in foreign direct investment too,” said Loo.
He said this one-acre tapioca pearl plant in Kapar, Selangor was a bold step towards realising this vision, demonstrating Tealive’s dedication to contributing to Malaysia’s economic growth and breakthrough innovation in the beverage segment.
“Tealive is all about creating the best customer experience for all with the highest quality beverages and boba is at the centre of it all. Building this tapioca pearl plant aligns seamlessly with our pursuit of excellence.
“By controlling the entire production process, from sourcing the finest ingredients to crafting our signature tapioca pearls, Tealive ensures that every sip of our beverages reflects the pinnacle of quality and flavour. And we will continue to make further investments – for example, by installing a fully-automated packaging line next year,” he said.
Loo said, with an installed capacity of 400 tonnes of pearls per month, the plant would be one of the largest in the country.
In recounting the background of this joint-venture, Loo said that JV partners Zhejiang Boduo International Trade Co Ltd and Shanghai Panfei International Trade Co Ltd have been close supportive suppliers from the launch of Tealive back in 2017.
“After about two years and when Tealive has scaled up sufficiently, we approached them with the idea of manufacturing pearls in Malaysia. We quickly agreed to collaborate and we wanted to kick-start this plant in 2020 but the pandemic halted our progress. Despite the lockdown challenges both in China and in Malaysia, we’ve succeeded and the plant is up and running today.
“Right now, we’re running on a single shift and all the production is for our own use. Once we ramp up production, we plan to export the pearls to other countries in the region, probably beginning with the Philippines.
“Tealive, a Malaysian-born brand, is poised to share our signature pearls with the world. This breakthrough allows us to export locally-made pearls globally. Our Malaysian customers play a crucial role in empowering a home-grown brand to compete on the international stage, and their unwavering support humbles us,” he said.