Conversations with Khanh (Connie) Tran

Today we’d like to introduce you to Khanh (Connie) Tran.

Hi Khanh (Connie), we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I am Khanh (Connie) Tran, founder of Gocha Tea & Beverages. Since I was a child, I have a passion for food. From there, I keep that dream and hope to fulfill it. I used to travel alot to big cities to visit friends, and we always gathered at a boba shop. From there, I thought it would be nice to have one in Kansas City, a decent one, so that people don’t have to travel to big cities for boba. My friend, Kaitlyn, and I looked for classes to attend, but most of the classes taught you how to use the products so they could supply them for you. I brought the products home and made some drinks for my mother-in-law; she drank and told me, “Do something different; these drinks make my throat thirst for water.” At that time, my father was diagnosed with cancer. It was hard for me to imagine cancer would take my dad away. I researched to see what could help my dad strengthen during his chemo.

Throughout my research, I got myself into juicing. I juiced everything and was quite surprised to taste so many pleasant flavors. One day, I accidentally mixed my juice and tea, added some sugar, and let my mother-in-law try it, and she told me, “Do these drinks; it doesn’t make my throat thirst for anything else? Very refreshing”. From that on, I changed my whole menu, focused more on fresh ingredients, bring quite popular drinks from Vietnam to my menu, like fresh Avocado smoothie, Pennywort juice, Durian smoothie, sugarcane, and fresh fruit juice infused with tea for our refresher. Taiwanese are known for their original, and brown sugar was popular, so I added brown sugar collections with fresh milk, milk tea, and Oreos. Mexican drink is Mangonana, Mango Slush with Chamoy Sauce and Tamarind candy, and American love smoothies, so I start with a primary single smoothie flavor. When people asked for their favorite strawberry banana, I tried my recipe, and people kept returning for it.

Alright, let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what challenges have you had to overcome?
In any business, the road will fill with either bumps or potholes before you reach a smoother road. My menu used to be very simple, just an 8×11 front page. I took orders and learned to see what people wanted and what people wanted from the taste; from there, I expanded the menu to more varieties so that any age group could enjoy my drinks. Since it’s a new brand, people usually compare it to other franchise brands. I don’t mind how people compare my brand to different brands; I care about the outcome of my repeat customers. My second challenge is how to make drinks quickly. Customers complained that our drinks took too long, started yelling, and asked for refunds. We used to shake every drink, blend every single drink, and work individually. I shortened my process, started changing my cups, and did multiple mixed drinks at a time, and the team worked on everything we could. My third challenge is communication. My team is usually high schoolers and some colleges. It’s easier to communicate when you know each personality. I work with my staff, talk to them, and observe; from there, it helps me communicate better with them and understand our number 1 priority regarding work.

Thanks for sharing that. So, you could tell us a bit more about your work.
I love my boba barista lifestyle. I get to be creative with my drinks and desserts. At first, I started to do boba drinks only, then I added bubble waffles and learned how to make flan, panna cotta, and Vietnamese desserts. My goal is to have something customers can enjoy in and out of town. Wherever people go, my taste keeps people lingering and returning to try more. It has been a challenging journey that lets me meet many people, learn how to deal with and solve problems, remember to be patient, and learn the important roles of teamwork, and from there, it helps me sustain this business.

What quality or characteristic do you feel is most important to your success?
Bring the best of your quality work into anything you do; any effort you put in will bring the best result. Work and help your team out. My success today is my team; without their help, I can’t go far. From the bottom of my heart, thank you, team.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: Gocha2westport, Gochashawnee, Kcgocha

Image Credits
Marc gambardella