Matcha Café Brands Offer Scalable Operations and Meet Growing Consumer Demand
If you’ve gone to your favorite food and beverage spot lately, you likely noticed that the menu has gotten a green makeover. Dunkin’, Starbucks, Gong cha, Kung Fu Tea and Jack in the Box are just a few of the brands that have jumped on the matcha craze.
Matcha, for the uninitiated, is a finely ground powder of green tea specially processed from shade-grown tea leaves. The flavors are described as earthy, bold and subtle savory or umami. In recent years, young people on social media have expanded matcha’s global reach beyond its origins in Japan and China, giving rise to matcha-flavored lattes, energy drinks, doughnuts and more. Mentions of matcha on menus have grown 46% over the past four years, according to market research firm Datassential, and #matchatok is a popular TikTok trend.
Beyond its aesthetic appeal and versatility, matcha also has health benefits. According to Harvard Health Publishing, matcha is high in antioxidants, which help protect cells from damage. It also contains natural plant compounds such as phytochemicals that may help reduce inflammation in the body, Harvard Health Publishing explains.
Strong demand for matcha products has driven the global market to about $965.8 million in 2025, with projections reaching approximately $1.75 billion by 2033, according to Grand View Research.
Investors can get their own piece of this global market by investing in a matcha franchise. The following businesses not only meet the demand for matcha-flavored food and drinks, but they are typically straightforward to operate, with simple menus and ongoing support from the franchisor.
Top Matcha Franchise Opportunities
Junbi
Overview: Junbi, which translates to “preparation” in Japanese, is a fast-casual café franchise centered on whisked-to-order matcha drinks and tea-forward offerings. Franchisees benefit from comprehensive training, real estate and buildout support, and grand opening planning and launch support.
Menu Highlights: Offerings include the mango matcha latte, blueberry matcha cold brew, Madagascar vanilla matcha latte and matcha soft serve. There are also matcha tins and packets for purchase.
Kyo Matcha
Overview: Kyo Matcha promotes Japanese-style matcha culture rooted in traditional Japanese tea ceremonies, which embody meditative and spiritual practices. Kyo Matcha locations are in Maryland, Virginia, Illinois, Pennsylvania and Massachusetts.
Franchise Requirements: Ideal franchise owners have operations and management experience and can efficiently communicate with team members.
Menu Highlights: Customers can choose from a variety of matcha-flavored lattes, teas, ice cream, cakes and more.
Matcha Cafe Maiko
Overview: Matcha Cafe Maiko opened its first store in Hawaii, importing premium matcha from Uji, Japan, known for its misty microclimate that’s ideal for the shade-grown tea used to make matcha.
Menu Highlights: The matcha café franchise is known for authentic matcha soft serve, specialty lattes, parfaits and traditional Japanese-inspired desserts.
Nana’s Green Tea
Overview: Nana’s Green Tea opened its first location in 2001 in Japan, and has since become one of Japan’s leading matcha café brands. Expanding its reach internationally, Nana’s Green Tea has established locations in Seattle, New York, Las Vegas and Honolulu, with plans for further expansion in Boston, Idaho and Northern California.
Menu Highlights: Beyond its signature matcha and hojicha (Japanese green tea) drinks, the brand offers a variety of layered parfaits with ingredients such as matcha pudding, red bean paste, mochi and soft serve, as well as Japanese-inspired food options, such as chicken katsu curry and chicken nanban.
