BBA students bring fresh thinking to Chatime's real-fruit future

Jan. 28, 2026

The Lazaridis School of Business and Economics at Wilfrid Laurier University partnered with Chatime Canada to bring a real-world marketing challenge into the classrooms of BU252: Introduction to Marketing Management, the first marketing course in the Lazaridis Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) program. 

Teams were asked to do what marketers do in the real world: dig into consumer insights, analyze a competitive beverage market and design a strategy that would help Chatime grow demand for its real-fruit drinks, build brand loyalty and connect more meaningfully with customers across Canada.  

From classroom theory to real-world strategy 

Student teams explored everything from Gen Z creators and influencer drinks to multicultural flavour journeys, gamified loyalty programs and sustainability-driven merchandise – all anchored in real consumer insights and brand strategy. 

Finalist teams proposed pop-ups in yoga studios, offices and festivals, app-based loyalty programs and digital passports, Tinder-powered first-date activations, reusable tumblers, peel-to-win stickers and collectible cups, and creator-led drink launches and social-first campaigns. Every idea had to answer one core question: how does Chatime grow in a crowded beverage market while staying true to its real-fruit, customizable and community-driven brand? 

A case brought to life by Lazaridis alumni 

The case was presented by two Lazaridis alumni who know the brand inside and out: Trinh Tham (BBA ’99), CEO of Chatime and Bake Code at Kevito Group and member of the Lazaridis Dean’s Advisory Council in Toronto and Roxanne Tsui (BBA ’11), vice-president of customer experience and digital commerce at Kevito Group. They challenged students to think beyond bubble tea as a trend and instead position Chatime as a long-term lifestyle brand built on quality, flavour, loyalty and connection. 

Trinh and Tsui served as judges alongside Dean Kyle Murray for the finals, bringing industry and academic perspectives together in the room. The case was supported by course coordinator Osama J. Butt, and the BU252 teaching team, who worked across sections to ensure every student had access to the same high-impact, real-world experience.  

Top teams from the BU252 Chatime Finals 

After a fast-paced final round of presentations, judges awarded: 

First Place — B5: Real Fruit, Real Roots 

Brianna Benchimol, Allison Lee, Gweneth Ma, Huzaifa Safri, Yuxuan Xu 

A multicultural flavour line that paired real-fruit drinks with global origins — from Mumbai Mango to Pudong Peach Lychee — supported by festival activations, summer travel themes and a passport-style loyalty experience inside the Chatime app. 

To celebrate their win, the Real Fruit, Real Roots team was surprised with prizes from Chatime’s Blind Cup collectible series, including plushies and limited-edition characters tied to a new menu launch — a playful nod to the kind of customer experience they designed in their campaign. 

Second Place — B6: The Real Peel 

Sara Bulz, Charlotte Burdon, Tiki Reid, Chloe Tischer, Austin Vanmoerkerke

A peel-off sticker reward system built directly onto cups, blending physical interaction, instant wins and app-based loyalty — inspired by the psychology of the Tim Hortons’ Roll Up the Rim campaign and designed to drive repeat visits. 

Third Place (tie) 

B2: Crafting Real Connections — Tinder-powered first-date campaigns that turned Chatime into a shared social ritual. 
Brinley Brule, Marco Celenza, Milan Chitalia, Zain Daya, Keilty Friesen 

C1: Flavour Passport — A digital tasting journey that gamified exploration across Chatime’s real-fruit menu. 
Cristina Amariutei, Liam Cox, Grace Lee, Kenzy Soror, Cindy Wu 

Big ideas, first marketing course 

Dean Kyle Murray closed the competition by reminding students just how meaningful this moment was: 
“It’s really impressive that this is your first marketing course. You should be proud of the quality of the ideas, and the confidence of these presentations.” 

The Chatime judges, Trinh and Tsui, shared how impressed they were by the depth of insight, originality and brand fit across the final presentations. 

For the winning team behind Real Fruit, Real Roots, the campaign was deeply personal. By pairing each real-fruit drink with a country that shared a cultural or historical connection to the fruit and layering in a passport-style loyalty experience through the Chatime app, they turned everyday purchases into a celebration of identity and belonging. Drawing on their own immigrant backgrounds, the team wanted the brand to reflect the cultures and traditions that shape Canada, and to show how even something as simple as bubble tea can make people feel seen, connected and celebrated. 

The case also brought BU252 to life in ways a textbook never could. After learning about segmentation, positioning and consumer behaviour in theory, students applied the concepts to a real brand with real constraints, including budget, channels and customer expectations. The winning team said what surprised them most was how much research and strategic thinking happens before visuals or taglines. 

Their heritage-based concept only worked because interviews and surveys revealed a real emotional gap in the category, with people linking bubble tea to nostalgia, culture and memory. Turning that insight into a full campaign — from naming the drinks to designing the passport system and mapping how customers would engage — was where everything finally clicked. 

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This project is one of many hands-on learning experiences that define the Lazaridis BBA. From the BU111 Live Case in first term, to the marketing capstone project in BU252, the Integrated Case Exercise (ICE) in third year and the BU491 World of Opportunities (WOO) program in fourth year, students build skills by solving real problems for real organizations — long before they graduate. Together, these experiences give students repeated opportunities to apply what they learn in class to real organizations, helping them graduate with practical insight, confidence and a strong understanding of how business decisions are made.