Boba Tea Company Apologizes After Simu Liu Cultural Appropriation Drama
The boba tea company apologized later Simu Liu called them for cultural appropriation in his Canadian reality series Cave of Dragons.
During the latest episode of Dragons’ Den, which is the Canadian version Shark TankCreators of Bobba’s Drinks Sebastien Fiset again Jessica Frenette faced backlash after pitching their product to Liu, 35, and a team of other investors.
After the business partners launched their bubble tea drink at the show, investor Manjit Minhas invested seven figures, which has since returned. Liu, on the other hand, questioned whether the idea was suitable for Asian culture.
Liu was not happy when Frenette called boba tea a “trendy sugary drink” that people are “very unsure” of its contents.
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“Hold on, I’m sure of its content, but go ahead,” he said. “People have tried to shut it down [in the past] but it is very difficult to keep the taste. I thought [the taste] it was fine, but I’m worried about the idea of messing with the bubble tea because it’s such a close thing [to my heart].”
Liu went on to refer to it as a “cultural appropriation issue,” adding, “There’s a problem with taking something that’s very distinctly Asian and ‘Making it better.'”
“First, we want to deeply apologize for the damage we caused by our words and actions on the show,” read their statement on Instagram on Monday, October 14. “While it was not our intention to harm or disrespect the community that created and expanded this beloved drink, we take full responsibility for the impact of our actions.”
Fiset and Frenette spoke to Liu directly, adding, “Furthermore, Simu Liu has raised some very relevant points about cultural sharing and we welcome this learning opportunity. We fully understand the backlash of the character found in Dragons’ Den based on what people have seen on TV.”
Fiset and Frenette’s statement clarified their comments. “When we said, ‘You’re not sure what’s in it,’ we weren’t referring to the regular tea drink found in specialty stores, and we weren’t criticizing it. We can see that this was not effectively communicated in the episode as English is our second language. We were comparing it to other ready-to-drink products like ours that are available in supermarkets.”
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They went on to say: “At the event, we were introducing our new Boba method, which has not been released anywhere until now. In this version, we removed all artificial colors, flavors, and preservatives, while keeping the sugar low. This is what we were talking about when we talked about the ‘healthier’ option in the program. “
After the participants received criticism on social media, Liu came to his defense.
“Let’s argue with each other. Let’s criticize each other. Let us criticize this idea of cultural appropriation. Let’s talk about it,” he said on TikTok on Monday. “But you know, what we can’t do is threaten people’s physical safety and make people feel unsafe and cause them unnecessary trauma, frankly.”
