Mochiry’s Sept. 29 grand opening was a combination of anticipation and anxiety for co-founder and owner Main Alqwasmi.
After promoting the opening on social media for three months, Alqwasmi said he was eager to see the community’s response.
“We had at least 600 customers coming over to try us, to see what we were,” he said. “[It was] exciting and scary at the same time.”
Mochiry — located at 3822 Newberry Road Suite D, just west of UF campus — offers a Korean-inspired menu with mochi donuts, ice cream, boba tea, Korean hot dogs and coffee drinks. The grand opening drew in about 500 orders, Alqwasmi said.
The dessert shop replaced Relish’s Newberry Road location, he said.
Alqwasmi and Yousef Shaban, his business partner, formerly worked for a similar company in Tampa, where Alqwasmi served as a manager until deciding to start his own brand in Gainesville.
“We could have made the same franchise, but for us, it was more valuable to make our own brand,” Alqwasmi said. “Instead of taking people's ideas, we can make our own idea and improve it for the customers.”
Alqwasmi and Shaban expanded their menu’s selection to include coffee drinks, like cappuccinos and lattes, and more boba flavors, like mango and strawberry jelly. Mochiry also offers a wide variety of Korean rice hot dog flavors, including Hot Cheetos and ramen noodles.
While searching for the right location for Mochiry, Alqwasmi considered major cities like Orlando, Tampa and Fort Myers but ultimately landed in Gainesville because of its student population. He said he didn’t see other establishments offering the same food items and customer experience.
To reach its target audience, Mochiry advertises on social media and offers giveaways and competitions for free menu items. This weekend, Mochiry prompted its Instagram followers to comment predictions for the UF vs. UCF football game score, with the correct guess winning a free boba.
Alqwasmi hopes to expand to other social media platforms as the brand grows and views social media marketing as a crucial way to draw people into the store.
“If you want to have more audience, you will have to spend more and more so you can attract people to come over here, especially when it’s not a franchise, it’s just a small startup business,” he said. “You would need to do much more than a franchise so you can succeed in the market.”
Alqwasmi believes Mochiry is an opportunity to connect various cultures through food. His suppliers include an Italian coffee brand, a Korean mochi flour brand and a Vietnamese boba brand.
Alqwasmi said the fusion of cultures is reflected in his customers.
“Mochiry is an American brand,” he said. “We have different customers with different aspects, which is a big goal for us, to have different people coming from one of the cultures.”
Alqwasmi and Shaban hope to create new Mochiry locations, starting by establishing another shop in Gainesville and expanding to Tallahassee and Ocala. Alqwasmi said the menu and price points appeal to a college audience.
“The prices are affordable, it tastes good, it’s trendy these days … people like it,” he said.
Mochiry plans to develop new features and menu items like potato tornadoes and waffle sticks in the coming months.
Contact Juliana DeFilippo at jdefillipo@alligator.org. Follow her on X @JulianaDeF58101.
Juliana DeFilippo is a freshman journalism major and General Assignment reporter for The Avenue. In her free time, she loves to read and work on crossword puzzles.
