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SUBSCRIBE TO THE TEA HOUSE TIMES
March, 2006 The Tea House Times
(This is a long report on World Tea Expo—you might want to print it out now & go sit down with a cup of tea and READ, READ, READ----ENJOY IT AS MUCH AS WE HAVE PUTTING IT TOGETHER FOR YOU!)
A REPORT ABOUT WORLD TEA EXPO 2006 BY LADY GAYLE, www.theteahousetimes.com
Where do I begin? The World Tea Expo this year was incredible. It was highly visited, the classes were better than ever, and the exhibitors are growing by leaps and bounds—in more ways than one—growing in numbers, growing to include more products, unique products, high quality products, and friendly, heart warming, customer service. That’s the tea industry in a nutshell—and a wonderful nutshell it is.
If you don’t already know, The Tea House Times is dedicated to assisting tea business owners in bringing quality information to share with your customers, and helping you find new products when you simply can’t get away to find them yourself. We have visited the Fancy Food Show, NY Gift Market, the Chocolate Show, and the World Tea Expo. Of course, the longest report will be here, now, about the World Tea Expo since it is a very targeted show with everything you need to buy and all the classes you really need to succeed in this industry.
Well let’s start with our own business this time. The Tea House Times has exhibited for the past 3 shows with the World Tea Expo. The expo will be in Atlanta, Georgia for 2007 in June and you can bet we will be there too. It was wonderful to meet people again in March 06 who we initially met in Providence 3 shows ago. The comments about how wonderful our publication has grown and the quality, professional approach we take has been noticed and we appreciate everyone’s feedback. Aside from growing the publication, we are beginning to offer wholesale for certain products that we feel proud to present to tea business owners.
The reason we have begun selling items in addition to subscriptions to our publication is that it is very costly to order from many different suppliers. (Again, another way we are trying to help out) The purchase minimums from each supplier can be upwards of $250 per order. And if you are only interested in one product in their line, how do you meet that minimum? So, we now represent a growing line of products for tea rooms. First, our satin ribbons printed in England exclusively for The Tea House Times. It is very important to present quality, beautiful packaging to your customers. The ribbons are available wired or non-wired in a multitude of colors to complement your business color scheme and varied merchandise colors. The ribbons were a huge hit for us at the expo. The ribbon is printed with the word tea in 3 languages and they are Stunning! We are also representing tea pot shaped boxes in two sizes—used for product packaging, party favors, takeout lunches, etc. Huge hit as well. Also, 2 games: Tea Time Bingo and a new children’s Tea Party Game—both very popular. We are representing training seminars by Lady Dawnya of Tea Events—all very popular & beneficial. New this show, we are now selling a really great, very industrial, everlasting hand held hole puncher that punches the shape of a teacup. Great for a VIP program, frequent purchase program etc. for tea or coffee businesses (it is a dainty cup shape). We originally purchased one for ourselves at a whopping $100 for one. We told the manufacturer this really needs to be sold to the shop owners, so we got the price down to $59 and we are now selling the punch as well as optional printed cards for your frequent buyer programs. Our wholesale offerings do not require a $ minimum, simply a case order minimum except for the hole punch.
Don’t forget about The Tea House Times Tea Health Guide. Originally a small print booklet given for free to subscribers, now an in-depth guide in an E-Book format. For free with subscriptions or for purchase separately. Bulk shipments of The Tea House Times publication are hugely popular for the tea room owners since they simply don’t have time to produce news worthy, enjoyable reading for customers. Just attach your business card, and voila! You have a wonderful publication—or gift—from you to your regular customers. Can be personalized by us or by you with a page added of additional pertinent information about your business, location, hours, specials, events, etc. We can also completely customize newsletters from very basic to magnificent! Contact The Tea House Times for more information or just ask if we can help you in some way: info@theteahousetimes.com and visit our website at www.theteahousetimes.com
Okay, on with some more information about other businesses at the expo:
Benjamin Press www.benjaminpress.com These guys are the experts with all the experience and a full range of products and books to prove it. Books with tried and true recipes, a book travel series: New York & London, tea room series: America, Great Britain, also quality tea information books and coming in Summer 2006 a Children’s Tea & Etiquette book. Visit their website for more info. All useful books for your pleasure or to help your business. Keep watching for our book review of Looking Deeply into Tea.
Tracy Stern Salon Tea www.salontea.com A new exhibitor at the expo this year. Tracy Stern Salon Teas are a beautifully packaged line of loose leaf teas, accessories, and spa/beauty products as well. Beautifully packaged, classy looking, and all quite good too. We have had the pleasure of tasting the teas and they are quite good. A nice selection of teas and BeauTea products -- It’s about time to add some beautea products to your tea rooms, we think! Always looking for something new and unique to offer!
Tearrow-Usa www.tearrow-usa.com A new product/exhibitor this year! GUM! 8 flavors of tea-infused chewing gum. Great fun to taste them. Ooooh, it’s the kind of gum that is so yummy and smoothe that you don’t want to remove it from your mouth. We seriously enjoyed it. Available now: green tea, oolong, black tea, lemon. Coming soon: jasmine, osmanthus, mint, kuding. Natural ingredients, sugar free.
Zojirushi www.zojirushi.com Coffee & Food equipment collection. We get questions about beverage dispensers frequently. Check these out. A large selection of all types of shapes and sizes of dispensers.
Davidson’s www.davidsonstea.com American Organic Specialty Teas. If you haven’t looked at Davidson’s lately, take another look. Some packaging changes and they offer quite a selection of teas: dessert teas, red, green & white teas, chai, tea with honey, classic teas, children’s teas, holiday teas, iced teas and a great dispenser, single serving teas, tea bags, loose leaf teas, display/blooming teas, fruit and flower teas, loose leaf accessories including infusers and t-sacs, unusual teapots, unique display cases, & more.
TransFair USA www.fairtradecertified.org Learn more about Fair Trade. Make a difference in the world! We will be working with TransFair to bring some detailed information/articles to our tea facts section of www.theteahousetimes.com Keep watching. Fair Trade Certification identifies teas produced by gardens and cooperatives in tea production. Certain standards must be met. Read below about their class.
Just Different Specialty Tea Company www.jdtea.com Different all right! They had Captain Teao there—a man dressed in a green superman type costume with CT on his chest. These guys are promoting Tea for Kids, Equali-Tea, Rainbow Pride, Tea for Men. Captain Teao is the spokesperson for their Tea for Kids brand. Promoting healthier life choices for all people.
The Art of Tea www.artoftea.com A good name for this company. Their loose tea selections were artfully displayed upon the table. Tea in the loose leaf form is so beautiful. If you haven’t seen all the varieties you really must. It’s not all the same color or shape. Look at it. Check out these products for all types of teas and some beautiful blooming teas and hand tied (see ammo—cinnamon, licorice and star anise hand tied, ready to dip and brew—so pretty) special teas. All beautiful. Their French Lemon Ginger is Charlize Theron’s favorite.
Barnes & Watson Fine Teas www.barnesandwatson.com We didn’t make it to this booth, but we are going to check it out. Looks like a nice line of products by their press kit. Teas and more.
Bodum www.bodumusa.com Another one we didn’t see, but their press kit shows a huge variety of brewing vessels.
Copper Beech Publishing www.copperbeechpublishing.co.uk A new exhibitor at the expo and what a beautiful line of books! We have been reviewing these books in the print editions of The Tea House Times and at our website: www.theteahousetimes.com All very beautiful with a Victorian and old time flair. Great, unique titles. Real attention getters and great sellers for tea rooms. A popular, busy exhibit this year! Stay tuned for more book reviews.
Bonnatea www.teaonline.info Another one we didn’t get to visit. Their info states: “One of the biggest Chinese green tea exporters engaged in tea plantation and green tea production, with an annual output of over 15,000 tons.”
Specialty Tea Institute www.teausa.org Helping to build the overall economic success of the industry. Research, discussion, and education is fostered. The benefits of membership and classes offered are vast. Goals are: Credibility, Promotion, Consulting, Membership, Growth, Networking, and Education—all to assist the tea professional.
Royal Tea Cozies www.royalteacozies.com The most beautiful cozies on earth? Yeah. Beautiful and Unique because you can personalize with your own logo. Velvet cozies with your logo and now—new silk cozies with embroidered designs/your logo. Congratulations to Royal Tea Cozies and their new customer—the Grand Floridian resort in Orlando! They are using and selling their beautiful logo cozies. Everyone’s gotta have it. Elegant and unusual.
Maryland China www.marylandchina.com I forget if we’ve written about them before. A great line of all white china at very good prices. Check out their platters and cake stands with the looped edging—perfect to thread ribbon through—especially The Tea House Times new satin “TEA” Ribbons.
Christopher Brookes Distinctive Foods www.cbdf.com “Just when you think that a tea show can’t get better, it does. I don’t mean just selling more, but how nice everyone is, how interested they are in your products, people taking time to talk, and how much fun to meet customers that you only talk to on the phone.” Our sentiments exactly. Thanks for sharing, Gary! CBDF introduced their new name drop program a year ago. It was an immediate success. A year later they introduced at the World Tea Expo 2 new flavours, retired 2 labels, and added 2 new labels—a Victorian Home and a Wine Scene. Their new brochure emphasizes a complete personalization program. An excellent print program is available for customers to completely personalize their own label on jars, tins, and chocolates. Check out the new Victorian Home label. I think we are on board for that!
Thistledown Cozies www.thistledowncozies.com We finally got around to this booth this year. It has always been so busy at this booth, we couldn’t even approach it last year. We nudged our way in this time! Beautiful cozies that wrap around the exact shape of your teapot to keep them snug and cozy warm. These are great, quality cozy with a bottom to them. Many different fabrics to fit your décor. A good line of cozies to create a unique look in your tearoom without having to invest in floral china. Simply buy a supply of solid color teapots and cover them with these beautiful cozies for beautiful, functional serving. Machine washable, ribbons won’t fray. Sachets, aprons, & teapot/cozy starter kits. Also beautiful tea art prints and notecards by Patricia L. Crowley
The Ida Lindsey China Company www.idalindseychina.com Are these old or new? You cannot tell! You simply must read the story behind these tea sets. Reproduced from elegant teapots produced in 1914. Beautiful and so true to the original that you can’t tell the old from the new. Gorgeous! The only hand-painted porcelain reproduction available from 50-70 designs produced from 1911-1936.
TinScape www.tinscape.com Creative decorative tinware. Best for those creating a complete product line in search of packaging. Beautiful variety of tinware.
Tea Markets www.teamarkets.com Custom tea chests. Minimum order of 200 chests. Best for tea distributors. Beautiful, unique designs.
Java Frost www.javafrost.com Delicious drink mixes. We tried Khoi-na, an aromatic rooibos tea and also Matcha Mist blended green tea. These were served frosty. Very delicious. Check out their other flavors as well. Nice blended drinks.
Doctor B’s Teas www.doctorbsteas.com 25 cents per tin of tea is donated to the Breast Cancer Fund. Flavors include: Sunrise Breakfast, Indian Ginger Chai, Wind & Sea Jasmine, Rooibos Pomegranate, Schizandra Berry, Rooibos Sensation, Taormina Earl Grey, Simply Vanilla. Beautiful watercolor designs on the label of the tea tins.
Jane Holmes www.janeholmes.com “Take the Time for Tea” Productions See your tearoom as a painting from your photo. See the same painting transformed into business cards, gorgeous gift bags, and notecards. Loving this concept! Really presents a professional image for your business. Also beautiful artwork combining tea and friendship. Breathtaking artwork. Beautiful note cards too.
Fuji Green Tea www.shizuokatea.com Fine Japanese Tea from Shizuoka
Keiko www.keiko-tea.us Genuine Japanese Shaded Green Tea
Torn Ranch www.tornranch.com Okay, these guys were new to the World Tea Expo, but we had already met them at the Fancy Food Show in NYC. Great to see them again. And now with a full line of REALLY good, very delicious tea chocolate, tea truffles, and tea infused cookies. All their products are infused with real tea, not just flavored. Seriously delicious, every single product! Gotta have them all. Really! I have some of their chocolate, and now I’m craving some of the cookies!
Rishi Tea www.rishi-tea.com Garden direct importer of loose-leaf tea, specializing in organic and fair-trade-certified artisan teas. Rishi Tea also hand-crafts botanical blends and imports rare teaware. Great teas and you have to see the beautiful postcards with their company info printed on them--of tea pickers and real people from tea growing regions. Breathtaking.
Forte Trade Corporation www.sympateausa.com Sympatea Spoon Tea. "Squeezing the tea bag is over. An end to dripping messy tea bags. No more need for a spoon to stir your tea." These are spoon shaped, food-safe, plastic infusers. Just tear off the outside fresh seal and place into your cup of hot water, stir. The mesh covering over the tea in the spoon is so fine, it does not allow any small particles of tea to pass through. You are left with a colorful, aromatic cup of tea. Available in 5 flavors: Black tea, Earl Grey, Green Tea, Mixed Herbal Tea & Rosehips.
Chartreuse Ltd., www.chartreuseltd.com 100% certified organic and certified kosher herbal tisanes. 10 unique blends: caffeine & additive free. 10 percent of gross profits go to cancer research.
Exhibitor summary: There were tons of quality exhibitors. This is all we were able to get to see & write about ourselves. Some others who have exhibited before can be found in our previous reports about World Tea Expo. To learn about more, you’ll need to visit the next World Tea Expo, June 9-11, 2007 in Atlanta, Georgia at the Georgia World Congress Center (www.worldteaexpo.com ) Now on to the classes we attended.
Classes: Again, a huge variety of classes to attend. All very beneficial. Some of particular interest to us and for us to share are listed below.
The Future of Specialty Tea 2006-2010 by Brian Keating, Sage Group Before beginning, Brian polled the audience: in attendance: 80% new to the expo, 60% current tea room owners, 5% tea wholesalers, 10% tea wannabes. Those approximate %s based on a show of hands and my observations. Great turn out!! The tea industry has received the most consistent sales increase—lots of growth. “Soda is flat” Sell Tea! People want healthy options, no sugar, low caffeine, and antioxidants—so they want tea! The majority of tea growth currently is in specialty coffee shops & natural food stores. A great new niche is combining tea with books, meetings, games, fitness, gifts, etc. Pricing per cup of tea is approx. $2.60 and a pot $3.80—definitely room for an increase in price and more bulk tea sales. Romance your consumer with education and history and details on product labeling. Always a worthwhile class. Visit this one every year! If you can’t be on top of your market research, find someone who can and attend this class! www.usteareport.com
Million Dollar Tea in a Five Cent Pot by Jonathan Weiner, Maryland China Company I really enjoyed this presentation. Photos of a factory tour, porcelain manufacturing process, etc. A ceramics characteristics and decorating methods overview. Ceramics and Tea, History of Porcelain—Chinese—Europe—Kilns—1800s. We’ll be working with Jonathan to bring some more information about comparisons of China, Porcelain, and Stoneware in a future issue of The Tea House Times and at our website. Stay tuned. This class was very interesting. Always good to see how something is manufactured, esp. if you are using it and educating about it daily in your business. www.marylandchina.com
Fair Trade Certification 101 by Maya Spaull, Fair Trade Certified (TransFair USA) Maya described Fair Trade certification details, labeling, tea standards, fair trade products, why Fair Trade is important in helping cover basic needs in developing countries and addressing health and safety concerns. How to source Fair Trade. The difference between Free Trade and Fair Trade, and much more. Maya shared photos of tea pluckers in India and their daily life and how changes brought about by Fair Trade have impacted their lives. We are working on some more information to increase awareness of Fair Trade and it’s benefits. Stay tuned to our website news page for more from Maya. World Fair Trade Day is May 13, 2006 Want to get involved? www.fairtradecertified.org
Big Profits from Your Smallest Customer by Tammy Seibert/Ashlie Cravens, A Spot for Tea These ladies put on a terrific program. Sharing their EXPERIENCE is very helpful to other tea room owners. Their approach with children’s parties and fresh, unique ideas were inspiring. The message is this, and we all know it: “Children need a safe haven”. They are all beautiful just the way they are. Bring it back, make them all feel special and respected. Get down to a child’s level. Make them feel special. Take their photos, create a file and remember them the next time they visit. They feel so special and they want to bring everyone they know back to visit. Create a memory through family photos (all dressed up). Decorate and serve unforgettable foods. Encourage good manners and teach the basics at least. Promote your offerings through brochures to your customers, a newsletter (at least 5 x per year), your website, etc. Word of mouth is your best advertising. So be sure to create an unforgettable experience. Use media to promote! They love stories about children’s tea parties and charity events. Post all the great thank you notes you receive at your business for others to read. www.aspotfortea.com
Planning your own PR and Marketing by Shirley Frazier, Sweet Survival PLAN, brainstorm on paper, use your ideas, and measure what has brought the most back to you. Events? Foot traffic? Are you meeting your goals? Whatever works, do more of it! Determine your market. Depending upon where you are located, your market can be very different than the very same type of business in another town. Figure out who your best customers are and target your marketing efforts towards them. Not everyone has access to the internet, so you must market in a variety of ways—website and print advertising and contact with customers through newsletters etc. (see? We told you how important newsletters are—time to offer your customers The Tea House Times –or a custom newsletter created just for you J) Plan special events and seasonal events to draw in new business. www.solobusinessmarketing.com
Menu Planning to Increase Your Sales by William C. Jarvie, Johnson & Wales University Think about your menu and taste everything before it becomes your menu. Taste it, eat it, and drink the tea. See if it all goes together. Develop a menu and match to your food products. Remember the FIG Principle. FREE is Good! Offer samples, esp. of teas and other products you want to sell. Learn how to lay out your menu. What to include on your menu. Printing it. Cover options, Consideration of menu offerings and categories and listings, offering flavor profiles of teas to match up with different foods—a unique approach. Consider your style, cuisine, guests, your staff, your budget, and what will be most profitable. Also learn factors that influence menu pricing. A worthwhile class. wjarvie@jwu.edu
What Went Wrong? Defective and Damaged Tea by Thomas Shu, ABC Tea Learn: What are the Defects? Defects in Storage/Handling/Preparation? If it is raining when the tea is plucked, it can cause difficulty in processing since it is too wet. Tea needs to run through all the processes properly to be free of defect: oxidation, rolling, etc. Defects can also be from Preparation—poor water quality, wrong temperature, over steeping, improper steeping, etc. Exposure to heat, light, air, odors and equipment and packaging materials may also cause problems. The timing of plucking must be right, the proper amount of time for withering, oxidation, and firing must be adhered to, and rolling and drying must be done properly.
A Journey into the Ancient Tea Forests of Xishuangbanna, China by Sean O’Leary, Rishi Tea. The best class! Sean was refreshing and energetic. The photos and stories he shared were priceless. Great photos and insight into tea plants and growth, esp. good for those new to tea. Very interesting history of plants and information about community conditions. In China, the health benefits they consider for tea are weight loss, slimming reduction, aids digestion, particularly good after a heavy meal. Sean discussed the ages of tea plants over 100 years as antique, over 30 as old and under 30 as new. Tea gardens have all of these: antique, old, and new. Some are older than 1,000 years; some even as old as 1,500 years. He also discussed wild and semi wild plants and what plants are cultivated. Seeds fall from antique trees creating new plants, etc. Sean discussed Pu-erh teas and this was VERY interesting. People have a real misconception on what Pu-erh is. That’s another story we’ll share with you soon on our tea facts page at our website. Too much to tell you here. You must go to this class if it is offered again next year at World Tea Expo. Also learn some important information about differences in marketing Pu-erh. Is older better? Is dry or wet storage better? So much to learn! This was fantastic!! www.rishi-tea.com
Marketing the Health Benefits of Tea by Louise Roberge, Tea Assoc. of Canada and Joe Simrany, Tea Assoc. of the USA. We didn’t get to stay for this entire class since we had a busy morning, but here are the highlights: First they discussed the rationale behind marketing tea and health and its connection to an initial slow growth in the industry and the need for positive consumer perceptions. The healthy aspect is an extremely important sales motivator for a large part of the population. Use caution in marketing the health benefits of tea. “Leave science to the scientists” Don’t make unsubstantiated claims. Reinforce the value of tea, boost awareness, and encourage further scientific studies. Health and Wellness are big business and something every consumer needs. This drives sales. When highlighting the healthy aspects of tea, be sure you can quote the appropriate scientific studies to support your statements. Seek expert advice. Understand how tea works in the body and its health benefits. What are the health aspects, caffeine content, etc.? Research and be knowledgeable to facts and then share that information esp. for positive press coverage about your business & products. Educate your consumers. Understand fully what claims you can make whether FDA approved health claims or structure function claims. Research! Take this class next year! Be careful about unapproved health claims or drug claims. To safely share information, you can try displaying published studies and published articles pertaining to tea and health rather than trying to come up with claims of your own. Be careful, responsible. Avoid drug claims. Accurately describe the science behind your information. When in doubt, talk to your lawyer before making any health claims or statements.
What the *?#! Should I Charge? By Bill Waddington, Tea Source I think this one sold out. It was standing room only and we couldn’t stay the entire time, but here are the highlights: Everything you thought was right about setting prices—according to Bill—is wrong. Charge what you need to charge. Think of all your operating costs including rent, labor, utilities, and think of your customer base—what can they afford?—and how much do you need to charge to be profitable? Create your own break even analysis including sales, gross profits, expenses, etc. Figure out what your break even point is. Use 12 weeks sales history or if your business is new, study similar businesses and estimate. Estimate your expenses on the high end. Consider all income from sales, consulting, speaking fees, etc. If you aren’t already a speaker, prepare for it, educate yourself and DO IT! If you are passionate about your business you need to share it and spread the facts. Bill also discussed ways to adjust your prices and different scenarios for success. Bill provided a break even analysis with income & expense summary chart breaking down controllable expenses and non-controllable expenses, other income, and other expenses. This class should help with the what to charge blues.
Be a Japanese Tea Master by Den Shirakata, President Den’s Tea Inc. This class offered a good description about Japanese green tea, production, types, brewing, health benefits, and other interesting details. If you are more familiar with Chinese Teas, it is also good to familiarize yourself with Japanese teas, so the information offered by this class was beneficial.
Nine pages and a full day in writing, our World Tea Expo 2006 Report is now complete. If we come across some other business cards we collected and forgot about, we’ll add them into this report asap. I hope you have found it useful and informative. Until next time. . .
Lady Gayle
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