A couple of weeks ago, I was invited to the opening of a chic new tea boutique in London’s Burlington Arcade where Tamsin Lafferty is selling teas from Luponde Estate in Tanzania. It’s unusual for a retail store to only sell teas from one tea garden but Tamsin offers quite a selection as well as some elegant porcelain tea wares in which to brew and serve the range of teas and herbal infusions. Luponde is situated in the remote Livingstone Mountains in the south west of the country where wilder beasts, lions, hippos and zebra roam free across the high plateau that is covered in lush grass, thick forest and great lakes. Luponde’s organic, Fairtrade tea grows up at 7000 feet and the estate produces a white tea, a green, an orthodox black, a camomile, a peppermint and a mint flavoured green tea.
All are on sale in the elegant little shop in one of London’s most exclusive shopping arcades. The interior is sophisticated black which is brightened by three TV screens which immediately capture your attention with their images of sunshiny blue skies and tea fields of the brightest, most vibrant green. Ranged alongside are the Luponde tins - also black and decorated with zebra-striped tea leaves and lipstick-pink, sharp green and pure white lettering.
The launch party was very stylish, held inside the private gated mall that is the very stylish Burlington Arcade close to the Royal Academy on Piccadilly in the heart of London. When I arrived, tables were set up with samples of the leaf and all the teas were being brewed and served in taster-sized beakers so that visitors could sample this unusual taste of Africa for themselves. The crowd filled a much larger space than the actual shop which is a tiny, jewel-box retail space that only comfortably holds 4 or 5 people at any one time. On a normal shopping day, the black, white and pink packaging certainly catches the eye and entices potential customers into the pretty little shop.
Tamsin was helped at the publicity events by another tea friend, Romal Shah, who himself has recently become involved in selling a range of African teas. Of Asian heritage but brought up in Kenya, Romal has created a company called Safari Lounge which has a totally African style - mainly African teas and herbals, African packaging (again, like Tamsin, using a zebra-print design) and with a connection to the Masai people and to three Kenya charities - Kazuri, which works to create employment for disadvantaged members of the Kenyan society, especially single mothers; Amani, a project that trains marginalised women to use sewing machines so that they can make garments and fabric goods in order to gain some financial independence; and the Northern Rangelands Trust which promotes community-led conservation projects in Northern Kenya. How wonderful that in so many situations, tea businesses give back to the communities where they buy and sell their teas. Everyone benefits from the success of ethical entrepreneurs.
A determined marathon runner, Romal has the energy and tenacity to achieve his dream and establish a chain of sto
res that will give people the chance to appreciate these African blends. When they know that his and Tamsin’s teas are traded ethically and that the local tribes and charities benefit, they will recognise the value of these two new businesses.
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This is a good article–I remember being in the arcade. I always learn from Jane and read so much of what she has written. I teach a tea class in North Carolina in the US and share what she has written with my students. We may not get to visit the places and tea people she does but through her experiences we get a glimpse.She is a wonderful writer and tea reporter.