Teatulia Hits Ground Running in U.S. Expansion Print E-mail
Friday, 10 April 2009

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Kazi Tea Estate, parent of Teatulia, created a cooperative to promote employment, education, health and cattle-lending programs in Northern Bangladesh.Teatulia may be less than six months old, but the company is already receiving notable contracts and community recognition.

The international brand of Kazi and Kazi Tea Estate Ltd. in Bangladesh, Teatulia is based in Denver but has been quickly securing distribution deals across the U.S. since its October launch.

The company’s products are now sold in approximately 10 shops in the Denver area and approximately seven locations around the San Francisco Bay Area. All their products are also sold online. According to Linda Appel Lipsius, COOr in charge of launching Teatulia in the U.S., the company has also partnered with Whole Foods Rocky Mountain.

Teatulia announced last month that its products would be available at Open House in Philadelphia, Pa. The retail store specializes in home, kitchen, bath, garden and body products designed for modern urban living.

Teatulia also began distribution earlier this year at Berkeley Bowl, an independent, full-service supermarket located in California.

“(Berkeley Bowl) is where you go for phenomenal natural foods in that area,” Lipsius said. “We set our sights on getting in there. It took some serious perseverance.”

She explained that, because the company’s price point is premium, it targets high-end shops and thought leaders in various communities. Businesses like Berkeley Bowl, which are committed to carrying organic and natural foods, are the perfect fit.

Teatulia, named for the region in Northern Bangladesh where the tea is grown, is committed to social responsibility. The company uses no third-party traders or vendors.

“The philosophy and ethos behind our garden is totally new,” Lipsius said. “We consider it next-level farming practice.”

The company uses what she called a “natural farming” technique free of pesticides, machinery or unnatural irrigation, and it created a cooperative designed to promote employment, education, health and cattle-lending programs within Northern Bangladesh. Furthermore, Teatulia’s canisters are biodegradable and use water-based ink.

Lipsius, who will be speaking alongside Teatulia Chief Executive Officer Kazi Anis Ahmed at a World Tea Expo class on sustainability, explained that educating consumers on the importance of how tea is processed is vital.

“There’s a huge educational opportunity,” Lipsius said.

Teatulia created a seven-minute educational video, which it placed on YouTube and aired on local television stations.

Teatulia has announced several distribution deals recently for its teas.

She added, “We’re really trying to educate people on this particular type of tea and on the beauty of whole leaf tea.”

The educational outreach may be working, as Westwood magazine – an alternative weekly in Denver, recently selected Teatulia as the winner in its Best Tea category and highlighted the company’s decision for quality over quantity.

Teatulia offers only eight organic, pesticide-free leaves and blends. However, its direct blending from a new tea-growing region and eco-friendly packaging made the products stand out, the publication stated.

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