From Nepal to New Zealand, Spain to South Africa, and just about everywhere in between, Henrietta Lovell is constantly on the go in search of rare teas and tisanes. Her passion for loose-leaf infusions has earned her the title of “Tea Lady,” by which she is known to producers, harvesters, chefs, sommeliers and customers the world over.
Though her consumer sales spiked during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic and continue to be an important part of her business, B2B sales have been Lovell’s mainstay since her earliest days in the industry. She has worked with and consulted for restaurants, hotels and renowned chefs to help them upgrade their tea service holistically – leaves, tea ware, customer experience and all.
Evolution of Tea in Hospitality
Lovell founded Rare Tea Company in London in the early 2000s. At the time, tea was usually an afterthought at restaurants across North America and Europe. If they served tea at all, it came in the form of a tea bag from a box “sitting above the coffee machine for ages, steaming, getting splashed,” Lovell recalls. A cup of tea at a restaurant was probably going to be worse than a cup of tea you’d make at home.
Since then, Lovell has traveled the world to source rare and specialty teas with particular attention to quality and taste. And because she believed restaurants and hotels could and should do better with their tea service, a large portion of her work has always been situated in the hospitality industry.
Though she doesn’t claim all the credit for the transformation of hospitality tea service in the last two decades, she undoubtedly had an influence on it. It’s more common now for restaurants to offer a selection of teas from reputable sources, and for those teas to be prepared correctly by the restaurant staff, taking into account the central variables of leaf-to-water ratio, temperature and time.
“You’re very unlikely to see a box of teabags on top of the coffee machine anymore,” Lovell said. “I’ve seen a complete change. Everyone’s got teapots; everyone’s starting to take care of the tea.”
Though her guidance might get them started in the world of tea, Lovell credits the chefs, sommeliers, and baristas for championing their own models of tea service and elevating it in unique ways, according to their individual expertise. The baristas are usually the ones to spearhead a tea improvement program, she said. Then chefs might use tea as an ingredient in innovative ways, such as by bringing depth to a protein dish by incorporating smoky lapsang souchong. And chefs and sommeliers can team up together to develop culinary pairings with tea that take the dining experience to another level.
Lovell’s clients have included acclaimed establishments such as Noma, Claridge's and Cheval Blanc, plus master chefs such as Gordon Ramsay, Clare Smyth and David Chang, but she doesn’t restrict her work to fine dining. She thinks tea should be accessible – not elitist – so there’s no restaurant or cafe too small for her. As one example, she has partnered with a coffee shop in California that now serves Rare Tea’s products.
“The small, independent coffee shop is just as important to me as the Michelin star restaurant, because they’re changing the world just as much,” she said.
But whether the restaurant is big or small, prominent or a hidden gem, Lovell said the most significant trend she has seen since her mission to improve tea service in hospitality is that now, “the customer expects it. The customer is not happy when they get just an ordinary teabag.”
Equity in the Trade
The West’s thirst for tea has a dark history, heavy in colonialism, theft and slavery. Lovell works toward breaking down that pattern with a business model that allows her to work with tea producers directly and pay them fairly. She also started a foundation to support educational opportunities for people in tea-producing communities.
Like wine, the price of tea can vary quite a bit, depending on geographical origin, producer, production method, age and more. But tea of above-average quality is an affordable luxury for most people in the West, and profit margins on tea are usually high for restaurants that serve it — commonly around 90 percent, Lovell said.
But restaurateurs often desire to generate even more revenue from their tea service, sometimes expecting up to a 98 percent profit margin, Lovell said, which means they’d need to purchase their tea from her for a lower rate.
Rare Tea’s prices are set to ensure its business is profitable while still supporting the tea producers. To lower the prices, Lovell would have to source lower-quality tea – thereby creating a worse experience for her customers – or involve a broker, which would result in less pay for the tea producers.
“I can’t tell you how frustrating it is when the man in the suit says to me, ‘there is a problem with your business,’” Lovell wrote in a piece she contributed to CODE Hospitality last year. “‘Your tea is too expensive.’ The problem is with my business? Couldn’t it be that expecting to make margins far in excess of 90 percent for a product that has long been associated with poverty and exploitation might be a problem with his business?”
Instead, Lovell wants to see the tea industry progress toward respect and equity.“There is no value in cheap tea. Not to a restaurant and not to the guest. And certainly not to the tea community,” she wrote. “We really can afford to serve decent tea.”
Tips from the Tea Lady
For any restaurant or hotel seeking to take their tea service to the next level, Lovell suggests keeping these three points in mind:
1. Know where your tea comes from and build relationships with the people who produce it. Sourcing tea directly “not only gives your team reasons to build a deeper respect for your business [and] helps them with stories to make your customers fall more deeply in love; it also protects your reputation in a world rife with exploitation,” Lovell said.
2. Strive to put in as much care for your tea service as you do for your wine service. Customers will notice and appreciate the effort.
3. Remember that customers can make instant coffee or heat up a teabag at home. When they are out at a restaurant, they expect a more sophisticated experience, and it’s up to you to provide it.
If you’re interested in learning more about tea for your bar or restaurant (including tea cocktails and tea on the menu), plan to attend the 2023 Bar & Restaurant Expo, which will be co-located with the World Tea Conference + Expo.
Cat Kerr has supported local cafes in Orlando, Fla. as a public relations manager and barista since 2018. She is a full-time communications professional with a background in news writing, and she’s contributor to Questex’s World Tea News and Bar & Restaurant.
Plan to Attend or Participate in
Bar & Restaurant Expo, March 27-29, 2023
To learn more about the latest trends, issues and hot topics, and to experience and taste the best products within the bar, restaurant and hospitality industry, plan to attend Bar & Restaurant Expo, March 27-29, 2023 in Las Vegas. The event will once again be co-located with the World Tea Conference + Expo, creating opportunities for unique industry partnerships and business relationships. Visit BarandRestaurantExpo.com.
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