If you've been following Tsuno for a while now, or have recently started with our $30 subscription box you may have noticed the beautifully designed loose leaf teas by Melbourne based brand, Cuppa and Co. Just like we want everyone to know what goes into our pads and tampons, we also want to share a little bit more information about the brands we work closely with! We recently sat down with Miles, one half of sibling duo who founded Cuppa and Co, to talk all things tea and small business.
Hi Miles! Tell us how Cuppa and Co began?
Both Hanna and I come from a long line of tea drinkers so delicious tea was always on the table when deciding how we could collaborate with a co-brand. We began with the idea of an on-the-go size pack that was fun, floral and friendly but also packed with good ingredients, values and no nasties and the brand grew from there, we're still learning new tricks every day and definitely taking the slow and steady path on our business journey.
Where is all the Cuppa and Co tea sourced from?
Beautiful Sri Lanka is the main source of our tea, especially black and green tea. Other Ingredients are imported from places over the world including Madagascar, Egypt, Australia, Germany and India. We strive to source fair trade and quality ingredients wherever we can, so our suppliers make up a huge part of our company and maintain our values.
What is involved in the process of creating a Cuppa and Co tea?
More then one would think, It starts with the initial flavour of the blend, what we've tried and tested and think would be a great combo, then further sending ideas to our team in Sri Lanka to develop our signature take on it, including organic ingredients and their percentages until the taste is right for us. We then move on to the product's packaging and how we can showcase this flavour in a new and fun way. Our final packing designs then get printed and sent to our warehouse in Sri Lanka where a team of pickers and packers weigh the tea into gram size then place the tea into the inner bag before making up the box and placing it into the master cartons.
What does an average day look like for you at Cuppa and Co HQ?
One of the best things I love about my job is that every day is completely different. Some days are spent talking to magazines and beautiful stores about how they can feature your product in wonderful ways and other days are sifting through 6 hours of admin emails and small business financials, less fun. Whatever the day throws at us, we're generally ready for it.
What are some positive lessons you've learnt from running Cuppa and Co?
There's way too many to mention as my main source of knowledge has been learnt through this company but the key lessons I take away every day would be, small business is a rollercoaster, there are days when you feel your business is thriving and exceeding goals and there are days when it's really tough and from that it's to know how to manage your work/life balance and when to step back for a little and take a moment for yourself, as without you this whole company wouldn't exist, I find I'm definitely too hard on myself a lot of the time.
I think a lot about how from Cuppa and Co I've met some of the most inspiring people in my life today and how we've worked together further and because of this brand, along the road you meet so many people that have a huge impact as they understand what it's like providing a product for the public and collaborating with them would be one of my most successful moments in business. It's not the end result to be proud off, I believe it's the entire road getting there.
If you could only drink one Cuppa and Co tea for the rest of your life, which one would it be?
It would hands down be our classic Breakfast in Bed signature black tea for me with a dash of milk and a dollop of honey.
You order Cuppa and Co's delicious teas here