Posted by Renée Suen in beverages, shops, tea on September 24, 2008 at 7:32 am

David's Tea
336 Queen Street West
1-888-873-0006 (main company line - no phone yet for the Queen West shop)

Recently I've had the fortune of meeting up with some of our city's young food and drink entrepreneurs, whose passion and desire for their product have started to rock Toronto's food scene. David's Tea is one prime example. Working against the stereotype that loose leaf tea is difficult to use, stuffy or only for grandmas, owner David Segal's vision is to make tea fun, fresh and totally accessible. A private serial entrepreneur (with previous specialties in software, clothing and shoes), Segal found a real love and appreciation of tea within the last year. "I'd always liked tea, but I didn't know much about it. Typically tea has been very quiet; it's not out there, and no one really goes to present themselves in a loud way about it. Then I started realizing that there was stuff beyond Tetley's."

"Tea is second biggest drink in world, but in North America, most people drink what is equivalent to boxed wine. It's a big market and existing players don't see how big it is."

Segal's proposal to make tea as prominent a player on the streets as coffee was quickly supported by his investing partner and cousin, Herschel Segal, the founder of the Le Chateau clothing chain.

Doing all his homework, Segal travelled around the world, trying every available product before selecting those featured in the shop's repertoire (most of which can be found on their website). It was also on these travels that Segal honed his appreciation of good teas: "My experience at the World Tea Conference gave me exposure to multiple suppliers. I was able to find some amazing blends from some suppliers, but I was also disappointed that there were teas that didn't taste like how they smelled. No one single distributor, estate or blender met my needs, so I picked the best teas from them, including my favourite, the organic North Africa mint." In fact, 60% of his products come from US distributors, while Canada and Germany represent the remaining 30% and 10%, respectively.

Besides finding the product, the next strategic step for Segal was to secure a location to launch David's Tea. The shop would have to be front and centre, and in a location where his teas could be introduced to the mainstream. That was how Segal ended up swooping into an available space on Toronto's Queen Street West (which happens to be next to one of his investor's boutiques). In a wise pre-opening move, Segal and his team hit the streets to "get out there and show people how easy it is to have loose leaf tea because the majority think it's complicated. We're here to demystify tea."

The shop itself is bright and refreshing. Its clean and attractive décor reflects the young and vibrant culture surrounding it, and has provoked many curious passers-by to drop in days before the store opening. One wall is lined with 120 different teas that include traditional, premium estate and rare teas such as the Himalayan Traveller's Tea or the Kenyan Sencha; the other wall is stocked with tea brewing vessels including authentic Japanese and Chinese cast iron pots at various price points, and even a samovar that could enchant any would-be Russian princess.

Segal balks at being questioned about his target market, answering instead that David's Tea is directed to people who just like tea. "I'm targeting a psychodemographic. Our customers can be young at heart, those who have a zest for life, open minded, healthy (because that's what naturally connected to tea), or who like to be travellers using their taste buds."

"Everyone is welcomed at the store. Customers don't have to worry about being overwhelmed with the selection, because that's where our staff step in. So many people are interested to get into loose leaf tea but don't know how. My staff have been trained to make tea fun, to educated people about the products, take them by the hand and help them bridge the gap." Segal adds, "All the products are aimed to appeal to novice and expert tea connoisseurs - the biggest difference between us and other tea sellers is that we bring the teas to market in an extremely approachable way. Yes, I want to sell you more tea, but you're going to love it and enjoy it." Segal stands behind his commitment regarding the accessibility of the product by also noting that he is equally accessible to his customers and will answer all calls or emails.

Down the road, Segal aims to have his own in house blender, which would follow the opening of 3-4 more store locations in other happening areas (i.e. Montreal). In the meantime, Torontonians can visit the flagship location, grab a seat in the store and enjoy free Wi-Fi access with their tea, or wait until summer for a seat on the patio. There are also plans to set up a testing station where customers would cast their vote on tea candidates that would be added to the current roster; take home tea-based recipes including the store's signature Lime Bang tea martini; and gift packages "that would make friendly, nice and not too personal gifts for any occasion."

At the end of our chat, Segal shares this: "The reality is that you learn to love things. It all begins with the first step. I wake up every morning and thank my lucky stars that I found something I love."

Renée Suen is a graduate student at the University of Toronto, specializing in cardiovascular sciences. She is an avid tea drinker and is known to pair good tea with great food. Many of these results can be found on her Flickr site.