Hello everyone, I need help !

[evivant.com]

Hello everyone I have been reading the forum over the last 2 weeks and really enjoy it, I am starting with my friends a new Gourmet retail website, we started winelibrary.com a few years ago and we are really getting into the gourmet life, so we were like "Why Not"........so the reason I am posting is We are curious what customers are looking for in the GOURMET TEA market, being into wine it seems that they have so many things in common. I really have been blown away with the level of knowledge in this forum.....the major questions is 1) Is selection more important then price ? 2) Will people buy tea and coffee on line ? 3)Are there any major advertisers in the market ? 4) who are the SERIOUS MAJOR players so far ?.........Thank you so much for answering any of the questions.

PS: Thank you for the education !!!!!!!!!!!!

Gary !

[Chris Cognac]

Hello everyone I have been reading the forum over the last 2 weeks and really enjoy it, I am starting with my friends a new Gourmet retail website, we started winelibrary.com a few years ago and we are really getting into the gourmet life, so we were like "Why Not"........so the reason I am posting is We are curious what customers are looking for in the GOURMET TEA market, being into wine it seems that they have so many things in common. I really have been blown away with the level of knowledge in this forum.....the major questions is 1) Is selection more important then price ? 2) Will people buy tea and coffee on line ? 3)Are there any major advertisers in the market ? 4) who are the SERIOUS MAJOR players so far ?.........Thank you so much for answering any of the questions.

PS: Thank you for the education !!!!!!!!!!!!

Gary !

I think selection and price are a big factor...but I would lean more towards selection...I mean I want to see stuff I cant go to my local market and buy, imported stuff, rare brands...that stuff. You should also have good descriptions and maybe some cooking tips for items you will feature on your site.

[andiesenji]

I buy a great deal of tea online. I buy from several importers/vendors such as Harney & Sons, Adagio, British Express, Blue Moon Tea, Capital Tea (Canada), My Gourmet Tea (Ceylon), Betjeman & Barton, In Pursuit of Tea, Republic of Tea, Special Teas and others. I also buy at tea shops, particularly Chado in Pasadena that carries an extensive line of teas. Devan Shah, the proprietor is one of the founders of the Nilgiri Tea Society.

I buy from vendors that carry the teas I want at a fair price. I am willing to pay premium prices for rare teas but like to sample first. Several vendors offer sample packages that provide enough for 2-4 cups of tea at very reasonable prices. If one is plunking down up to forty dollars (or more) for four ounces of tea, one wants to know that it is something one will drink.

[tanabutler]

1) Is selection more important then price ? 2) Will people buy tea and coffee on line ? 3)Are there any major advertisers in the market ? 4) who are the SERIOUS MAJOR players so far ?.........Thank you so much for answering any of the questions.

This is just my personal experience; I'm not a professional tea purveyor but I do drink a lot of the stuff.

1) Both selection and prive are equally important, but quality is the most important thing in selecting teas.

2) Yes, people buy tons of coffee and tea online. Tea especially, I think.

3) No idea.

4) I've bought from Republic of Tea, Teavana, G.H. Ford, Tealuxe, Upton, Taylors of Harrogate. That doesn't mean they're the biggest purveyors, but their quality is good. I won't drink Lipton crap, and Celestial Seasonings herbal concoctions I don't count as "tea."

Sorry I can't address the coffee thing. I don't drink it: it makes me feel like I'm being tailgated.

[jpr54_]

I also purchase tea online-

i purchase from upton tea, imperial tea court, le palais des thes, mariage freres,

kyela teas, shan shui teas,ten tea, special teas, the fragrant leaf, plus others.

you should check out this site

http://pages.ripco.net/~c4ha2na9/tea/index.html

hopefully you will also read msgs from yahoo group-teamail to give you a broader understanding of tea drinkers-

beside purchasing tea on line i purchase tea related books and teapots-

joanne