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Creative Case Study - TeazMe - A new concept in Tea
"Teaz Me might very well be the most unique foodservice tea
concept in the industry today. Perhaps with the best chance of
breaking through as the first national brand."
Brian Keating
President, Tea Association,
USA & The Sage Group,
March, 2006
Beginning
Most great new ideas begin with a simple premise. In this case it was the idea that tea was ready for its chance at the spotlight. After years playing second fiddle to coffee, one entrepreneur had decided that tea was ready for the big time.
Lance Blanshei, an experienced coffee shop operator with multiple locations in Chico, California had been playing with the idea of a new concept café environment that showcased tea. Although Lance was successful with coffee, he realized that in order to make tea exciting and interesting, he would have to create an innovative approach that would speak to all demographics and fit in to many occasions and dayparts.
Challenge
Developing a truly new and groundbreaking concept can be daunting. Without a roadmap to follow, the creative process can be difficult to manage. When creating a cutting edge concept, forward thinking ideas can too easily lead to unfounded or obscure offerings which may not provide a feasible business model. Another risk is that the concept can be ill-defined or over concepted, making it hard to communicate to customers.
Additionally, tea as a product presented a unique set of challenges. The resource palette was limited, and the distribution hurdles were high. As well it was obvious from the outset that there would need to be a way to be an expert in both traditional tea service as well as with the innovative realm in order to be trusted by customers. This would not be an easy gap to bridge.
Process
The Culinary Edge dove headfirst into the development of the concept. The team knew that finding the right delivery methods would make these drinks both innovative and compelling, so they began with a thorough analysis of the relevant equipment that would provide the menu with a wide range of drink profiles, from hot to cold to frozen and everywhere in between.
Next The Culinary Edge addressed the existing resource palette by researching, sourcing and sampling hundreds of different tea and tea products to determine the best available profiles for the base ingredient of this new concept. Once the ideal formulations were uncovered, TCE continued their process by developing an impressive array of drinks in 5 different platforms that until that time had not been seen in other concepts. These included hot tea lattes, shaken tea drinks with fresh fruit, and tea slushies among others. Ultimately the menu ended up including an array of high end, loose leaf teas brewed and served at precise times and temperatures as well as 30 completely new drinks with unique flavor profiles.
Result
Lance Blanshei with the onsite assistance of The Culinary Edge, successfully opened TeazMe in Chico California in August of 2004. TeazMe has continued to exceed sales expectations, and in Fall 2006, Lance opened a new store in the prime location of the brand new Westfield Mall in downtown San Francisco.