Blog
The Lincoln Tea & Coffee Company Is 10 Years Old – A Decade Of The Fresh Approach
Sep
Founded in 2013, The Lincoln Tea & Coffee Company is proudly celebrating a decade this year. Ten years on and still driven by the same values; a customer focused company whose logo stands for quality and passion. A family run business who supply award-winning products and service and stand out for being leaders in sustainability and innovation.
The Lincoln Tea & Coffee Company is constantly growing and developing and has moved up a level in the last few years. Developing Lincolnshire’s very own Lincolnshire Tea, being the first triple hat trick sponsor of the MOD, creating products for Charities such as St Barnabas and being fortunate enough to be contacted by Wrendale Designs and launch a joint collaboration for King Charles Coronation Tea.
To mark this exciting milestone, Susie has proudly reflected on the last 10 years…
“I started The Lincoln Tea & Coffee Company to fulfil a personal passion and dream whilst bringing up my two school aged children. I felt that this was the right time for my family, that it would truly fit in and my business would grow alongside my children.
Since starting our family, I had worked in my husband’s business doing the accounts. This worked well and enabled me to be flexible. I could manage my own time, often working from home during school hours. I enjoy every moment, my family always comes first.
So, alongside being mum, wife and doing accounts for my husband, I thought it was time for me to follow my business dream in my spare time! How much time could a small business that supplies tea and coffee take?! I started my dream at the kitchen table, where it was initially registered on my laptop and even thought of the name ‘The Lincoln Tea and Coffee Company’ whilst changing the bed!
I have had a true passion for tea since I was a small girl, which I shared with my nan and parents; my favourite being Jasmine Tea from China. As a family, we found it a challenge to find tea and coffee we loved, so we knew quality tea products from around the world was essential. My first contact being an amazing plantation in Sri Lanka, I then went on to work with different tea experts.
This thirst for knowledge also extended to the coffee sector and we have worked with many experts and knowledgeable people along our journey. Within the first 6 months of the company, I had collaborated with a world renowned coffee roasting team, espresso manufacturers and even gained a City and Guilds in Barista Skills Level 2 to Distinction level. All in my spare time, of course!
My background was customer services in London before meeting my husband John and moving to my new home of Lincolnshire, so it was important to me that service was an area in which the company would always shine. My dream turned from a fledgling business that had gained a fabulous reputation, to being asked to not only sell to the end users we had originally set out to supply but also to hotels, coffee shops and conference centres that loved what we sold and the service we provided.
I went from doing the accounts to running a new business, learning new skills and juggling many business hats. As the founder of the business, I did it all from; marketing, sales, barista training, social media, product design to delivery driver and more. This was at the same time as being a full-time mum and wife and often feeling guilty, as so many mums do.
People often ask me how I set up a tea and coffee company from scratch, that it must have been rather a challenge. I must confess to sometimes feeling a little overwhelmed and that I had maybe bitten off more than I could chew! Stubbornness and the strong will to succeed have always been my best friends.
It has been true teamwork that has helped the company go on to succeed further. From my vision and ‘sparkly’ business brain to my husband John becoming increasingly involved in the business over the years, with his great engineering and sales skills to our daughter choosing to work with us at events and then going on to design product packaging, adverts and brochures.
Then we started to employ and now have the most incredible team. They bring fabulous skills and passion. With the range of talents we have between us, I no longer need to juggle a variety of roles on my own. We really are the dream team.
The Lincoln Tea and Coffee Company is truly a successful family business and I am so proud of our products, our reputation, our growth, our awards, our trophies, our Great Taste Producer status and so much more. As a team, we are proud of our roles, the partnerships we form, the display teams we sponsor, the valued customers we support, our vision, our skills, the company’s success and the business as a whole.
Now, as we celebrate our 10 year anniversary, I sometimes have to pinch myself to believe all that has been achieved. I realise now that dream has become reality and wonder what the next 10 years will bring!”
Plans are to remain focused on supplying award-winning products and services and developing more innovative lines, whilst maintaining the same excellent service they are so well known for. Whoever is involved in the future, Carlisle or not, they will be a huge part of the extended family that is The Lincoln Tea & Coffee Company.
Enjoy 10% off our website with voucher code ’10years’
