DAVIDsTEA is expanding its Tea Bar concept with plans to roll it out to different locations across the country.
The specialty retailer first opened its Tea Bar, in-store, in late 2022 at CF Carrefour Laval and then in early 2023 in Les Galeries de la Capitale in Quebec City.
Its latest location is in the CF Toronto Eaton Centre.
“We are eager for this next step in our journey and cannot wait to see how a new focus on tea beverages can open up a world of tea lifestyle and interest for our customers. Crafted, premium, amazing-tasting sparkling tea and tea lattes are a great way to explore our flavours and discover how many ways there are to enjoy loose leaf tea,” said Sarah Segal, DAVIDsTEA’s Chief Executive Officer and Chief Brand Officer.
Segal said the company has plans to open Tea Bars before the end of this year in CF Rideau Centre in Ottawa and CF Pacific Centre in Vancouver.
“We always offer beverages in our locations but it was never our focus. It was really kind of an afterthought and it’s really something we’ve just focused on more. We decided because of consumer demand, because of where the market’s going, because of the opportunity, we also think it’s a great customer service and experience piece,” she said.
“We want to have things that are available more quickly. We think there were improvements to our service model that we wanted to get to. And I think with a smaller fleet of stores we were able to put all that feedback together and create the Tea Bar because it was not an overnight thing. We’ve been serving beverages for a long time and we knew there was opportunity.”
By leveraging new proprietary technologies, DAVIDsTEA offers a curated menu that accelerates the beverage preparation experience without diluting the specialty component. The Tea Bars offer an exclusively curated, and seasonally changing, menu that showcases the wide variety of beverages at DAVIDsTEA. Consumers can expect to discover hot and iced tea lattes, matcha, along with TeaPop™ and TeaPop™ lemonade. The vegan-friendly menu exclusively features oat milk to amplify the flavour experience and to cater to a wider audience. Through these innovative, handcrafted, to-go beverages, DAVIDsTEA addresses the void in the specialty take-out tea market, says the company.
“This is really our step into the takeout tea market, speciality beverage, to-go beverage and we think we did it in a true to the brand way,” said Segal.
“It’s a differentiator for us. We thought there was a real gap in the tea to-go space. Our teas have no syrups, no added sugar. It’s really just pure tea – very pure ingredients, very simple ingredients. We felt that was really missing honestly from the landscape.”
The company currently has 18 stores in Canada. In 2020, DavidsTea went through restructuring under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act. The Montreal-based chain at that time had more than 220 locations across Canada and the U.S.
“We signed with Royalmount in Montreal. We are looking in the Montreal area for sure. We think it’s a great market for us and we’re looking at certain other Canadian markets. I don’t want to share exactly which ones at this stage because it’s still in negotiations but we are looking in other Canadian markets that are very strong for us.
Kathleen McGuigan, Managing Director, Client Services of Brokerage Oberfeld Snowcap represents DavidsTea in Canada.
“Overall we’re very eager to connect with people in our stores as part of an omnichannel experience. We don’t think it’s one or the other. We like it as a complementary experience, especially to discover some of our new stuff but replenishment too. There’s also different kinds of discovery and exclusive online”, said Segal.
“We also have an app that’s launching in the fall and it’s a way to bridge that full experience together and really provide more information to our customers. I think that’s something that people have always asked for from us. There’s so much going on. They want information. That’s where the web, that’s where the app is really going to help enhance the store experience.”
DAVIDsTEA offers a specialty branded selection of high-quality proprietary loose-leaf teas, pre-packaged teas, tea sachets, tea-related accessories and gifts through its e-commerce platform at www.davidstea.com and the Amazon Marketplace, its wholesale customers which include over 3,800 grocery stores and pharmacies. The company offers primarily proprietary tea blends that are exclusive to it, as well as traditional single-origin teas and herbs.
