UAE’s online tea company quadruples sales during the pandemic

UAE-born online tea company, Feel Good Tea Co., has more than quadrupled year-on-year sales since launching two years ago as tea drinkers in Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Kuwait leveraged the firm’s potential for personalised gifting.

Launched by tea guru Mohammad Al Hawari, the brand has grown to become a household staple, with business swelling by 406% over the past year.

“With online becoming a preferred buying channel, our quality specialty tea appears to have been a go-to refreshment during Covid lockdowns largely due to its unique health benefits,” explained Mohammad Al Hawari.

“During our first year of operation, we generated AED 4.6 million in revenue and we have continued to grow during the pandemic. As the business picked up pace, my team went on to develop a corporate package for gifting, a side of the business that has seen exponential growth delivering personalized boxes to companies across all sectors.”

The company’s online customer base now has a 30% repeat order profile – double that of its first year of operation. In terms of regional penetration, year-on-year growth in Saudi Arabia sits at 433%, with the Emirates accounting for a 175% rise in purchases, and Kuwait proving particularly strong delivering 1,100% growth since its launch into the state late last year.

While 80% of Feel Good Tea Co.’s customer base is women, Mohammad revealed growing traction with men after Dubai’s Crown Prince His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Maktoum posted news of the company on his Instagram page.

Feel Good Tea Co. now employees 19 staff and is liaising with the Canadian University to offer internships for its students.

“I put a lot of the success down to our customer experience,” said Mohammad.  “We make conscious, ethical choices in our production, manufacturing, and packaging. Our teas are pure, and our production is honest and fair – qualities which increasingly resonate with the buying public today.”

He is hoping for another bumper sales report in 2021/2022, with the company’s newly launched Mini Box tea collection featuring the brand’s top 12 loose leaf teas packaged into cute ‘mini’ boxes. “We are hoping the Mini Box can emulate the success of our Discover Box, where personally selected teas are presented in a lovely wooden box. Discover Box sales have risen by 600% in the past year,” he said.

“It is all really about quality and experience,” he added. “I personally select each of our blends from seasonal rotations before they are pressed into our Tea Pods – glass tubes that keep the tea fresh. The act of handling loose tea allows customers to touch, see and smell the leaves, both in their dry and wet forms. The ritual of brewing the perfect cup can be both relaxing and contemplative, not to mention the ability to create a cup of tea that perfectly suits consumers’ personal preferences,” he added..