Industry Leaders Speak out on the October Gathering of the Global Tea Industry
“COVID has affected not only how we live our lives, but how we see the world around us,” said Goggi. “Technology has risen to the occasion, enabling us to meet virtually, and I am glad to see the successful efforts by World Tea in continuing to bring the tea industry together. Tea has seemingly emerged as a key ‘go to’ beverage, and I will be exploring what we should continue to do in order to drive tea consumption and make tea a top of mind choice for consumers.”
World Tea Virtual Summit – from the organizers of the World Tea Conference + Expo, World Tea Academy and World Tea News – will cover key topics, feature industry experts and offer networking opportunities, in addition to the presentation of the World Tea Best of Awards.
Keeping Tea in the Spotlight
“The World Tea Summit is a must-attend event because, in this climate, we in the tea industry need to share our thoughts and ideas related to our community,” said FaithAnn Bailes, content manager for Questex’s World Tea Virtual Summit and the World Tea Conference + Expo. “Every industry is struggling to stay current and become as innovative as possible during this crisis, but tea is an incredibly unique product serving a very unique clientele. I really feel that tea will keep re-inventing itself, and events like the summit in October will help spark ideas that will move the industry forward and keep tea in the spotlight.”
Rona Tison, executive VP of corporate relations for ITO EN (North America) INC. – one of the many distinguished presenters for the upcoming summit – said, "In these trying times, what better way for our tea industry to connect, learn and share at the World Tea Virtual Summit.”
Tison will present on “Embracing Tea Into a Plant Based Life-Style” on day two of the conference. “With tea being the original plant-based beverage and being embraced today as a global lifestyle, what better venue than to focus and celebrate its many attributes over this three-day virtual event,” she said. “From teas immunity boosting properties to its expansive world of flavors and aromas, teas continued growth in all market channels will take this special leaf to new heights. This World Tea Summit will be the first for us all and will no doubt not disappoint with its virtual gathering of legendary speakers with immense tea knowledge. An event not to be missed.”
“Far More to Taste”
Sebastian Michaelis, director of tea buying and blending at Tata Consumer Products Ltd., will also take part in the Summit as a keynote speaker. “At the World Tea Virtual Summit, I’ll be talking about how there's far more to taste than you think,” he said. “It’s entwined with your sense of smell, influenced by your environment and even linked with long-term memory and emotions. It is critical to connect with your consumers by understanding how taste is shaped by culture, history and upbringing.”
Michaelis will also discuss what the job of professional tea taster entails and how the industry can grade any tea from around the world. “The Virtual Summit is an brilliant opportunity to hear and learn from experts on a broad range of subjects and stay up to date with the latest in tea,” said Michaelis.
“Tea-Folk Camaraderie”
British tea taster Kevin Gascoyne, a World Tea Virtual Summit presenter and one of the owners of the Camellia Sinensis Tea Houses and Tea Schools of Montréal and Québec City, said having a web presence for marketing and sales has gained in importance over the past couple of decades to meet evolving shopping habits – a topic he’ll explore at the event in October.
“The current pandemic has caused overnight shifts in the basic dynamics of the tea marketplace,” said Gascoyne. “While the economics of high street retail have been strained with a complicated new environment, Internet mail order has expanded to become the saving grace of many companies.”
Gascoyne – who will be a part of a panel session on “Building a Robust Ecommerce Platform for a Rapidly Changing Sector” – said, “World Tea Virtual Summit give us an opportunity to come together as a community to share these experiences, feel some of that precious tea-folk camaraderie and help each other through these stormy seas.”
Chris Olsen, chief business development officer at Teatulia Organic Teas, will be participating in an important panel session on “Lessons Learned from the Crisis and How to Apply to Your Business.” Olsen noted, “It's been a rollercoaster for most companies around the word during this Pandemic, and it will be nice to come together and discuss various best practices to help us all weather the storm.”
"All the Flavorful Information"
Daniel M. Lewis, founder of T By Daniel – a regular participant in the World Tea Conference + Expo – said he’s also looking forward to the World Tea Virtual Summit “…as it presents great opportunities to both learn and share all the flavorful information that we need to know to move our tea businesses forward.”
At the summit, Lewis will speak on the profitable perks of personality and how to infuse one’s business to jumpstart success. “I'll be discussing how to use creativity and personality as a tool against adversity,” said Lewis. “Let's face it, we are all faced with adversity at the moment – probably one of the most adverse times in our lives. As tea business owners, industry professionals who are taking huge hits to our regular operations, how do we fight back? We get creative. We get resilient. We share ideas. We collaborate and, most importantly, we share stories of how we have overcome difficulties in the past. This is how we fight. I can't wait to e-meet all of you at the summit!”
About the Summit
This sponsors of the World Tea Virtual Summit sponsors are: ITO EN, Matcha Organic Japan, Menna, The Tea Spot, Teko Tea, Tetley, Pacific Barcode Inc., The House of Antosa Delarose and Hula Consulting.
To inquire about the World Tea Virtual Summit or to become a sponsor, contact the World Tea Conference & Expo team at [email protected]. And be sure to follow the upcoming event on Twitter (@worldteamedia) and Facebook and Instagram (@worldteaexpo), or via #WorldTea2020. Additional details and registration are online at WorldTeaExpo.com/VirtualSummit.