Spirit Tea
- Company typePrivate
- Founded-
- HeadquartersChicago, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
Spirit Tea firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Spirit Tea
- Website
- https://spirittea.co
- Company type
- Private
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Spirit Tea industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Specialty Tea
- NAICS
- Coffee and Tea Manufacturing (311920)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Tea (Leaf, Bagged, Instant, Concentrates) (CRADAHAE)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Specialty Coffee & Tea (Single-Origin, Micro-lot, Premium) Processing (AFAFADAJ)
Keywords
Where Spirit Tea is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Chicago
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Spirit Tea business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- E-commerce Tea Sales: Direct-to-consumer sales of loose leaf teas through their online storefront. Customers purchase individual tea products across categories including white, green, black, oolong, matcha, yellow teas and herbal tonics.
- Tea Club Subscription: Quarterly subscription box offering exclusive teas, educational newsletters, and bespoke accessories. Membership fee charged upon subscription and recurs when each new issue ships (approximately every 90 days). Members receive 15% storewide discount.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Tea Club quarterly subscription with exclusive member benefits |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels3 records
Spirit Tea product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Spirit Tea imports and curates farm-direct loose leaf teas from producers around the world and sells them directly to consumers through its own e-commerce site. The catalog spans seven tea categories (white, green, black, oolong, matcha, yellow, and herbal tonics), supplemented by the Tea Club quarterly subscription that delivers exclusive microlots, themed releases, educational newsletters, and bespoke accessories.
Product overview
Spirit Tea is an American tea importer offering a curated catalog of farm-direct loose leaf teas sourced globally. The core product portfolio includes seven tea types: White Tea, Green Tea, Black Tea, Oolong Tea, Matcha, Yellow Tea, and Herbal Tonics—each representing distinct processing methods and terroir expressions. The Tea Club subscription service provides quarterly themed releases with exclusive microlots and a 15% member discount. Limited collections like the Cross-Strait Collaboration feature specialty teas produced through unique international producer partnerships.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Tea Club: A quarterly subscription box introducing members to unique teas from around the world with exclusive member-only teas, a 15% storewide discount, unique artwork, and handcrafted newsletters exploring teas and their through-lines.
Products and services
- White Tea (白茶)
Companies that use Spirit Tea
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles1 record
Spirit Tea technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Spirit Tea partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.
- Taiwanese Tea Producer (Mr. Luo)flagshipAward-winning Taiwanese tea craftsman brought to Yunnan to collaborate on the Cross-Strait Collaboration project. Contributed refined processing techniques to blend with Yunnan's terroir, creating exceptional teas with heightened aroma.
- Yunnan Tea Producers (Mr. Luo)flagshipRenowned Chinese producer from Yunnan, the birthplace of tea. Provided access to Yunnan's rich terroir, high elevations, and biodiversity for the Cross-Strait Collaboration project. Their methods lend silky mouthfeel to the teas.
- Global Tea SmallholderscoreSpirit Tea sources seasonally sourced herbs, flowers, spices, leaves, and roots from gifted smallholders around the world for their herbal tonics collection.
- Chengdu Tea Producer (Mr. Luo)flagshipOne of two producers named Mr. Luo in the Cross-Strait Collaboration. From China, contributed traditional processing methods that provide silky mouthfeel to the exceptional teas produced.
- Specialty Tea Producers WorldwidecoreUnique relationships with tea producers around the world enabling access to exclusive microlots not available to the public. These relationships are the foundation of Tea Club's exclusive offerings.
- Chicago Designer (Stacy Redhead)minorChicago-based designer who creates unique artwork and packaging for each Tea Club issue. Artwork and packaging are thematically designed around the focus of each release.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves3 records
Expansion highlights3 records
Spirit Tea competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Teavana (Starbucks): Mass-market premium tea brand owned by Starbucks, distributed through Starbucks retail and online. Comparable to Spirit Tea as a premium tea brand but operating at vastly larger scale through incumbent retail channels.
Direct peers
- Adagio Teas: DTC specialty tea retailer with a customizable catalog, blending tools, and subscription options. Comparable to Spirit Tea as a direct-to-consumer specialty tea brand with strong online presence and sampler/discovery mechanics.
- Yunnan Sourcing: Online retailer specializing in single-origin Chinese pu'er and other loose-leaf teas via DTC. Highly comparable to Spirit Tea's single-origin/microlot emphasis and deep Yunnan producer ties.
- Tea Drunk: NYC-based single-origin Chinese tea shop and online retailer focused on unadulterated, farm-direct teas. Directly comparable to Spirit Tea in philosophy, single-origin emphasis, and education-led positioning.
- Republic of Tea: Specialty tea brand offering curated loose-leaf and packaged teas via DTC, subscription, and wholesale. Comparable to Spirit Tea in premium positioning and broad catalog across tea categories.
- Mei Leaf: UK-based specialty Chinese tea retailer with strong producer relationships and an education-first content approach (YouTube). Closely comparable to Spirit Tea's producer-direct model and content-driven customer engagement.
- DAVIDsTEA: Specialty tea retailer offering loose-leaf teas, accessories, and a tea-of-the-month subscription program via DTC and retail. Comparable to Spirit Tea in DTC subscription and curated specialty catalog.
- What-cha: Single-origin specialty tea importer offering rare and unusual teas from around the world. Directly comparable to Spirit Tea's uncommon/microlot positioning and global producer-sourcing model.
- Harney & Sons: Family-owned U.S. specialty tea brand offering premium loose-leaf and bagged teas via DTC and wholesale. Closely comparable to Spirit Tea in premium positioning, broad loose-leaf catalog, and education-driven brand.
Emerging players
- Ippodo Tea: Japan-based premium matcha and loose-leaf tea brand with growing U.S. DTC presence. Comparable to Spirit Tea's premium positioning and emphasis on unadulterated, single-origin teas with strong producer heritage.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights5 records
Customer concentration
Spirit Tea social profiles
Digital presenceSpirit Tea financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Spirit Tea leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Spirit Tea funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Spirit Tea M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Spirit Tea
What does Spirit Tea do?
Spirit Tea imports and curates farm-direct loose leaf teas from producers around the world and sells them directly to consumers through its own e-commerce site. The catalog spans seven tea categories (white, green, black, oolong, matcha, yellow, and herbal tonics), supplemented by the Tea Club quarterly subscription that delivers exclusive microlots, themed releases, educational newsletters, and bespoke accessories.
Is Spirit Tea a public or private company?
Spirit Tea is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Spirit Tea founded?
Spirit Tea was founded in -1. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Spirit Tea based?
Spirit Tea is headquartered in Chicago, United States, in the North America region.
How does Spirit Tea make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. E-commerce Tea Sales are the primary driver. The others are tea Club Subscription.
Who are Spirit Tea's main competitors?
Teavana (Starbucks) is listed as a broad incumbent. Direct peers are Adagio Teas, Yunnan Sourcing, Tea Drunk, Republic of Tea, Mei Leaf, DAVIDsTEA, What-cha and Harney & Sons. Ippodo Tea is listed as an emerging player.
Does Spirit Tea have an API?
No public API is recorded for Spirit Tea.
What industry is Spirit Tea in?
Spirit Tea's product category is Specialty Tea. Its primary akta.pro industry code is CRADAHAE, Tea (Leaf, Bagged, Instant, Concentrates), with a secondary code of AFAFADAJ, Specialty Coffee & Tea (Single-Origin, Micro-lot, Premium) Processing. Its NAICS code is 311920.