Today we’d like to introduce you to Ashleigh Martin.
Hi Ashleigh, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstories.
I’ve always loved drinking tea. It’s my go-to drink no matter the time of day. I rarely drink soda or coffee. But I grew tired of just buying bland tea from the store, so in early 2020, when everyone had a lot of time for themselves at home (including me) I started experimenting with different herbs and educating myself on the good benefits they provided. This included reading all the herb books my library had to offer and taking an online class.
While taste-testing various blends on myself and others, I began building my online website. I decided to debut three different blends. There’s a common misconception that tea is boring, but there’s honestly so many ways to make tea delicious. And I wanted to show that to the world.
During the summer of 2020, Ashleigh Tea Company officially launched!
Since then, I’ve developed a new black tea blend, had customers from all around North America (including Canada), and been featured in a subscription box that features products made by Black businesses.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
The most difficult part of starting Ashleigh Tea Company was deciding packaging and whether or not to dropship my products.
Packaging can honestly make or break a business. I’m always so impressed with the packaging I receive from my Etsy orders, and I wanted my customers to have that same experience. So, I took time to review packaging samples before moving forward with this process.
There’s a lot of people that enjoy the ease of drop shipping, there’s less risk when you don’t have to invest in the product beforehand. However, I wanted this business to be as personal as possible. Which is why I decided on testing out the blends myself and overseeing the packaging process from start to finish. I also wanted to confidently list my ingredients. I know exactly where my herbs come from since I purchase from an ethically sourced vendor.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I’m currently a librarian with Dallas Public Library. So, most of my week includes creating and hosting programs for the Dallas community. When I’m not performing my librarian duties, I spend time developing ideas for new tea blends, studying popular tea companies, and managing the Instagram for Ashleigh Tea Company (ashleightea.co).
A huge passion of mine is creative writing. So, the rest of my free time goes into typing up the wild stories of my imagination. I hope to be an established Young Adult fiction writer.
Can you talk to us about how you think about risk?
I think it was a huge risk to start a business that I had no idea would be successful. I put some of my savings into making Ashleigh Tea Company happen. Savings I could have held on to since employment was uncertain for a lot of people last year.
I’m at the point in my life where leaning into what scares you is the route I will most likely take. So, although investing into Ashleigh Tea Company could have been a hit or miss, I knew it was necessary for me to do.
Pricing:
- Loose Leaf Tea Full Size: $10.50
- Loose Leaf Tea Sample: $1.50
Contact Info:
- Email: ashleightea@mail.com
- Website: https://ashleightea.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ashleightea.co/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AshleighTea.Co/
