To infini-tea and beyond
Fourth generation tea entrepreneur, Bala Sarda from Delhi, whose family has been involved in the tea trade for over 85 years, wanted to shake things up. "My forefathers, however, were more into bulk tea trading and exports. The family business never owned any tea gardens, and teas were bought via auctions."
This is what led the then 23-year-old Sarda to start his own tea brand, Vahdam Teas in 2015, which recently expanded into the superfoods segment. "India is a magical land of ingredients. All of these products have strong wellness connotations that have been accepted by people globally. India grows 25 per cent of the world's tea in addition to herbs, spices, and superfoods, like turmeric, moringa, ashwagandha, tulsi, and giloy," explains Sarda (29), adding, that of the new product range, our own desi haldi (tumeric) is taking the lead.
He points out, "India produces 80 per cent of the world’s turmeric production. All these products come from India, but no home-grown Indian brand was taking it global. That is where I saw an opportunity and launched Vahdam India to take the ‘best of India to the world’ under a home-grown, sustainable brand."
The sustainability is derived from Vahdam Teas and Vahdam India’s carbon and plastic-neutral policies, while teas as well as their herbs are procured directly from farmers within days of harvest, packaged garden fresh at their BRC Certified facility in India and shipped directly to their fulfillment centres in various parts of the world.
So far, the brand has served customers across 130 countries, with the US and Europe being its largest markets. It has been endorsed by global icons like Ellen DeGeneres, Mariah Carey, Martha Stewart, and Chris Pratt on their social media, and is also the only Indian brand ever to be featured in Oprah’s Favourite Things annual list for two years in a row.
With his teas having won over 30 awards from various tea associations, and Vahdam India even being awarded the 'Global SMB of the Year' by Jeff Bezos himself, Sarda concludes, "This is just the beginning. The pandemic has accelerated our growth, given the shift towards high quality wellness products, larger adoption of e-commerce globally and a strong team in place."