Teabox
| Private | |
| ISIN | 🆔 |
| Industry | Internet |
| Founded 📆 | 2012 |
| Founders 👔 | Kaushal Dugar / Prachi Jain / Gopal Upadhayay |
| Headquarters 🏙️ | Siliguri, India |
Area served 🗺️ | |
| Services | E-commerce (Online shopping) |
| Members | |
Number of employees | |
| 🌐 Website | teabox.com |
| 📇 Address | |
| 📞 telephone | |
Teabox [1] is the world’s first vertically integrated premium tea brand that is disrupting a $50 billion industry with its innovations [2] in technology/supply chain/marketing. It cuts all the middlemen from the process and ships tea direct from the tea plantation to the consumer within days of the harvest. It has been widely chronicled as a disruptive idea [3] in a 200-year-old tea industry that is ushering the third wave of tea. Since its inception, Teabox has shipped over 5 billion cups to customers in 121 countries. [4]
Early history[edit]
The traditional tea route is a long one, beginning in the garden and involving multiple middlemen. From the tea garden, it goes to tea auctions, local exporters, overseas exporters, wholesalers, retailers, and then ultimately to consumers, taking between 12–24 months to reach. [5] By that time, teas have lost all the aroma and aren't fresh. Teabox is the world’s first vertically integrated premium tea brand that is disrupting a $50 billion industry with its innovations in technology/supply chain/marketing. It cuts all the middlemen from the process and ships tea direct from the tea plantation to the consumer within days of the harvest. It has been widely described as a disruptive idea in the 200-year-old tea industry.
Funding[edit]
Teabox was founded by Siliguri-resident Kausshal Dugarr and Prachi Jain and in 2013 Co-founder Gopal Upadhayay also joined the team. First started as Darjeeling TeaXpress in 2012, in 2013, the company raised US$1 million in seed fund from Accel Partners. In 2015, the company raised US$6 million in an investment round led by JAFCO Asia along with Dragoneer Investment Group, Keystone Group LP and Accel Partners. Teabox also has two customer-turned-investors, American Robert Bass who participated in the Series A funding and Singapore-based angel investor, Cameron Jones who invested in Teabox in 2016.[6][7] Early 2016 also saw Ratan Tata become an investor in Teabox.[8] In 2017, it raised Rs 45 crore($7 million) in a part equity-part debt round from Singapore-based investment firm RB Investments along with existing investor Accel Partners. DBS Bank also participated, accounting for 5-7% of the total investment.[9] [10]
Product[edit]
Teabox has India's First 100% Transparent Procurement Tea Process. [11] Being just an hour and a half away from the iconic tea gardens of the world, Teabox has devised a unique tea sourcing process. They procure teas within 24-48 hrs of sampling and keep them under 3-4% moisture levels. Next, they hand sort & clean whole leaves for impurities, vacuum pack, and store them in a controlled environment.
Over 113 teas to try from, Teabox sells Darjeeling Teas, Assam Teas, Nilgiris Teas, Chai, Green, Herbal Teas, Black Teas, White Teas, Oolong Tea, Muscatel Tea, Matcha and more
Teabox is on a mission to change how the world perceives tea. Due to excessive commoditization, the tea is no longer seen as an experience but Teabox is steeping a new culture on its own. They call it 4S of Tea. Smell, Steep, Sip, Savor.[12]
Awards and honours[edit]
- Amazon Smbhav (2022) - Second Runner-Up at Amazon Smbhav Entrepreneurship Challenge 2022
- Global Innovation Award (2020) - By the Calcutta Management Association (India's Oldest Management Association)
- Reuters Change Maker (2018) - Selected as the only changemaker in India by Reuters.[14]
- FORTUNE India 40 Under 40 List (2018) - Listed in Fortune India's Annual compilation [15]
- Entrepreneur India 35 Under 35 List (2017) - Listed in Entrepreneur India's 1st compilation of its famous 35 UNDER 35 List [16]
- FORTUNE India 40 Under 40 List (2017) - Listed in Fortune India's Annual compilation of its famous 40 UNDER 40 List
- Fortune Magazines Top 5 People (2016) - Recognised by Fortune magazine as one of the five people to watch out for in 2016 that drive creativity.
- India Emerging Top Twenty Company (2016) -Selected as one of the top twenty high-growth companies in India by the Mayor of London's office.[17]
- Young Turk (2016) - Selected as a Young Turk by CNBCTV18 in the year 2016.[18]
- Red Herring “Top 100 companies in the Asia-Pacific region” (2014) [19]
- AACSB Influential Leader Award (2015) - Recognised as one of 100 AACSB Influential Leaders around the world joining a notable group of individuals, and the only honoree from Singapore and one of five from Asia, from over 20 industry sectors across 21 countries, to be recognized in the "Influential Leaders from AACSB Business School" challenge.[20]
- INK Fellow (2015) - Chosen as part of the INK Fellows Class of 2015, the newest member of this young, global and cross-disciplinary community of path-breakers who are the shapers of tomorrow.[21]
- Internet Retailer of the Year - Food & Drinks (2015) [22]
- SMU Rising Star Alumni Award (2014) - Awarded the inaugural SMU Rising Star Alumni award. 3 out of 14000 alums given the award.[23]
- Business Today "India's Top 16 Coolest Startups (2014) [24]
References[edit]
- ↑ "Over Mutual Taste for Tea". bloomberg.com.
- ↑ Rhodes, Margaret. "Super-Hip Teabox is Tea Made for the Future". wired.com.
- ↑ "How Teabox is Bringing Silicon Valley to the Darjeeling Tea Fields". forbes.com.
- ↑ "How Kausshal Dugarr of Teabox made tea sexy". lifestyle.livemint.com. 7 May 2021.
- ↑ "Transforming how tea is bought and sold around the world - CNN Video". edition.cnn.com.
- ↑ "Teabox Raises $6M To Grow Its Global Tea-Commerce Business". techcrunch.com. 24 March 2015.
- ↑ "This Small Town Boy Is Turning Its Customers Into Investors". entrepreneur.com. 10 June 2016.
- ↑ "Ratan Tata Turns Venture Investor in Retirement Backing Teabox". bloomberg.com. 27 January 2016.
- ↑ Srinivasan, Supraja. "Teabox raises funds". economictimes.indiatimes.com.
- ↑ "Teabox RB Investments". inc42.com. 14 December 2017.
- ↑ "ET Leaders of Now Kausshal Dugarr". youtube.com.
- ↑ "Speaking the language of tea". theage.com.au. 26 July 2014.
- ↑ "Amazon Smbhav". aboutamazon.in. 26 April 2022.
- ↑ "Reuters Change Makers". reuters.com.
- ↑ "Fortune India 40 Under 40". fortuneindia.com.
- ↑ "Entrepreneur India 35 Under 35". entrepreneur.com.
- ↑ "India's Emerging". invest.london.
- ↑ "Young Turk". YouTube.
- ↑ "2014 Red Herring Asia: Top 100 Finalists". redherring.com. 12 March 2018.
- ↑ "AACSB Influential Leader". invest.london.
- ↑ "INK Fellow". inktalks.com.
- ↑ "Internet Retailer". cmoasia.org.
- ↑ "SMU Rising Star". www.smu.edu.sg.
- ↑ "India's Coolest Startups". businesstoday.in. 13 April 2014.
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