“Alla corte del Tè” is a fascinating tea shop located in via Manin in Mestre. Today Lara, the owner, will guide us through fragrances and aromas that are saved carefully so that the customers can fully appreciate them.
Packstyle's packaging protects the loose product and avoids deterioration, but not only this: Lara's tea is made of dried leaves, but most of all there is an impalpable heritage of atmospheres that are released each time you open the bag and which have to be preserved carefully for the next tasting.
Furthermore, the Packstyle pouch shares the value of sustainability of the “Alla Corte del Tè” shop, which is not only a way of thinking, but a real way of acting. We will see in Lara's answers how she encourages her customers to follow her in her values of respect and sustainability.
1. How did your passion for tea come about?
I really would love to tell you about family rituals with my grandmother who makes tea and biscuits, or describe you oriental stories where tea is always the main character, but as for many Italians, also in my case, tea reminds me of when I was ill and my mother offered me a cup of tea made with a tea bag adding sugar and lemon! I approached the world of tea by organising tasting evenings in the restaurant I ran with my husband and then following some instinctive signals, I decided to open “Alla Corte del Tè”, my tea and infusion shop in Mestre. I became one of the few Italian Tea Sommeliers (certified by Tea and Herbal Association of Canada). I like to guide people who enter the shop to discover the many varieties of tea, I like to make them notice shades, scents and aromas, which often evoke emotions and memories. In the shop we have more than 200 different types of tea: pure tea from the best tea gardens of China, Taiwan, Japan, India, Sri Lanka and then black, green, white, pu erh, wulong, yellow teas, then many selections of fruity, spicy or floral melange teas and then there are infusions of fruit, herbal teas, rooibos, but also chocolate and coffee.
Another aspect that I really like to take care of in the shop is the objects department where you can find tea sets and other accessories, Japanese jars, handmade frames from India and recently also Japanese kimono and yukata.
2. How important is your packaging for your brand identity?
This is a very important aspect. My husband is a graphic designer so we often notice beautiful packagings. It's great when the packaging has a good effect.
3. How would you define your style?
In 2016 we chose the name of the shop "Alla Corte del Tè" because it was inside the “Corte Legrenzi” shops in Mestre, but we also liked that the name recalled the places of the Chinese emperors who used tea as a luxury product, known as green gold. Concerning the style, we can say that it is not the final one. We like to improve it, for example last summer we changed the color of the inside walls of the store, choosing a different shade that we wanted to use also for the Packstyle pouch. We were encouraged to change the packaging in the color we chose, with our own graphics because with Packstyle we could do it even starting from a small print run. Being able to change, with a fair investment, the graphics, the colours, the type of the bag every time we wanted, helps on the economical side and on the creative one.
4. Do you also have an e-commerce?
Of course, on our website we have the e-shop, but only for the objects. For shipments we use the boxes in which we receive the goods trying to reduce the waste, and then they are naturally scented! We also encourage our customers to reuse the Packstyle pouches applying a small discount to those who come to fill them again in the store. Customers love it very much, and we are also satisfied because the bags are resistant and can be used many times.
5. Which product do you pack with Packstyle packaging? Which bags did you choose?
The first test was to put tea and infusions with citrus ingredients inside the bags. It was great to see that they didn't let essential oils out. With the packaging we used before, the bag stained, and therefore we always told the customers to move the product as soon as possible to a glass or tin jar. Another interesting feature is that the bags are heat-sealed and therefore it is very useful for a further closure. We started with the bag we use the most, the one for 100gr of product, then we joined other capacities, the 250gr one and also the 500gr one. We started with a basic colour and then we changed it for the different sizes. They are a great solution because they keep the original scents and colours of the tea leaves and infusions over time, and this is very important for us because the customer can keep well the product at his home. Furthermore, it is spontaneous and natural to close them by letting out the air inside, and this allows the product to be stored better (which cannot be done if the product is in a jar). Then you can bring with you your favorite infusion in a Packstyle pouch even when you are traveling, protecting it from light and humidity.
6. How was the first approach with Packstyle?
We discovered that we have many things in common with Packstyle: one of your co-workers is also our customer and therefore we knew about Packstyle thanks to his store visits. We use Packstyle bags all the time and we discovered many advantages: this solution fits perfectly our product.
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