Cathy Dobson
One of Canada`s fastest growing retailers, DAVIDsTEA, is opening a location in Sarnia on July 18.
DAVIDsTEA started in Toronto in 2008 with a store on Queen Street and has rapidly opened 135 more in Canada and 25 in the U.S.
Now the Montreal-based company known for its bright, youthful marketing is coming to the Lambton Mall.
DAVIDsTEA was co-founded by David Segal who teamed up with cousin Herschel Segal, former CEO of the clothing giant Le Chateau Inc.
The chain does tea the way Starbucks capitalizes on coffee. DAVIDsTEA offers more than 150 types of loose leaf and prepackaged teas, including a variety of exclusive blends, along with accessories like tea mugs and infusers.
On June 5, the company debuted on the NASDAQ stock market amid news 25 more stores will open in Canada this year, including one in Sarnia, and 15 more will open in the U.S. DAVIDsTEA also has a thriving online sales operation.
The first day of trading saw shares rise more than 30%. They’ve since dropped but were hovering around the $22 mark.
Preparations are underway for the Sarnia store opening near the Lambton Mall food court. The storefront was still covered at presstime, but its signature retail design will soon be revealed, says Kim Wiseman, head of customer engagement.
While traditional teas are available, the company is known for non-traditional ingredients like mulberry leaves, hot chilies, dragon fruit and caramel pieces.
DAVIDsTEA also carries a selection of premium traditional estate teas, including wood-fired Sencha Ashikubo, billed as David Segal`s favourite.
CONNECTING PEOPLE WITH JOBS
Here’s something new that may be particularly helpful for summer students or retirees.
A London-based company has developed an app called NearJobs that is helping jobseekers find work in Southwestern Ontario and beyond.
NearJobs is free and was officially launched three weeks ago for Android and iPhone devices. Users can post jobs for their businesses or odd jobs around the home. Workers can post their profiles and apply to take the jobs and users can respond with offers of employment.
Jobseekers can browse odd jobs in the Sarnia community or get instant notification of them.
NearJobs has already signed up 1,000 workers and has more than 1,900 app downloads. Visit www.nearjobs.co for more information.
Got an interesting business story? Contact Cathy Dobson at [email protected] or 226-932-0985.