5 Tea Dropshipping Suppliers to Mellow Out Your Marketplace

“There is something in the nature of tea that leads us into a world of quiet contemplation of life.” Lin Yutang (林语堂), Chinese poet, scholar, philosopher, historian 

For businesses in-the-know, tea dropshipping has rapidly become an exciting opportunity for retailers to expand their offerings into new product categories. Not only does tea have a reputation for being a “high margin product,” it also has the potential to have a positive impact on the environment and economy. 

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, tea is one of the most important cash crops in the world and plays a significant role in rural development, poverty reduction, and food security in developing countries. In addition to having cultural significance in various societies, it is also a principal source of livelihood for millions of smallholder producers.

Of course, for companies that are expanding into tea dropshipping, high demand for products is part of the appeal as well. The global tea market is expected to reach $220 billion this year and, for some retailers of premium, high demand loose teas, profit margins can reach up to 400%! 

However, one of the most common questions that arises is: where can a retailer find a premium supplier for dropshipping tea?

Partnering with premium tea suppliers

Until recently, many high quality tea suppliers lacked a partnership tool to help them meet the robust demand for their products. Instead, they relied on affiliate programs which have historically had their own unique challenges and disadvantages.

Today, dropshipping is changing the economics of the tea business. Dropshipping is an order fulfillment model in which retailers sell products without keeping inventory in stock. Tea suppliers take on the responsibility of fulfilling customer orders on behalf of the online storefronts they’re partnered with. 

Although previously a small niche with Shopify tea dropshipping, it is now gaining popularity amongst mid-market and enterprise brands. Helping to facilitate this lucrative business model are brand partnership platforms like Canal that allow like-minded storefronts and suppliers to connect. For tea dropshipping suppliers in particular, it allows companies to forge strong partnerships with storefronts through co-marketing and other growth opportunities. 

Who should dropship premium tea?

There are many retail businesses that may be interested in expanding their product assortments with teas. The first (and most obvious) type of business that can benefit from partnerships with premium suppliers are existing tea retailers.

Existing tea brands

One key benefit of partnering with other tea brands as an existing tea brand is the ability to increase assortment without increasing inventory. Instead of having to buy, hold, store, manage, and distribute all of your tea, you can transfer some of that risk to suppliers. Money that would otherwise be tied up in inventory can be used for other purposes, like improving the online shopping experience for your customers.

Coffee marketplaces

Coffee marketplaces are businesses that can potentially expand assortment to tea and find success as well. In terms of the economics, loose leaf tea dropshipping is not much different from coffee, which means that companies may want to offer tangential beverage products to capture additional revenue streams. Tea is the second most consumed drink in the world (behind water), and, in the United States, tea consumption amongst younger Americans is beginning to catch up to coffee.

Speciality marketplaces

Another type of business that could benefit from dropshipping teas is a specialty marketplace. For instance, Drizly is the largest online marketplace for alcohol in North America. If they’re interested in capitalizing on the craze for tea-infused cocktails, but don’t want to take on the risk of investing in a ton of inventory, dropshipping is an excellent option. Using a curated dropshipping platform like Canal, a specialty marketplace can quickly and easily create brand partnerships, test different products, expand into new categories, and generate additional revenue.

Content creators

Content creators that focus on wellness and want to create a marketplace to monetize their audience may be interested as well. They could partner with high quality tea brands, candle brands, and others to sell products directly on their own site instead of using affiliate links and networks. By maintaining control over the customer experience, content creators also have access to a treasure trove of first-party customer data, as opposed to lower quality third-party data. By learning more about customer shopping habits, what they like, and what they don’t like, a retailer can improve and refine its merchandising and marketing strategies to better match the needs of the consumer. 

The best tea dropshipping suppliers

If you’re a retailer looking to expand into a new category and want to find high-quality partners that can help you dropship tea, we’ve compiled a list of five best tea suppliers in our curated dropshipping marketplace.

The Qi

Rooted in time-honored Eastern holistic healing wisdom, The Qi is a whole flower tea company that was founded by Lisa Li, who was recently featured on MarthaStewart.com. The Qi’s teas are sustainably-sourced and 100% hand-picked from small family-owned farms. Their teas have no preservatives, are vegan, and are 100% traceable to their source.

Three of The Qi’s top teas for dropshipping include:

• Floral Tasting Collection: Experience all three varieties of flower tea in this Floral Tasting Collection for a magical flower garden to cup ritual. Set your intentions, watch the flower bloom back to life, and feel its beauty and Qi.
• Shangri-La Rose Tea: Hand-picked Shangri-la Rose tea from spring's most prized 1st harvest. High in vitamin A, C, E, iron, and calcium.  Rose tea promotes healthy and glowing skin and hair. It has a subtle floral flavor with slightly tangy, fruity notes, and a soothing honey aftertaste.
• Blue Lotus Tea: Hand-picked blue lotus whole flower tea. Unwind with it after a long day for a more restful night of sleep. With a delightful and fragrant aroma, it has full-bodied, earthy, and slightly bitter-tasting notes. 

Brandywine Coffee Roasters

Founded by Alisa Morkides after decades of experience in the industry, Brandywine Coffee Roasters is a coffee roastery company that operates in Wilmington, Delaware, right outside of the Brandywine Valley. The company produces its own products in-house using state-of-the-art equipment and its products feature striking artwork and packaging flair. In addition to coffee, the company also sells tea blends and makes custom hand printed packages for its coffee and tea products.

Three of Brandywine’s top teas for dropshipping include:

• Turmeric Ginger Tea: This herbal blend yields a spicy and lively cup! Turmeric plays off the notes of lemongrass, fading into sweetness of licorice, rounding out with the warming heat of ginger. This tea has a fiery spirit with powerful antioxidants.
• Mango Magic - Mango Green Tea: A ginger mango blend of Chinese green tea, ginger root, lemongrass and marigold create a magical, tropical blend. Sweet and savory like a mango itself and zesty with a hint of ginger. This tea is perfect to help with digestion, we love to drink a cup after a meal and take a long walk under the sun.
• Gemini - Green Mint Tea: A blend of gunpowder green tea (a form of Chinese tea in which each leaf has been rolled into a small pallet) bringing in notes of earthiness anchored by the brightness of peppermint, mellowed with spearmint and luscious marigold flowers. 

Sayso

Led by Alison Nathanson and Chloe Aucoin, Sayso is a proud, female-founded, premium cocktail company based in NYC. The company sells the first ever cocktail tea bags that can combine with water, alcohol, and ice to create unique cocktails. These easy-to-use products make it simple to create mixologist-quality cocktails in just 3-minutes from the comfort of your home.

Three of Sayso’s top teas for dropshipping include:

• Rosemary Honey Moscow Mule: Each sachet has an expertly portioned blend of all-natural ginger, rosemary, and honey. For a picnic-worthy, herbaceous flavor that’s perfect every time, steep in vodka for 3 minutes. Each box contains 8 sachets.
• Old Fashioned: Each sachet has an expertly portioned blend of all-natural gentian root, cinchona bark, and orange. For a rich, jazz club-like flavor that’s perfect every time, steep in whiskey for 3 minutes. Each box contains 8 sachets.
• Skinny Cardamom Paloma: Each sachet has an expertly portioned blend of all-natural grapefruit, cardamom seeds, lime, and orange. For a tart yet warming flavor that makes you think you have your toes in the sand, steep in tequila for 3 minutes. Each sachet has 0g sugar and 3g net carbs. Each box contains 8 sachets.

Art of Tea

Founded in 1996 by master tea blender Steve Schwartz, Art of Tea is a tea importer and wholesaler based in Los Angeles, California. From dropshipping matcha teas to caffeine free teas, the company carries the largest selection of organic teas on the market, and it hand blends and custom crafts the world’s finest organic teas and botanicals using carefully selected teas directly from growers. 

Art of Tea is the source for award winning teas under their Art of Tea brand. By combining herbs and botanicals to create unique wellness and flavor profiles, the company has been able to build a premium brand that’s garnered national acclaim and awards. 

Three of Art of Tea’s top products for dropshipping include:

• Earl Grey Crème Tea: A customer favorite. Start your day in a bold way with our loose leaf organic Earl Grey Crème tea. This is a remarkable black tea blend that is hand blended with fragrant oil of bergamot for citrus notes followed by a touch of French vanilla for a rich and robust finish.
• Earl Grey Crème Eco Teabag Sachets: Sip our handcrafted Earl Grey Crème tea blend in eco-friendly, biodegradable tea bag sachets. Enjoy citrus, silky, and full-bodied flavor notes anywhere in the world.
• Garden of Eden Tea: An exotic medley with an enticing floral aroma. Garden of Eden combines loose leaf black tea with high notes of summer ripened mangoes and passionfruit. This elixir steeps a vibrant reddish hue with a clean, sweet finish.

Té

Founded in 2012 by Elena Liao and Frederico Ribeiro, Té is a New York based tea company that specializes in Taiwanese tea and handmade tea snacks. The company sources exquisite teas directly from small farmers in Taiwan, most of which have been tea makers for generations. In addition to an array of loose leaf tea, Té is known for their exceptional tea treats, including the beloved Pineapple Linzer.

Two of Té’s top teas for dropshipping include:

• Sachet Premium Select: Sample three different oolongs from mountains of Taiwan. Each tea has its own personality so you can pair it with the occasion of day.
• Té Sachet: Good things come in sets, offered here in three different oolong profiles to pair with the mood of the day.

Dropship premium tea with Canal

High quality storefronts, marketplaces, and brands should partner with high quality suppliers. The best way to do this is by automating dropshipping with a brand partnership tool and finding high quality suppliers through a network of curated products.

‍Canal is a brand partnership platform (i.e. curated dropshipping platform) that is home to some of the best tea from the best brands. Storefronts and marketplaces that want to connect with trusted premium suppliers can use Canal’s network to grow their businesses with confidence through tea dropshipping.

Partnering with tea suppliers on Canal is easy:

1. Contact us about joining our curated network by completing the form below
2. Send ecommerce partnership proposals to tea suppliers
3. Add tea to your storefront with a simple ecommerce integration
4. Automatically pass through orders to suppliers and collect commissions
5. Discover new tea suppliers and repeat step two!