An Urban Tea Experience

Cuples Tea House is a small minority/woman owned business out of Baltimore, Maryland offering An Urban Tea Experience that features premium loose teas, tea accessories, good music, good people, vibes, art and culture in a socially connected atmosphere.

Cuples Tea was started out of a desire to not only introduce tea culture to people but to make premium loose leaf tea available. It is our hope that by introducing people to alternatives to sugary drinks (which contribute to the unhealthy lifestyles of people – particularly in urban communities) that we begin to redefine how people enjoy healthy beverages.

The Tea Cafe'

Beginning Fall, 2020 we are scheduled to open Cuples Tea House in the BROMO Arts District in Baltimore, MD. Cuples Tea House will be designed to include a tea bar for our tea tastings, relaxed comfortable urban inspired atmosphere, a retail boutique and event space for our tea party’s. Our employees will be provided specialized training to ensure they are knowledgable about the rich history of tea, 100% customer focused, and most importantly, efficient with tea preparation techniques.

Marketing Fair Trade

To ensure the best quality and value, we import our teas directly from the countries in which they are grown, working closely with the farmers who tender them. The “Fair Trade” certification process is very expensive, the growers pay a certification fee in order to gain “Fair Trade” status, however many tea gardens are small and not have the means to participate in community investment or adhere to extensive bureaucratic documentation and auditing rules. Therefore, an overwhelming majority of specialty tea producers are not “Fair Trade” certified. Additionally in some countries like Japan, “Fair Trade” teas cannot be found because the tea workers are already paid above market wages.

Because the “Fair Trade” sourcing options are very limited, we believe that, currently, the best way for us and our associates to raise the living and working standards of the growers is to introduce Americans to the best premium loose leaf teas available. The result is higher wages, more employment, and better tea for all of us. We select all of our tea producing partners based, in part, on their business practices.