Tea, Anyone?

Ashleigh Cotterill of Tea Bird Tea defines what it takes to create a great brand-clear vision and ultimately, customer satisfaction

- Elizabeth Soong

It is universally acknowledged that a good cup of tea can solve all of life’s problems. Countless studies have been dedicated to its myriad health benefits, and Ashleigh Cotterill couldn’t agree more. Her organic brand, Tea Bird Tea, has a range of beverages that target varying areas of concern, such as digestion, immunity, hormone balance, and more.

Growing up on a farm in northern Ireland, Cotterill watched her mother add herbs and spices to her cooking, not only for flavour but also for their health benefits. “I always think that food should look like food, so I like using natural ingredients and creating all of the blends [for my tea]. There’s about 75 different ingredients in there ranging from cloves which are very good for sore throats and immunity; and a lot of them have been soaked in orange, so they give you something like a vitamin C booster. And of course, there’s lemongrass, which is really popular, and has got some anti-inflammatory properties as well. I look at the superfood elements of each ingredient and then see how we can flavour the tea with it,” she says, adding that their tea leaves are sourced from organic suppliers in Sri Lanka, China and India.

One could say that Cotterill has arrived at this point in her life in a serendipitous way. Having built a successful professional career at global companies in London has made her determined to build her own global brand, which is headquartered in Kuala Lumpur. At Coca-Cola, she learnt a lot about supply chains and logistics, at L’Oréal, she learnt about marketing, then at Royal Mail, she applied what she’s learnt about online UX development to her online business. Later, in Westpac, Australia, she learnt about financing small businesses.