When Customers Turn Investors

We have just made an announcement about new funding received for Teabox. And I thought it would be a good time to share the story of how this came about.

Earlier this year, late March or so, I got an email from a customer. Cameron Jones had just received his Teabox shipment and wrote to say “seriously impressive”. He went on to ask for a pitch deck from me. I was a bit surprised and decided to check who Cameron was. From what I could see of his order history, he was a fan of Assam and breakfast teas but that apart, I didn’t know anything about him.

We exchanged emails over which Cameron told me about his love for tea and how discovering Teabox had truly excited him. He wanted to talk, he said.

I had planned a trip to Singapore and managed a meeting with Cameron, who’s been living there for the last 10 years. We met at a cafe, a new one that’s recently opened in the center of the city. He ordered coffee. Seeing my raised eyebrows, he said he didn’t trust the tea there. I decided to brave it anyway. The tea was terrible and both Cameron and I found ourselves offering the staff a brief lesson in tea. For the next hour, tea dominated our conversation.

Cameron’s a happy Aussie. Big, laidback, well-travelled. Still in his 40s, he works as a banker and really, really loves his tea. Growing up in Australia, he was introduced to Indian teas early on by friends and thus began a lifelong love affair. In Singapore, he settled for coffee, finding little by way of access to good teas. Until a friend told him about Teabox.

About an hour into our conversation, he had already bought into our vision and asked to be a part of it, as an investor.

I am reminded of the time our customer Robert Bass wanted to invest in Teabox. While Robert is older than Cameron, and lives on the other side of the Pacific, both men bring the same passion for tea, and an understanding about what goes into the making of a good tea. Their desire for a high quality product, attention to detail, their ability to see the potential of a dream is like a shot of energy. Both talked about feeling excited at discovering Teabox after trying to find teas they’d enjoy, and that’s always great to hear.

From the choice of teas to how it’s stored and shipped, to the packaging, the communication… all of this adds up to create an experience that’s pleasant and painless. It takes several teams to work together to get this right. Our goal is to ensure that our customers are happy. But it’s good to stop and give ourselves a little pat on the back when a customer is so happy that he wants to not just buy more teas, but help us grow. For me, with Robert, and now Cameron’s investment, it’s a continuous reinforcement that we are in the right direction. 

For a customer to invest is fairly uncommon in Indian ecommerce companies. I am fairly certain none can boast of having a customer love the product so much that they invest in it. I am absolutely certain no one can claim to having two customers turning investors.

What a wonderful validation for all of us at Teabox!

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