Steaz facts for kids
Flower logo used on Steaz products
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| Private | |
| Industry | Organic & fair trade green tea beverages |
| Founded | 2002 |
| Founder | Eric Schnell, Steven Kessler |
| Headquarters | Doylestown, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Products | Steaz Iced Green Tea, Steaz Energy |
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Number of employees
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8 (2015) |
| Parent | The Healthy Beverage Company |
Steaz is a brand that makes tasty drinks from organic green tea. It was started in 2002 by two friends, Steven Kessler and Eric Schnell. The main office for Steaz is in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, in the U.S.. Today, the company that owns Steaz is called The Healthy Beverage Company.
Contents
The Story of Steaz: How It Started
From Vitamins to Organic Tea
Before they created Steaz, Eric Schnell and Steven Kessler worked together in the 1990s. They were at a company called Country Life Vitamins. This company had a small but successful organic bottled tea called Long Life Tea.
The founders noticed two important things. First, schools were starting to remove sugary soft drinks. Second, more and more people in the United States wanted organic products. These observations gave them an idea: why not make an organic tea-based soda?
Creating the Steaz Brand
In 2002, Eric Schnell and Steven Kessler officially started The Healthy Beverage Company. Their drinks would be sold under the new name, Steaz. Their very first big product was Steaz Green Tea Soda. This soda was special because it was the first soda ever to be USDA Organic certified.
All Steaz products are now Certified Organic by a group called Quality Assurance International (QAI). They are also Fair Trade Certified by TransFair USA. This means the ingredients are grown in a way that is good for the Earth and fair to the farmers.
Reaching More People
When Steaz first started, you could only find their drinks in local grocery stores. They were also sold in special natural food markets. But in 2005, Steaz made a deal with a big distributor called Polar Beverages. This helped their drinks become available in many more supermarkets.
Later, in 2014 and 2015, Steaz drinks became even easier to find. They started selling their products at popular stores like Costco and Target stores. This helped many more people try their organic green tea drinks.
In September 2011, Steaz also teamed up with the Whole Planet Foundation. This partnership helps the Foundation give small loans to people in developing countries. These loans help entrepreneurs start their own businesses.
Steaz Products: What They Make
Steaz makes different kinds of organic green tea drinks. They also make energy drinks. These drinks come in cans and have various flavors, like peach and mint.
All Steaz products use special ingredients. The green tea comes from Kenya and is certified fair trade. This means the farmers who grow the tea get a fair price for their hard work. The cane sugar used in the drinks also comes from Paraguay and is fair trade certified.
