Sarah Scarborough of Partners Tea Co.

Coined “The Tea Lady,” Sarah Scarborough, founder and director of Partners Tea Co., is devoted to producing only Fair Trade teas while contributing to the well being of the all-female staff of tea pickers she employs.

Scarborough has traveled the world learning about tea, sourcing her ingredients and developing relationships with her growers and pickers. She began experimenting with her own Fair Trade blends in 2001 and then relocated to New Zealand to study for her masters in international development studies. It was there that she co-developed Scarborough Fair Foods, Australia and New Zealand’s largest Fair Trade tea, coffee and chocolate company. Equipped with that experience, she returned home to Nashville, Tenn., and in early 2006, launched Partners Tea Co., an organic line of artisan tea blends that are picked and blended by hand. The company is owned and financed by women, with all of the tea leaves harvested by women.

Scarborough’s artisan teas and blends, as well as her mission for social and environmental sustainability through Fair Trade practices, are garnering a ton of praise. This year, the organic Goodnight Kiss blend, made of cacao, mint and Vanilla Rooibos, was chosen as a NASFT sofi Award Silver Finalist. And she has been recognized internationally and domestically with the Rotary Ambassadorial Scholarship and the U.S. Congressional Award for her Fair Trade advocacy. Additionally, Partners Tea supports 1% for the Planet, through which Scarborough donates 1 percent of her sales to organizations like Kiva and Central Asia Institute to support girls’ education and micro-lending.

Scarborough shared more of her story with us:

What was your inspiration for starting Partners Tea?

I was living in New Zealand and working for a Fair Trade company called Scarborough Fair Foods that I had co-developed in 2004. Two years later, I ran into an old friend from high school on a quick visit home between visiting Fair Trade cocoa farmers in Ghana and Fair Trade coffee farmers in Mexico. She was inspired by the work I was doing and wanted to get involved. Serendipitously, I moved back to the states a few months later and she convinced me to start Partners Tea Co. I was a little apprehensive about starting a business from scratch again and things got off to a slow start, but by 2008, Partners teas were stocked on the shelves of Whole Foods Markets and they have been taking off ever since.

What were you doing before you created the company?

I was living between New Zealand and Australia working on Scarborough Fair Foods. Before that, I was living in Alaska running a little tea company I started called Fair Trade Teas—it is the inspiration for both Partners Tea Company and Scarborough Fair. Fair Trade Teas was my accidental foray into business. I had no idea what I was doing when I started it, but I loved it and felt like I was on the right path. I still own FairTradeTeas.com, which is now mostly an online resource for tea and Fair Trade. Before starting Fair Trade Teas in 2001, I worked as an organic farmer in California and Montana, which had been my dream since I was young.

What is the most satisfying part of your job?

In general, I love working with tea-growing communities around the world and contributing to their sustainable development. On a daily basis, I love coming up with new tea blends that are innovative, healthy and delicious.

If someone could shadow you for one day at your job, what would surprise that person most?

It depends which day they chose. My work is diverse—today I did some tea tasting and blending in the morning, spent the afternoon on the computer and meeting with my business partner, went for a run, and this evening I'll get ready for an event I am having—a tea-tini bar.  I think people are surprised at how flexible my work is.

When you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?

An organic farmer or a cook.

Aside from your products, what three food items can you always find in your kitchen? 

Fresh fruit, olives and many kinds of salt.