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Million Dollar Cup of Tea: What You Can Learn from a Mother-daughter Team Who Turned a Simple Idea into Oregon Chai: a $75 Million Business
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$ 19.46
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$ 24.95 |
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$ 5.49 (22%) |
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| Item Number |
2198366 |
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Item Description...
Product Description
Million Dollar Cup of Tea is all that and more. It s the true life story of a mother-daughter entrepreneurial team who built a business in completely unfamiliar terrain and sold it less than a decade later for $75 million. Heather, a college student at the time, discovered and fell in love with an ancient spicy, milky tea called chai while hiking in the Himalayas. She and her mother took the drink, brewed up a classic kitchen start up, and brought this unheard of drink to the American market. Find out how the now famous brand almost collapsed before it actually started and how partnerships, cleaver branding, and strategies led to a 430% growth rate.
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Item Specifications...
Pages 272
Dimensions: Length: 8.8" Width: 6" Height: 0.9"
Weight: 0.35 lbs.
Binding Softcover
Release Date Mar 16, 2009
ISBN 083295022X
EAN 9780832950223
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Availability 0 units.
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Reviews - What do our customers think?
 | I loved this book! First Hand Account!! Jul 25, 2009 |
Thank you so much for putting out this book. With the economy the way it is, entrepreneurs need help with motivation and inspiration instead of another gloomy news article.
I was taken a back one of the reviews on here were so poor. I personally loved the book. It went down like candy and it was so fun to be on someone else's ride. I've read so many business books -- you name it: The EMyth Revisited, several Guerrilla Marketing Books by Jay Conrad L., there's more and I would have to look at my shelf to remember the names. What does that tell you? I've even read company profile books like ones studying Starbucks..they are just not as fun!
Maybe it was the right book at the right time for me but this book made me feel great about being an imperfect human with vision and desire. It also is inspiring after how many set backs they had that they kept moving forward. Good for them!! I'm glad that they shared as well!
If you enjoy hearing about other peoples businesses or if you are new to a product based industry --- get it. I only wish there were more books like this. | | | | A Winning Recipe for Success May 3, 2009 |
This book is a wild romp through the world of entrepreneurship. If you are dreaming of turning your "little idea" into a big and profitable business, you've got to start turning these pages!
For a woman business owner who turned making chai tea into a steeping success, Tedde McMillen sure managed to land herself in hot water! You cry with her at every set back from rancid honey to salsa-tasting tea to a huge recall of poor packaging that supported mold growth. And, yet, you continue to enjoy her ride of the ups and downs of starting, financing, expanding, and eventually selling the Oregon Chai Tea Company.
Million Dollar Cup of Tea is hugely entertaining while also showcasing the importance of relying upon experts, working with experts, the power of publicity, and the never-ending belief that her passion could be profitable. If you can avoid just one of Tedde's expensive missteps en route to creating one of the most successful beverage launches in the 1990s, then this book is well worth every penny of its cover price.
Go put up your feet, brew a cup of tea, and start reading!
| | |  | A story book, not a biz book per se. If read along with a few good biz books this tome will provide value 2the wanta-be entrepre Mar 20, 2009 |
I liked this book very much. I didn't love it, but I really liked it. Before I opened it to read I thought back to my childhood days when I was a competitive cyclist in the 1970's. There was a big bike racing event in Colorado each year called the Red Zinger Stage Race (later called the Coors Classic) that I was too young to compete in. At that time I become acquainted with Mo Siegel's story regarding Celestial Seasonings, Inc., a pioneer of the herb tea industry, the company that sold Red Zinger tea and sponsored the race.
The instant book being reviewed involves Oregon Chai, Inc., another pioneering company focusing on tea. In this book we are introduced to the author and her daughter (the two original founders of Oregon Chai, Inc.) in 1989. However, the story covered here really begins in 1992 and concludes in 2004, the time period where their company was created, grown, and then sold. The main characters in this story were Tedde (the author), Heather (the author's daughter), Lori (Heather's good friend), Carla (the author's good friend), and Brian (a friend of Heather's fiance/husband). Heather had the idea, and Tedde had the entrepreneurial spirit and the husband with the financial resources. Heather and Tedde were able to create a sensational product that could practically sell itself. Tedde mastered her skill of producing product. And Heather apparently was a natural-born salesperson. Lori was knowledgeable about advertising, public relations, and marketing. She complimented Heather well. And Carla clearly was a major force helping Tedde stay on top of the venture. Brian fit in where he was needed, but he provided good help in documenting a business plan, strategic planning, and obtaining the financing that such documents can help attract.
This book is a story about how Oregon Chai, Inc., was created, grown, and eventually sold over a 12 year period. It is 100% from the perspective of Tedde. All the other characters we meet as one turns the book's pages enter the story from the perspective of the author. I mention this because I think the book could have been better if there had been half the chapters from Tedde and half the chapters from Heather. So much of what made the company successful were the sales expeditions Heather orchestrated, and we hear little about them. And it was Heather who ultimately became CEO of the company. We don't really hear anything about her work sitting in that position. I think readers would be very interested in hearing about those things.
I have read a lot of business books, and I have business experience, too. As a result I am kind of knowledgeable about how a company should be started and how it probably shouldn't be started. The way this book is written it merely explains how the author and her daughter actually started the company. And in my humble opinion they did it wrong. They did not prepare a business plan. Instead they just winged it. And as a result they made many mistakes - some costly. They didn't know what startup capital would be required. They just kept doing what they were doing and working for nothing for three years I think. That's not good business. So it's hard to recommend this book to someone who needs a guide of how things should be done. But I think it is a good book to read if you use it to supplement other books that tell you how to do things correctly. It certainly is a case to study!
Other books I have read that are similar to this book in a way are: "The Bear Necessities of Business" (ISBN: 0470139056), "Brownie Points" (ISBN: 1932841261), and "Mommie Millionaire" (ISBN: 0312354576). I rank this book behind the first two, but definitely ahead of the last. See my reviews for each that I have posted on this site. I cannot give this book a 5-star rating since it does not objectively evaluate where good business practices were not followed (i.e., no business plans at the outset), and when good business practices were followed. It's just a story that has a happy ending. Of course, things can be learned from reading this story. And I highly recommend a wanta-be entrepreneur read this book along with "Growing a Business" (ISBN: 0671671642). In my humble opinion both books compliment each other tremendously. 4 stars!
PS. Don't confuse the two Heathers. One is the author's daughter. And the other is the co-author of the book. | | | Write your own review about Million Dollar Cup of Tea: What You Can Learn from a Mother-daughter Team Who Turned a Simple Idea into Oregon Chai: a $75 Million Business
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