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The History of the Tea Bags
When tea was first imported and distributed it was done so in tins.
This meant that the tea could be kept stored at the proper temperature
in a cool environment, but it was also expensive. The high price
of tea in tins meant that it was unreachable for many. Thomas Sullivan
changed all that in 1908.
Thomas Sullivan was a tea importer based in New York city. Tea
was becoming ever more popular in America and Sullivan had to send
increasing amounts of tea to his clients in tins. With each sample
he had to put several ounces of tea in a tin, then post it to the
client's address. this was bad business for him because tea was
heavy and the tins expensive, Sullivan needed another way.
So he came up with the tea bags, which was actually just a silk
pouch with a small amount of tea inside. This meant that the client
could taste the tea as before, but he wasn't wasting money on tins
and mailing costs.
His clients were amazed on receipt of their samples as Sullivan's
idea was ingenious, they automatically thought that the pouches
were designed to go straight into the tea pot when in fact they
were supposed to be for transport only! The idea caught on and the
clients started to order their tea bags from Sullivan as they were
so convenient, much better than the tins.
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