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ARGO TEA OPENS FIRST OVERSEAS SHOP
World Tea News
Oct 4 2012
By World Tea News
BEIRUT, Lebanon
Argo Tea founder Arsen Avakian last week opened the company's first
branded overseas location.
Avakian, 37, traveled to the grand opening last week and spoke to
the Daily Star (Lebanon) about his first overseas expansion.
"Beirut is the window to the Middle East," said Avakian who grew up in
Yerevan, the capital and largest city in Armenia. A Fulbright Scholar,
he and boyhood friend Simon Simonian, a computer scientist, emigrated
to the United States in the 1990s where they teamed with French
management consultant Daniel Lindwasser to launch the chain in 2003.
Argo Tea is privately held with estimated earnings of $20 million,
according to an article in Time Magazine. The company operates 30
locations, mainly in Chicago where it is headquartered, but with five
locations in New York City and one each in Boston and St. Louis.
The company's bottled teas, which sell for $2.40 for a 13.5 oz. can
be found in more than 3,000 grocery locations including Whole Foods
Markets, Safeway and Dominick's.
Investors including billionaire Sam Zell and Oxford Capital have
fueled the company's expansion which accelerated during the recession.
The company now employs more than 400 workers, most part-time.
Avakian said the chain intends to add several Middle East locations
and expressed ambitions to expand to Asia and Europe.
The first floor location in Le Mall, Dabbayeh, offers 40 tea blends,
pastries, snacks and sandwiches including a chai cherry chicken
sandwich cooked in the spiced tea.
"We want to do for tea what Starbucks did for coffee," Avakian told the
newspaper reporter, recounting the two years he worked as a barista
at his first cafe, sourcing teas and mixing them with a variety of
international ingredients to create healthy, refreshing and often
unexpected drinks.
Argo has located several of its stores near Starbucks coffee shops
including the Willis Tower in Chicago, O'Hare Airport and the Flatiron
Building in New York City.
The menu in Beirut closely adheres to the U.S. offerings with Mate
Late a signature Brazilian mate, with almond and milk; the Hibiscus
Tea Sangria, a mixture of iced tea and fresh fruits; the White Tea
Acai Squeeze, white tea and lemonade; and the Green Tea Ginger Twist.
Tea is the fastest growing beverage segment in the U.S. over the past
10 years and Argo is a considered a tea retail pioneer. In addition
to loose leaf tea and concentrates, the shops sell a range of Fair
Trade and certified organic coffee.
Argo is one of several Western foodservice vendors in Beirut.
Succeeding in the Middle East will be easier, he says, because a
culture of tea drinking already exists.
http://www.worldteanews.com/page.cfm/action=Archive/ArchiveID=1/EntryID=668
World Tea News
Oct 4 2012
By World Tea News
BEIRUT, Lebanon
Argo Tea founder Arsen Avakian last week opened the company's first
branded overseas location.
Avakian, 37, traveled to the grand opening last week and spoke to
the Daily Star (Lebanon) about his first overseas expansion.
"Beirut is the window to the Middle East," said Avakian who grew up in
Yerevan, the capital and largest city in Armenia. A Fulbright Scholar,
he and boyhood friend Simon Simonian, a computer scientist, emigrated
to the United States in the 1990s where they teamed with French
management consultant Daniel Lindwasser to launch the chain in 2003.
Argo Tea is privately held with estimated earnings of $20 million,
according to an article in Time Magazine. The company operates 30
locations, mainly in Chicago where it is headquartered, but with five
locations in New York City and one each in Boston and St. Louis.
The company's bottled teas, which sell for $2.40 for a 13.5 oz. can
be found in more than 3,000 grocery locations including Whole Foods
Markets, Safeway and Dominick's.
Investors including billionaire Sam Zell and Oxford Capital have
fueled the company's expansion which accelerated during the recession.
The company now employs more than 400 workers, most part-time.
Avakian said the chain intends to add several Middle East locations
and expressed ambitions to expand to Asia and Europe.
The first floor location in Le Mall, Dabbayeh, offers 40 tea blends,
pastries, snacks and sandwiches including a chai cherry chicken
sandwich cooked in the spiced tea.
"We want to do for tea what Starbucks did for coffee," Avakian told the
newspaper reporter, recounting the two years he worked as a barista
at his first cafe, sourcing teas and mixing them with a variety of
international ingredients to create healthy, refreshing and often
unexpected drinks.
Argo has located several of its stores near Starbucks coffee shops
including the Willis Tower in Chicago, O'Hare Airport and the Flatiron
Building in New York City.
The menu in Beirut closely adheres to the U.S. offerings with Mate
Late a signature Brazilian mate, with almond and milk; the Hibiscus
Tea Sangria, a mixture of iced tea and fresh fruits; the White Tea
Acai Squeeze, white tea and lemonade; and the Green Tea Ginger Twist.
Tea is the fastest growing beverage segment in the U.S. over the past
10 years and Argo is a considered a tea retail pioneer. In addition
to loose leaf tea and concentrates, the shops sell a range of Fair
Trade and certified organic coffee.
Argo is one of several Western foodservice vendors in Beirut.
Succeeding in the Middle East will be easier, he says, because a
culture of tea drinking already exists.
http://www.worldteanews.com/page.cfm/action=Archive/ArchiveID=1/EntryID=668