31st August, 2007: Charity Starts at Home
Connecticut based Bigelow Tea employees recently worked on a Habitat for Humanity home located on the east side of Bridgeport. On June 9th, with tools in hand, 20 Bigelow volunteers, including co-president, Cindi Bigelow, lent their time and their newly found talents to this meaningful project. Together, they did everything from painting to flashing and trimming. “In addition to learning new skills and enjoying the camaraderie that comes with working together outside the office setting, we had the opportunity to do good work for our neighbors through the Habitat program” reflected Ms. Bigelow.
Once all the hard work was behind them, there was a celebration during which the beneficiaries were presented with house-warming gifts including a Bigelow tea chest. It is not surprising that candidates for such acts of kindness are closely screened by Habitat for Humanity and as beneficiaries, they must in turn donate 500 hours on other Habitat projects.
Posted by Julie at 6:00 am | Comment (0)
29th August, 2007: Inspections mean continual improvements
A score of 98 out of 100 is awesome occurrence in any event. Our Louisville plant received this score on their last 3rd party inspection. The inspection is done by a group that evaluates your operation against an industry standard; an “acceptable” score is 91 to 95 and 96 and above receives an “exceptional” score. In the past we have scored around the 95 mark, which we have been very happy with, but this time the plant really raised the bar for the rest of us. The 3rd party inspection has been a way for us to continually improve our operation and make it better. From each inspection we have been able to improve the operation and enhance what program we had in place making them better.
The best thing about all of the inspections has been we have not gone backwards in our scores, they have continually improved. In the past there have been small differences in the scores between our facilities, not that we compete against one another but there is always that “bragging rights” that come with the top score. The Boise facility has their inspection in September and so will be attempting hit above the 98.
Posted by Dean at 6:02 am | Comment (0)
28th August, 2007: Famous Tea Fans
Who’s drinking tea these days? Some of the names might surprise you!
With all the health benefits of tea, you might expect that fitness icon Denise Austin is a big fan. Austin, a member of the President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports, cautions that “health experts say Americans are literally drinking on the pounds” and encourages visitors to EverydayHealth.com to switch from soda to either water or iced tea in order to beat the bulge.
That’s a formula that seems to work for supermodel Claudia Schiffer. According to Model Diet Plan, Schiffer’s healthful three-meal-a-day diet includes herbal tea as her beverage of choice.
And whether the reasons are for health or pure enjoyment, the word on other big names and their tea favorites is getting out like Renee Zellweger. News and fan sites alike have quoted Beatrix Potter publicist Susan d’Arcy as saying Zellweger “loves English tea. Every time I see her she is dipping a tea bag into a mug.”
Gweneth Paltrow, on the other hand, likes her tea green. In their five fun facts on Paltrow, People goes as far as to say, “she’s absolutely addicted to green tea (decaffeinated and without sugar, of course).”
And don’t forget about Phil Simms and Joe Torre who not only openly promote Bigelow Tea but drink our green tea to stay healthy!
Posted by Brenda at 6:00 am | Comments (6)
27th August, 2007: Bigelow Iced Tea Contest Winners
And the winner is…1st Prize in the Bigelow Iced Tea Recipe Contest goes to Tyna of Lincoln, CA for her ingenious blend of Bigelow Constant Comment and Plantation Mint teas. Tyna will receive an Olympia Iced Beverage Pitcher and 8 goblets. 2nd prize goes to Stephanie of Elmira Heights, NY. Stephanie created an iced tea with a delicious combination of Bigelow Sweet Dreams, I Love Lemon & C and Berri-Good Herbal teas. Stephanie will receive a Wooden Chest with Flavored and Herbal teas. And 3rd prize goes to Dorinda of Covington, GA. Dorinda’s prize winning iced tea recipe pairs Bigelow Perfect Peach Herbal Tea with Spiced Chai Tea. These contestants got it right! Thank you to everyone who sent us their special recipes, we had fun testing them out!!
Posted by Julie at 6:00 am | Comment (0)
24th August, 2007: Bigelow Tea Community Challenge
The Bigelow Tea Community Challenge is coming up-it will be our 20th year of hosting this fabulous event. We have already raised more money than ever before, almost 50K!!!! It promises to be our most successful….some fun things for this year’s race…Cannondale donated a great bike for us to raffle off, Warren Travel of Westport came back and gave us two round trip tickets on American to fly anywhere in US to also be raffled and Mercedes Benz is giving us a car to loan out for a week! Should be a super fun family day….we expect over 1200 participants.
September 30, 2007 starting at 9 am at Wakeman’s Boys and Girls Club in Southport, CT, we will have a kid’s fun run, a 2 mile non competitive walk and a 5k run! And what is even more special is the fact that besides being a great event for the community with tons of goodies, all the money goes to such wonderful charities. I visited one of them yesterday, the Grasmere Home for the elderly. It is a place that you can bring your elder parent (or relative) from Monday to Friday and they enjoy great activities and get involved in various projects. The center is for those that need help and a little more attention than those that can go to our local senior center (another wonderful place the race supports!). While I was there, they were working on the photographs they had taken while doing a photography outing to the shore in our town. It was so heart warming to see how the seniors were enjoying the fruits of their labor. As usual, it brought tears to my eyes to see them in that environment. So I am truly looking forward to our upcoming Challenge, I promise to share with you all kinds of pictures and some fun stories about the day!!!
Cindi Bigelow
Posted by Cindi at 6:00 am | Comment (0)
22nd August, 2007: How to Host a Tea Party
Many hostesses have been feeling a little uneasy these days. Now that tea parties are making a comeback, a number of us are hesitant about tackling this trend. After all, afternoon teas are literally steeped in tradition. Luckily, several experts are willing to share their secrets to ensure our success.
According to Erika Lenkert at Glam, we can shelve the concept of teas as they used to be. “Forget any preconceived notions of Grandma’s gloves, ho-hum white-bread sandwiches, or stiff upper lips,” she says. “The only thing this affair has in common with the traditional English pastime is an infusion of tasty tea and delicious conversation.”
Erika then spells out five easy steps for a fantastic event:
- Send guests a written invitation
- Have the party outdoors
- Serve snazzy tea-infused cocktails
- Offer unexpected finger foods
- Play mood music
Contributing to the wealth of modern tea time ideas is Elaine Kordares at Seeds of Knowledge.
This out-of-the-box thinker suggests hosting a tea break at work. “Surprise your co-workers with a tea break,” Elaine writes. “Bring sandwiches, cookies, scones and a special teapot for a special break from the ordinary.”
Now that’s a suggestion that even the least experienced hostess can pull off!
Posted by Brenda at 6:00 am | Comments (2)
21st August, 2007: Grammy-Nominated Techno-Music Celeb Moby Makes Music and Tea
For the love of tea…yes that is why, five years ago, Grammy-nominated techno-music celebrity Moby opened his Lower East Side Manhattan teany cafe with partner Kelly Tisdale. (By the way, Moby, born Richard Melville Hall, was nicknamed by his parents after the novel Moby-Dick written by his great-great-great-great uncle, Herman Melville.)
The café offers a vegetarian menu and brews 98 different varieties of tea. Fortunately for Moby, this hip, modern yet understated, café has been a hit from the day it opened. Otherwise, as Moby told USA Today in 2002, “Trust me – I’d be standing outside, wearing a sandwich board.”
As a side note, Moby holds the only album in history, 1999’s Play, to have all of its tracks (18 in total) commercially licensed, rendering the album a success regardless of radio play. In the words of this great musician, who puts it best, “tea is healthy, tasty, fascinating, varied, and full of history…” Wouldn’t you agree?
Posted by Julie at 6:09 am | Comment (0)
20th August, 2007: Bigelow Tea Voted Best Company for Afternoon Tea
Bigelow Tea has been voted Best of the Gold Coast Connecticut 2007. Editors, who publish three area magazines for Connecticut’s Gold Coast, a group of affluent towns around Stamford, chose Bigelow Tea as the best company for afternoon tea. Afternoon tea is typically accompanied by a light meal or snack. So from now on, when you reach for your favorite afternoon snack, make sure to pair it with one of Bigelow Tea’s many tea varieties. After all, it’s the best!
Posted by Julie at 6:00 am | Comments (3)
17th August, 2007: The Boise Plant
We have three production facilities that supply everyone with the wide variety of Bigelow teas. Our Boise plant has been running strong for the last 22 years in the same location. We started it as a distribution site but due to production needs we located some equipment and gradually it grew into a strong production plant.
The plant has changed over the years with different equipment and production rates, but our strongest asset has been our employees. Our average tenure is 10 plus years in this location and with that amount of experience our employees’ care and knowledge of the product is second to none.
I try and get out to the plants at least quarterly to see what is going on. I talk to our employees about what is happening in the company and I listen to any concerns they might have. They probably wish my visits were less frequent, but we have a good time while I am there.
All of our plants are critical to our present day success and future growth. Boise has consistently been there for us every one of those 22 years, a big THANKS goes out to each and every employee.
Dean
Posted by Dean at 6:08 am | Comments (7)
15th August, 2007: August 15th is Relaxation Day, enjoy a cup of Chamomile Tea!
Interesting that Chamomile is a member of the sunflower family. Like a warm sunny day, that makes you feel happy and well rested. But even more intriguing, is how, for centuries, Chamomile has been used to address such a wide array of maladies. Chamomile is used as a gentle relaxant to calm the nerves, enhance sleep, address intestinal issues, ease menstrual cramps and fight colds.
Join us in celebrating Relaxation Day by sipping a cup of Bigelow chamomile tea
Posted by Julie at 6:00 am | Comment (1)
