My experience at Teavana.

[entropyembrace]

I wouldn´t be so quick to blame the mall...there´s two tea stores in my local mall neither of which have aggressive sales practices.

But are they retail chains?

Yes, both are retail only (no tables) franchises which operate in malls all over Canada.

[Mango]

I could not stop reading this story. Wow. You are so brave.

[Pek]

I've been to two different Teavanas, and had two very different experiences. At the Teavana at the Prudential center in Boston the people who work there typically try to upsell like crazy, and act generally arrogant when it comes to knowledge about tea. The second time I went there (I can't recall the first), they tried to sell my roomate and I 2 pounds of gyokuro and a japanese cast iron teapot set. We had just gone in because my roomate was running a little low on sencha!

On the other hand, at the other Teavana (in a mall south of Boston) the people who worked there just asked what I wanted and that was it. Asked if I wanted a tin or a bag, didn't put more than I wanted on the scale, service was good. The tea there is still not my first choice, but I actually like their small tins for travel, and their thermometer (I use it for improvised sous vide cooking).

[Chip]

Hi Pek, thanks for posting and welcome to the forum. Hope to see you around.

[rabbit]

Welcome pek, I'm sure alot of it has to do with location.

[iannon]

i work at a teavana and i completely disagree. the tea quality is just fine. the company itself orders the tea from well known and high quality tea companies all across the world. i love working at teavana and i love all the experiences i had working there.

And I suppose all the tea you drink is from Teavana? Or you compare it to the stuff you find in the supermarket?

Basically this thread is full of people who have tried teas from Teavana and teas from elsewhere, comparing quality to price, and we all came to the same conclusion.

Emily.. have you actually tried a Gyo from oh..lets say Maiko to start? or a sencha from O-Cha? or Zencha? or Ippodo?
The prices on Teavanas Gyo and Sencha arent terribly high..but neither is the quality. There is almost no comparison when you do a side by side..none.
And the "Monkey Picked Oolong" AKA TKY..uhh..nope.not compared to many vendors online. .and that one IS high priced.

[anztea]

Stumbled upon this site while googling "teavana sales associate" because I let my guard down while in the store today, having some birthday money in my pocket. I thought carefully about my choices but forgot to ask how much the Monkey-Picked Oolong was, just handed my money over. Five hours later I'm thinking "I just spent $25 on 2 oz of tea, how'd that happen?"

I went in with my mental list of the lower-priced teas but added the MPO at the last minute. That place is as bad as a car lot if you're not careful! I should know better at my age. I hope that I enjoy the tea and that it is good for multiple infusions.

Meanwhile I'm going to get familiar with this site. Glad to have found it.

[iannon]

Stumbled upon this site while googling "teavana sales associate" because I let my guard down while in the store today, having some birthday money in my pocket. I thought carefully about my choices but forgot to ask how much the Monkey-Picked Oolong was, just handed my money over. Five hours later I'm thinking "I just spent $25 on 2 oz of tea, how'd that happen?"

I went in with my mental list of the lower-priced teas but added the MPO at the last minute. That place is as bad as a car lot if you're not careful! I should know better at my age. I hope that I enjoy the tea and that it is good for multiple infusions.

Meanwhile I'm going to get familiar with this site. Glad to have found it.

Hey welcome Anztea!
its not bad i dont think..just not worth what they are charging compared to what you can get from decent online vendors as far as TKY goes. Now i HAVE paid 25 bucks for for 50g of tea..But I knew the quality was high

[dandelionx]

Hi, guys!

Ok. I have been working at Teavana since July. Before this job, I never had any experience in this type of high-end sales. I've actually never been in a sales environment like this before in my life. I quickly learned the ropes of the job and realized I was good at selling.
I've been reading many of the comments on this forum and realized it was time for me to clear some things up. I love Teavana and have been a costumer from even before I started working there.
Teavana is a sales environment. If you are going to hone in on this business and tear it to shreds, you might as well do it for all other sales-based companies.
I have heard numerous comments about how Starbucks is at least friendlier then Teavana employees and they have a better environment overall. I have to admit I laughed at this. Starbucks is not a sales environment. Starbucks isn't the same kind of store as Teavana. At Teavana, we sell different ways to make tea, different things to add to tea collections, the tea and tea add-ons. Starbucks focuses mainly on drinks.
Starbucks is also more well known. Many people haven't even heard of Teavana, which is why we sample our teas and stand outside of the store. It's to get people to come and try something new. I always ask customers if it's their first time to Teavana. For the most part, it is!
Now, let me talk about the "sales process". We base how we interact with the costumer based on what they want. If it's their first time at Teavana, we'll show them around so they get a better idea of what Teavana is and what we sell. If the costumer is looking for a gift, we show the best items for gifts and so on. We are being informative.
Buying the teas. Let me put this out there first. We do not threaten or hold guns to costumers heads and demand you buy our products. I think it's ridiculous how angry and defensive people are getting at how much THEY spend. First off, I ALWAYS inform my costumers that the prices on the front of the tins are for 2 oz. I also add that there is an ADDITIONAL price for the tins. Maybe you just had a bad experience at one store or there were some other factors affecting your trip to Teavana but I have been to several and every time, (before I was employed and was just a regular costumer), I was informed of what I would be spending.
Just like in any other sales environment, Teavana is a hard-sale based company. The cast-irons may be expensive but they work. I've dropped mine several times. Once even down a flight of stairs while trying to balance a bunch of things *stupidly* and it looks like it's in brand new condition. And I bought my entire cast iron sale full price, before I got my job.
Now, I understand that the first few trips to Teavana can feel intimidating and you may believe the claims are skeptical but they aren't. And whether or not you want to say that's my opinion is fine with me. I drink the matcha tea with a mate and a black tea every single morning. Let me list just some of the benefits for you.
-Lowers cholesterol levels.
-Amazing for the heart.
-Unclogs arteries.
-Regulates blood sugar levels.
-Beneficial in weight loss.
-Helps curb appetite.
-Cardiovascular aid.
I have been drinking this blend for about 2 and a half months now and even I am amazed at the results. I eat less now and I don't exercise and I haven't changed my diet at all. In my family it is hereditary to have high cholesterol and blood pressure levels, but since getting in the habit of drinking this tea, they haven't been high at all.
Now, I understand this is just the results I have experienced but I keep in touch with many of my costumers and my friends as well and all have noticed a difference, drinking the different teas. Of course, I'm not implying that everyone will see differences. Everyone is different and some teas may not be that helpful, but for the many, many costumers that i keep in touch with, it has helped them significantly.
The thing that upsets me the most is how much bashing Teavana is encountering. I am completely in love with my job. My costumers always ask me if I work on commission, (which by the way, we don't), because I am so eager to sell but I always tell them it's because I have such a passion for the tea. If I didn't see the results for myself and if I didn't actually think the teas and the products were good, I first of all wouldn't be sitting here writing a whole post about Teavana, and I also wouldn't care so much about my job. The passion I have for the job is what keeps me wanting to work more.
I have so much more to add, but I'll keep it at this for now. I really hope that you'll reconsider and try going to Teavana once more. Maybe a different location if you had a bad experience at the first one you went too. I'm so passionate about Teavana and I work with my costumers anyway I can. Sales is a difficult environment to work in and you need to realize that Teavana is here to help you.
Try going into Teavana again. Realize that while we may have to go through our sales pitch and what not, we are here to help you. If you tell us what you want, be it to not spend $25 on tea, or to find a tea that has a certain health benefit, we will do our best to help you find what you are looking for.
-A

[davidlhsl]

"Teavana is here to help you."

ROFLMAO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Listen, I got my start in loose leaf tea through Teavana, and I didn't take too kindly to the bashing that was going on here. Over time, and with my own experience, my attitude has taken a complete 180.

Every single defense of Teavana, without exception, has been, "Look, you have to understand things from OUR perspective." You folks are >>>>completely<<<<< oblivious to the feelings of you customers.

[TwoPynts]

...Meanwhile I'm going to get familiar with this site. Glad to have found it.

Welcome Anztea!
I hope you find a lot to like here on TeaChat. Did you at least enjoy you MPO? To put things in perspective, I have a 7gram packet of tea in my draw here at work that costs $23. No, it isn't from Teavana. I'm scared to even open it!

[kymidwife]

Wonder what kind of costumes the costumers are wearing when they visit Teavana? I'm sure the sales people hope they are costumed as ignorant tea novices who are gullible to high-pressure sales. Sorry... I have a pet peeve about sales people who are all about pleasing the customer, yet they can't even spell it... and my other pet peeve is people who create an account and make their first (and usually their only) post to defend Teavana, and then never re-appear. You'd think a truly passionate tea lover would want to stay, learn, participate, and explore all the ways of tea. But no, a quick and annoyingly loud toot of Teavana's horn, and they vanish in a cloud of smoke.

I was allowed to use an employee restroom in a Teavana once, in Dallas. It was behind the sales area, and I saw things that are not meant to be seen by the CUSTomer. I saw the signs posted back there, prompting certain sales techniques, sales goals in pounds for each day, and a sign saying PUSH THE MONKEY-PICKED to EVERY CUSTOMER. SELL BY THE POUND, NOT BY THE OUNCE!!! Naturally... it is the most expensive. Yeah, they are about what you want, what you came in for. Yeah. Uh huh.

[Geekgirl]

I've been reading many of the comments on this forum and realized it was time for me to clear some things up.

Oh boy, here's another one.

I really don't understand why you guys think it's your duty to come around here and 'set everybody straight.' There has NEVER been another vendor so universally criticized on this board, by serious tea drinkers, as Teavana.

It's like going on a BMW forum and throwing a little hissy because they have a thread pointing out the deficiencies of the Edsel.

And yeah, that "costumer" thing. *facepalm*

[Evermint]

I stumbled on this topic through Google and just had to say something.
I worked at a Teavana store before. I had a wonderfully nice manager and everyone got along. These co-workers did hang out together after work, so clearly the bonds were set.

But those are technically all lower division schmucks. They hold no real power over the corporation. The district manager and the corporate offices that come in always try to get the store working their way. The problem is, their way doesn't really work and alienates/pisses off people more than anything.

I have class really soon, but I do want to describe my experience working at Teavana with my opinions on every little thing. I'll probably post a story later tonight.

Note: It's not positive.

[TubbyCow]

I keep in touch with many of my costumers and my friends as well and all have noticed a difference, drinking the different teas.

My side hurts; thanks for this!