EVADING CURRENT TRENDS

There are several reasons for black tea’s decline. Consumption has been hitherto punctuated by moments that are simply disappearing. As wellness trends take hold among younger generations, sales of sweet treats such as cake or biscuits has fallen, both products linked to tea consumption. A move away from dairy milk, may also be having an impact.

Central to at-home hospitality, consumption out of the home has also been a traditionally weak area for tea. With the rise of coffee shops and speciality coffee — notably serves or brewing processes that generally can’t be replicated in the home — coffee sales have soared where tea has dipped. While the lockdowns of 2020 and 2021 may have shifted that balance slightly, it’s not enough to reverse deep-rooted declines.

And finally, the trend for premiumisation that has hit almost every food and drinks category, is also hitting tea. Consumers are drinking less, but better. For tea, this has meant a shift away from black teas priced for everyday consumption and a move to herbal, single-origin, trending teas such as matcha, or those with health or functional claims.

Has black tea had an image problem, or has it simply evaded the whirlwind of concurrent trends that are sweeping through premium teas and coffees? And is there a way to reverse its fall from favour and grab the attention of consumer groups that are failing to repeat the consumption habits of previous generations?

Reviving Misfortunes

There seems to be several schools of thought when it comes to turning around tea’s fortunes. A number of future-facing brands are emerging that are taking the charm and familiarity Brits have with a good old cuppa’ and giving it a facelift.

Manchester-based The Brew Tea Co, with its bright yellow and simple packaging looks more at home on the kitchen counter of image conscious consumers. Tapping into the need for premiumisation, its products are focused on high-quality simplicity, using only whole rolled leaves. And showcasing growers and farms that are listed on pack and making a focal point of leaves “picked by a real person” and blended at its HQ, it chooses to showcase an ethical, human angle, something increasingly important to consumers. In essence, it’s the tea you know and love, just better for you, as well as for social enterprise.

Newby Tea’s collaboration with fashion designer Matthew Williamson, is also a notable turning point. Such collaborations are more common across spirits, where trending brands benefit from sharing the appeal of their joint customer base. For the heritage tea brand, working with the fashion designer on its packaging has helped add an element of glamour and collectability, as well as making an updated statement about the value of a brand in the cultural zeitgeist.

A Future In Functionality

In a drinks market becoming ever more dominated by functional claims — whether consumers know and recognise them as such yet, or not — tea’s health properties could be another way in. It’s no accident that there’s been a flurry of news stories in recent weeks pointing to the ability of black tea to help consumers lose weight and crucially, help reduce visceral fat when consumed regularly, by reducing hypertension and relaxing arteries. Though some of these articles point to a 2021 study out of California, they also reference a much older study, from 2012 published by JAMA Internal Medicine. Could touting the health benefits of regular, sustained consumption help black tea speak the language of current consumers? It seems the tea industry hopes so.