Clayton Christopher-Sweet Leaf Tea

11Dec2009 Filed under: Entrepreneure Stories, Entrepreneurs Author: Bikash

COMPANY: Sweet Leaf Tea
CO-FOUNDERS: Clayton Christopher, 36; David Smith, 36
LOCATION: Austin
2008 REVENUE: $12 million
EMPLOYEES: 47
START-UP YEAR: 1998
START-UP COSTS: About $3,000 paid for manufacturing equipment plus $3,000 for a secondhand van plus $1,000 for a computer and printer
BREAKEVEN: Third year out on revenue of $300,000
BIGGEST EXPENSE: Offers free samples at events and stores
QUALIFICATIONS: Grandma’s secret brewing technique
RED TAPE: The Texas Department of State Health Services asked for some modifications to his site which cost him $3,000. The modification included construction of a small wooden brewing and bottling facility within the larger warehouse space. The FDA requirement made him submit his products to a lab to create nutrition panels.

Sweet Leaf Tea Company provides ready-to-drink (RTD) canned iced teas. It offers several different flavors of iced teas such as – Organic Original Sweet Tea, Diet Original Sweet Tea, Organic Mint & Honey Green Tea, Diet Mint & Honey Green Tea, Organic Peach Sweet Tea, Diet Peach Sweet Tea, Raspberry Sweet Tea, Lemon Lime Unsweet Tea, Organic Very Berry Hibiscus Tea, Organic Pomegranate Green Tea and Organic Half & Half Lemonade Tea.

The company was started in 1998. It is based in Austin, Texas. David Smith is Clayton’s business partner. They brewed the original batches of Sweet Leaf Tea in pillowcases, using crawfish pots as brew tanks by using Clayton’s grandmother’s tried-and-true iced-tea recipe.

It offers products through retailers and convenience stores. Sweet Leaf Tea can be found in Safeway, Whole Foods, Wild Oats and other natural and specialty stores throughout the country.

In his early days Clayton Christopher was a competitive cyclist. Even though it was fun but it lasted some time only. According to Clayton’s remarks found in some websites, he got tired of staring at the back of Lance Armstrong’s jersey. Then he tried his hand as a charter boat captain in the Florida Keys. Then one fine day he realized that the guys who could afford sailboats weren’t the guys who made their living chartering them. So, he decided that it’s the time to do something bigger and better.

Listen to what he has to say-

“I grew up in an entrepreneurial family. My father started his own business. I’ve always believed anything was possible.”

Since childhood, Clayton was interested in starting his own company. But, when he left the sailboat, and thought of doing something, he didn’t have one clue as to what that business might be.

The Idea

He was introduced to a businessman from Birmingham, Alabama. This businessman brewed and bottled iced tea. He was a very passionate man and his passion gave Christopher – the idea, the passion and the encouragement he needed to take the plunge. Christopher got the idea of starting a business: bottled iced tea.

It was not a new idea. Neither did it need digging deeper. Christopher thought that he would try to make the best-tasting iced tea in the world.

He started his journey with his last $10,000 with a matching grant from his dad and went to brewing tea. His infrastructure was very modest -

He just got two garden hoses from Home Depot and a pillow case for a teabag.

When he was ready with his first lot, he begged for shelf space from a local convenience store. The initial years were tough. Money was scarce. Sometimes he had to chose between meeting payroll and paying vendors. But he persisted and the work paid off.

Christopher is so successful that both he and Sweet Leaf Iced Tea have been featured on CNBC and the Food Network. His sweetened teas are marketed in major chains throughout the world.

Clayton believes that he needs to give back something to the world. With his success, he is having time and money to support the charities he has always had a soft spot for. According to Clayton, he learned this from one of his personal heroes: Ben & Jerry’s co-founder, Jerry Greenfield.