The challenges of opening a tea shop in the busy tourist town of Banff

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[00:00] SPEAKER_00: Welcome to Canada's podcast.
[00:05] SPEAKER_00: Hello, I'm Mario Tonigusi and this is Alberta's podcast on Canada's podcast network.
[00:11] SPEAKER_00: Joining me today is Jolene Brewster and Jess McNally who run Jolene's T-House in
[00:18] SPEAKER_00: BAM.
[00:19] SPEAKER_00: Thanks for joining us today.
[00:20] SPEAKER_02: Thanks for having us, Mario.
[00:22] SPEAKER_00: Well, let me just ask, well, first of all, for our listeners' steaks, who is Jolene
[00:28] SPEAKER_00: and who's Jess?
[00:30] SPEAKER_01: I'm Jolene Brewster and I'm glad to have you guys with me, Nally.
[00:34] SPEAKER_00: Okay, super, then.
[00:35] SPEAKER_00: Your names don't show up on the screen.
[00:37] SPEAKER_00: So let's talk about Jolene's T-House.
[00:40] SPEAKER_00: First of all, tell me what it is and what you guys do.
[00:44] SPEAKER_01: We specialize in organic loose leaf tea.
[00:47] SPEAKER_01: We started making our own blends almost 20 years ago.
[00:51] SPEAKER_01: We make them right here in BAM.
[00:53] SPEAKER_01: Everything organic is certainly a passion of ours.
[00:57] SPEAKER_01: And then over the years, we've started selling them to many backcountry lodges, restaurants,
[01:03] SPEAKER_01: coffee shops, places where they can be served and enjoyed.
[01:06] SPEAKER_01: But we recently opened up our new flagship space right here in Bair Street in BAM in
[01:12] SPEAKER_01: this beautiful heritage cabin that we're in right now and we have them available for
[01:17] SPEAKER_01: retail.
[01:18] SPEAKER_00: How many different products do you have in terms of tea?
[01:23] SPEAKER_02: So we have over 65 different loose leaf tea flavors and really spanning all the different
[01:31] SPEAKER_02: varieties, caffeine free, black, green.
[01:34] SPEAKER_02: We have a lot of herbal blends that are inspired by plants that grow around the Rocky Mountains.
[01:40] SPEAKER_02: And then we have really your favorite classic black teas like Cremieral Gray and Fab
[01:48] SPEAKER_02: Breakfast.
[01:49] SPEAKER_02: And we also have some really nice high end green teas and really special teas that we
[01:54] SPEAKER_02: import directly from Asia.
[01:56] SPEAKER_00: Okay.
[01:57] SPEAKER_00: When did the store open?
[02:00] SPEAKER_01: Well, we've actually this location only opened a few months ago, August 18.
[02:05] SPEAKER_00: Okay.
[02:06] SPEAKER_01: We forget that because we've been dreaming of it for so long.
[02:10] SPEAKER_01: It feels like it's been real for much longer.
[02:13] SPEAKER_00: So tell me just a little bit about their passion for tea.
[02:17] SPEAKER_00: Like where does this come from?
[02:20] SPEAKER_01: I think we both have a long history of tea in our lives.
[02:27] SPEAKER_01: For me, I think my story is very simple.
[02:29] SPEAKER_01: I grew up in Alberta.
[02:32] SPEAKER_01: Tea was always our family's beverage of choice when we had family friends and he sort of
[02:38] SPEAKER_01: guests even pull into our drive.
[02:40] SPEAKER_01: I would see my mom putting on the kettle.
[02:42] SPEAKER_01: We were very classic.
[02:43] SPEAKER_01: We had a China tea pot.
[02:45] SPEAKER_01: My mom would bring out the China cups for all guests.
[02:48] SPEAKER_01: And that tea was very much a big part of the conversation foundation in our home.
[02:55] SPEAKER_01: And as I got older, my passion extended into the health benefits of plants and different
[03:01] SPEAKER_01: herbs and ingredients and anything from nature.
[03:03] SPEAKER_00: How about you, Jess?
[03:05] SPEAKER_02: Well, I also grew up in a tea drinking family.
[03:08] SPEAKER_02: We drank a lot of caffeine free tea.
[03:11] SPEAKER_02: It was like an evening thing in my family.
[03:13] SPEAKER_02: Always after dinner and before bed.
[03:17] SPEAKER_02: My grandmother and great grandmother also drank tons of tea.
[03:22] SPEAKER_02: And so I have lots of fun memories of drinking black tea with them.
[03:26] SPEAKER_02: But really, my passion for tea grew in my 20s.
[03:30] SPEAKER_02: I spent a lot of time practicing Buddhism and meditation.
[03:34] SPEAKER_02: And in the Asian culture, of course, tea is so important.
[03:38] SPEAKER_02: And I spent a lot of time steeping Japanese culture where the tea ceremony is so important.
[03:45] SPEAKER_02: And I had some friends who were really passionate about the tea ceremony.
[03:49] SPEAKER_02: And I got to participate in that.
[03:51] SPEAKER_02: And I spent a few years living in India where tea is like all day long every day.
[03:57] SPEAKER_02: And so when I moved back to Bams and Alberto were from,
[04:00] SPEAKER_02: and I met Jolene, it just felt like a really natural fit.
[04:05] SPEAKER_00: Do you have, when I have my tea right here,
[04:10] SPEAKER_00: some strange wash, I shouldn't say strange, but some concoction that might be.
[04:15] Speaker UNKNOWN: 
[04:16] SPEAKER_00: Why do you look at what I'm drinking, actually?
[04:18] SPEAKER_00: My daughter is like that.
[04:21] SPEAKER_00: She's passionate about tea.
[04:22] SPEAKER_00: So, so, you always brings all this stuff into the house, which is great.
[04:27] SPEAKER_00: Tell me a little bit about the, I guess the popularity of tea these days.
[04:33] SPEAKER_00: You know, obviously, you know, we seem to be in a coffee culture, right?
[04:38] SPEAKER_00: You know, with Starbucks on every corner type thing.
[04:42] SPEAKER_00: But it just seems to me that, you know, the tea is made of resurgence in the retail world,
[04:48] SPEAKER_00: I guess, in recent years.
[04:50] SPEAKER_00: Why is that?
[04:52] SPEAKER_01: Well, first of all, I think it's important to clarify that yes, in North America,
[04:56] SPEAKER_01: coffee is very popular, but tea is still the second most widely consumed beverage in the world next to water.
[05:02] SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
[05:04] SPEAKER_01: Just for scope on that.
[05:07] SPEAKER_01: It's interesting though, throughout COVID, I feel like we've had a lot of customers reach out to us,
[05:12] SPEAKER_01: and they actually are very interested in caffeine-free selections and options.
[05:16] SPEAKER_01: Because when people are working at home, I think they're becoming more aware that sitting there all day drinking coffee really isn't that healthy for you.
[05:26] SPEAKER_01: And they can still be having a treat, a warm beverage, something to keep them going while they work.
[05:32] SPEAKER_01: But a lot healthier, I think that's very appealing.
[05:36] SPEAKER_01: But more than that, I do think that tea has become fun.
[05:40] SPEAKER_01: I think all the new flavors of herbs and spices and natural sweeteners and colors.
[05:48] SPEAKER_01: I think tea has, it's very much like music.
[05:51] SPEAKER_01: There's such a wide variety.
[05:53] SPEAKER_01: It's different kind of for every occasion every time a day.
[05:57] SPEAKER_01: And you can have a lot of fun with tea.
[06:00] SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
[06:01] SPEAKER_00: I chuckled because I understand fully the coffee analogy that you made because I'm the same way.
[06:07] SPEAKER_00: It's so easy to step over into there into my kitchen.
[06:12] SPEAKER_00: And the espresso pot is there and some days are just running like crazy, right?
[06:18] SPEAKER_00: And so lately, at the same way, lately, I decided, okay, you know what, I have to, after my espresso in the morning,
[06:25] SPEAKER_00: I'll have to switch over to tea.
[06:27] SPEAKER_00: And as I said, we have so many varieties of teas, which is great.
[06:32] SPEAKER_01: And I think to add to that, it's really important to have a good quality of tea.
[06:37] SPEAKER_01: Because a normal grocery store brand, well, it might be the cheapest beverage on the shelf,
[06:45] SPEAKER_01: it's going to taste weak.
[06:46] SPEAKER_01: It's not going to have the same flavor and the same experience.
[06:49] SPEAKER_01: And I think that as quality of tea goes up, you get that richness and that full-bodied satisfaction.
[06:57] SPEAKER_01: And I think that makes a really big difference to your mental perspective of drinking tea as well.
[07:03] SPEAKER_01: I think people often think of tea as like pale, flavorless, lukewarm, and so much healthier.
[07:12] SPEAKER_00: No doubt.
[07:14] SPEAKER_00: Let's talk a little bit about entrepreneurship and being entrepreneur.
[07:17] SPEAKER_00: So what was the journey like for you guys that opening up a new store?
[07:24] SPEAKER_01: I'm going to let Jess start with this one.
[07:27] SPEAKER_02: Well, I, so I joined Jolene in the business just last year, actually, right as COVID was starting in March 2020.
[07:36] SPEAKER_02: I got laid off from my other jobs and, you know, Jolene had been looking for a partner and approached me to help.
[07:45] SPEAKER_02: And it was sort of an odd time to get involved in a business, right?
[07:49] SPEAKER_02: Like all of our whole sale accounts were, you know, closing down, hotels were closed, restaurants were closed.
[07:58] SPEAKER_02: But I think we saw an opportunity to really step back in terms of where the business was going and really think about online, the online world, the retail world.
[08:08] SPEAKER_02: And so that's what I have a history in that web design and web communications and online communications.
[08:16] SPEAKER_02: And so I came in to really focus on that side of the business.
[08:21] SPEAKER_02: And as we continued to grow the online store and sort of look at marketing and all that, it just really became clear we needed a home, like a space that people could come to.
[08:33] SPEAKER_02: Like we were really, both of us are so passionate about the Rockies and about the tea ceremony and the Rockies being able to have a place that's like really sharing that experience and sharing what that's all about.
[08:47] SPEAKER_02: I think we couldn't have, we couldn't have found a better space in this old heritage cabin to tell that story.
[08:54] SPEAKER_02: And it's been a really fun journey to bring it to this place.
[08:58] SPEAKER_00: You know, and as Joleen talked about the tea experience, I guess that's also important right to have a space where people can see and smell, I guess, the product right that experiential part of it is huge and, you know, in many businesses, but I think tea would be one of them too, right.
[09:21] SPEAKER_01: It's enormous like we notice that our sales selection of what sells best online without people being able to talk to us, learn about the tea smell touch it is very different than the best sellers that will be in person.
[09:38] SPEAKER_01: So it's like yes, tea is a very tangible item. It stimulates all your senses.
[09:45] SPEAKER_00: Yeah, what's the best part of being an entrepreneur for you?
[09:53] SPEAKER_02: I think, you know, for me, my favorite part of it is that there's so many, there's so many different elements always like I feel like I'm everyday learning like it's such a rich, like full journey, like learning about marketing, learning about PR, learning about interacting with people and learning about tea, learning about, like there's so much to learn all the time.
[10:18] SPEAKER_02: And that's something I really love about about running this company and also for me, it's been a joy to run it as a partnership, you know, I think it really helps being able to bounce ideas off of each other.
[10:32] SPEAKER_02: And I think we really help each other grow and we always see things as slightly different and then together we kind of are able to accomplish a lot, which I know that just me alone or I think I could speak for Jill.
[10:46] SPEAKER_02: I think either one of us alone wouldn't wouldn't have the same creative energy and and be able to bring all of this to fruition the way we have.
[10:55] SPEAKER_02: What about you?
[10:56] SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I do think small business owners become a master of wearing many, many hats. We are jack of all trades.
[11:04] SPEAKER_01: And there's a satisfaction that goes with that, like the skills that you build up over the years and this business 100% has been a labor of love.
[11:12] SPEAKER_01: Every small business owner will go through many periods, not paying yourself working endless hours. That can go on for years.
[11:22] SPEAKER_01: And if you love what you do and you start to see it move forward, the level of satisfaction in that is incredible.
[11:30] SPEAKER_01: And the fact you are making something you are bringing it to life.
[11:35] SPEAKER_01: So yeah, 100% that's my story and it's been a long, a long journey, but I am so grateful that I had this calling.
[11:46] SPEAKER_00: Tell me what the toughest challenges have been for you both in being an entrepreneur.
[11:55] SPEAKER_02: Well, I'd say the toughest challenge is just for me, it's really been, you know, staying the course through all the ups and downs of this.
[12:06] SPEAKER_02: I think last year we thought, oh, it'll be three months, maybe six months, then it's a year, then it's a year and a half.
[12:13] SPEAKER_02: So just being able to really stay positive, staying focused on, like I think we really have a vision and a passion for what we're doing.
[12:22] SPEAKER_02: And so through all these ups and downs, I feel like it's been really, that's been the biggest challenge is just to remind ourselves like,
[12:30] SPEAKER_02: if we found we'll come back, people will come back and we're sort of setting the ground for it and really excited.
[12:37] SPEAKER_01: I mean, they are coming back. So it's wonderful to see and my dad always had to say, if it was easy, everyone would do it.
[12:47] SPEAKER_01: Business is not easy. It's an incredible amount to work. It is your 60 hour weeks, it is your seven days a week, it is, it can be very thankless.
[12:59] SPEAKER_01: It is endless. And I have been doing this almost 20 years. And I can say that Tajajas is point staying the course is you're doing what you love.
[13:09] SPEAKER_01: And if you have a vision and you believe in it, it makes it all worth it. But no one's going to pat you on the back and thank you for what you're doing at the end of the day.
[13:19] SPEAKER_00: That's true. So what's the connection between you two? Like how did you guys hook up?
[13:24] SPEAKER_01: Oh, this is my story.
[13:30] SPEAKER_01: I, her mother actually married my husband and I. And the first time I met Jess when she had just gotten home from India was at my wedding.
[13:40] SPEAKER_01: And I thought she was an absolutely amazing person. And a year later when she was a lot more settled in BAMP, I ran into her in the street and she was talking about some different meditations that she was planning.
[13:51] SPEAKER_01: And I just looked at her and in my head thought that's my person. And I just knew I just knew that she you're really nice balanced to me. And with you know, BAMP is a small town.
[14:05] SPEAKER_01: I think finding the right partner because you work so closely together is extremely important. And that, you know, after the length of time and love, I put into this business.
[14:17] SPEAKER_01: I certainly wasn't going to whimsically ask anyone. And so my point of direction with Jess was like very strong and clear.
[14:27] SPEAKER_00: Okay, let's talk a little bit about both of your backgrounds. So we'll start with Joleen.
[14:33] SPEAKER_00: So I understand you have roots in the area.
[14:36] SPEAKER_01: You could say that.
[14:38] SPEAKER_01: I think I'm officially an old timer. Like I'm a part of an association where I am classified as an old timer.
[14:46] SPEAKER_01: So my family was one of the first pioneers in Alberta and definitely one of the first families to arrive in the BAMP area.
[14:54] SPEAKER_01: And yeah, we've been long, long time guiding farmers, explorers, definitely in the hospitality industry, hosting people to BAMP National Park.
[15:05] SPEAKER_00: Okay, a couple of other quick things.
[15:09] SPEAKER_00: Joleen, I understand you also were involvement in question.
[15:14] SPEAKER_01: Yes, next to T horses are my other passion in life.
[15:19] SPEAKER_01: Did you agree?
[15:21] SPEAKER_01: Yeah, so growing up, I actually rode bear back. My father said, I tell you, you can lift a saddle on a horse yourself.
[15:31] SPEAKER_01: You better learn how to ride bear back.
[15:34] SPEAKER_01: And then I got into Western riding and rodeo and did that throughout high school and college.
[15:43] SPEAKER_01: And actually now I'm into dressage and ride English. I think that training in discipline is absolutely phenomenal.
[15:50] SPEAKER_01: And so I have a lot of fun doing that.
[15:53] SPEAKER_01: But yeah, I've always had horses in my life. I do a lot of riding.
[15:57] SPEAKER_01: I was a Sunday rodeo queen, the Calgary Stampede Queen.
[16:02] SPEAKER_01: Yes, yes, very, very proud moments for me.
[16:05] SPEAKER_00: All right. Yes, you have an interesting background.
[16:10] SPEAKER_00: So let me just start with what the first part of it, ski racing.
[16:14] SPEAKER_00: You were involved in ski racing, were you?
[16:17] SPEAKER_02: I grew up in Alberta.
[16:20] SPEAKER_02: My family also has a long history in Alberta.
[16:24] SPEAKER_02: And entrepreneurship, my grandfather started Big Rock Brewery.
[16:29] SPEAKER_02: So I think I learned a bit about entrepreneurship and that spirit from him.
[16:38] SPEAKER_02: And I grew up in Calgary and skiing.
[16:43] SPEAKER_02: And my family were both my parents are passionate about skiing and the mountains.
[16:48] SPEAKER_02: And so we would come out to the mountains every weekend.
[16:51] SPEAKER_02: And my parents would book a hotel every Saturday day for the whole winter, like six months.
[16:58] SPEAKER_02: So we've got every Saturday morning and we'd stay till Sunday.
[17:03] SPEAKER_02: So I feel like I grew up in BAM really as much as Calgary because we spent all of our weekends here growing up.
[17:11] SPEAKER_02: And then when my parents got a bit older, they moved out to the mountains too.
[17:16] SPEAKER_02: So my mom lives in town and has lived here.
[17:19] SPEAKER_00: Were you a competitive ski racer?
[17:22] SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I was. I was a ski racer at Lake Glees ski club and competed.
[17:28] SPEAKER_02: I got to the point. I skied till I was about 16.
[17:32] SPEAKER_02: So I was on the got to the international circuit and competed around Canada.
[17:37] SPEAKER_02: But then I quit and I got into rowing actually.
[17:43] SPEAKER_02: Boarding school and I got into rowing.
[17:45] SPEAKER_02: And so I actually rode in university and my strong legs from skiing translated to strong legs in the boat.
[17:54] SPEAKER_02: So I was quite a quite a jot growing up.
[17:58] SPEAKER_00: So it's interesting because I knew your grandfather really well at McNally and and and big rock and you know, always loved.
[18:07] SPEAKER_00: You know, in the 80s, it was my favorite beer trip, the traditional.
[18:11] SPEAKER_00: I always drank traditional.
[18:14] SPEAKER_00: And occasionally ventured into the McNally's brand.
[18:18] SPEAKER_00: If anybody out there knows McNally's a little more alcohol content in it than then most beers, but they're really enjoyed.
[18:27] SPEAKER_02: Yeah, all that's nice.
[18:30] SPEAKER_00: And talk a little bit about your kind of Zen Buddhist experiences.
[18:35] SPEAKER_00: Now you spent time in the Himalayas, I understand.
[18:39] SPEAKER_00: And now this is what got me in your bio two years.
[18:43] SPEAKER_00: Two years of solitary meditation retreat.
[18:46] SPEAKER_02: Yeah, yeah, that is a pretty unusual part of my life.
[18:52] SPEAKER_02: Yeah, so I've always been really interested in the bigger questions of life.
[18:58] SPEAKER_02: And maybe it's just my personality.
[19:02] SPEAKER_02: I went to university in the states in California.
[19:06] SPEAKER_02: I got interested in Buddhism and seeking that out.
[19:11] SPEAKER_02: And after I graduated from university, I went to another but I found the Zen monastery in New York and I moved in there and I lived there for about three years.
[19:24] SPEAKER_02: So Zen is the Japanese Buddhist tradition.
[19:27] SPEAKER_02: And then at a certain point, I really felt an inclination for Tibetan Buddhism.
[19:34] SPEAKER_02: And so I left the Zen monastery and I went to India and got really into the Tibetan Buddhist practice.
[19:46] SPEAKER_02: And I was ordained as a nun.
[19:48] SPEAKER_02: So I used to have shape head and red robes in the whole field.
[19:52] SPEAKER_02: And in the Tibetan Buddhist practice, solitary retreat is really a huge part of that tradition.
[20:02] SPEAKER_02: So in the meditators would often go to solitary caves in the mountains and practice sometimes for months, sometimes for years, sometimes 20 years or life.
[20:13] SPEAKER_02: And so going to do that kind of solitary retreat was really a part of the tradition of becoming a deepening your meditation practice.
[20:23] SPEAKER_00: So just a couple of final questions for both of you.
[20:29] SPEAKER_00: Jolene, I'll start off with yourself first, but what do you think you learn from your background and say rodeo and horses, stampede, queen that has helped you as a entrepreneur?
[20:42] SPEAKER_00: I'm tall.
[20:47] SPEAKER_01: I actually am a cow.
[20:52] SPEAKER_01: I do think that the ability to reach out and talk to people is what makes a business work.
[21:02] SPEAKER_01: And I think that's what I do every single day.
[21:05] SPEAKER_01: So yes, I feel like that background of being the stampede, queen and being an ambassador gave me a lot of skills to help me build this business.
[21:14] SPEAKER_00: Okay, and yourself, Jess, your background in Zen and Buddhism, you know, how does that help you in your business life?
[21:25] SPEAKER_02: I think the biggest thing is just trying to stay grounded. You know, there's a lot of emotions running a business up and down and see where good partners.
[21:39] SPEAKER_02: She's grounded. I'm tough.
[21:41] SPEAKER_02: It's true.
[21:43] SPEAKER_02: And yeah, I think and staying optimistic and also, you know, for me, a big part of my practice is having a motivation to benefit others.
[21:56] SPEAKER_02: You know, and for me, really coming back to the joy of seeing people tasting tea and enjoying tea and people sending their little messages that they love to you.
[22:06] SPEAKER_02: And it really like for me that that's all what it's all about at the end of the day is, I mean, of course, we want to grow this business and be successful, but it really is about sharing this very simple and joyful pleasure of tea and that gives me a lot of joy.
[22:22] SPEAKER_00: All right, super. Well, thank you both for joining us today. I was an absolute pleasure and enjoyed talking to you.
[22:29] SPEAKER_01: Thanks for having us. Thank you for having us. This is a nice part of our morning.
[22:33] SPEAKER_00: Thank you. That was Jess McNally and Joleen Brewster of Joleen's T-House in BAM.
[22:41] SPEAKER_00: This has been Alberta's podcast with Mario Tonoguzi on Canada's podcast network. Thanks for joining us today.