‘It starts with the product’: Firebelly Tea’s David Segal on building a modern tea empire

DTC startup Firebelly Tea is hoping to help the hot steeped beverage reach the celebrity status of coffee.

That’s according to co-founder and CEO David Segal, who joined the Modern Retail Podcast this week. Segal isn’t new to the tea world -- he founded one of the biggest tea retailers in North America, DavidsTea. After selling his shares in the company in 2016, he is now embarking on a new tea journey.

Tea, said Segal, “is the second biggest drink in the world, next to water,” even though, he said, “North America is a little bit late to the party.”

“There’s a reason it’s been around for so long,” Segal said. “It’s really that good -- especially high-quality loose leaf tea, which is what we’re trying to show people with Firebelly.”

The idea, for now, is to make a direct-to-consumer destination with Firebelly. But rather than just selling tea leaves, Segal wants to provide the entire experience. So, Segal has spent the last few years sourcing good tea blends along with the best types of tea products -- such as kettles and thermoses.

“The key is the product, it starts with the product,” Segal said. “You can have a great marketing message, you can drive trial, but when it’s all said and done, people have to love the product and want to come back.”

Firebelly’s other co-founder is Shopify president Harley Finkelstein. In some ways, the two experiences complement each other. Segal brings the tea industry know-how, and Finkelstein navigates the e-commerce world.

“I think that the world has changed a lot since I launched DavidsTea, selling online has improved a lot,” said Segal. “One thing Shopify has done is create this whole ecosystem that really levels the playing field for merchants to be able to sell.”

And, for now, that’s the plan. Sell tea and tea products online, and hope to grow the business from there. Of course, given his past retail experience, Segal is still open to the idea of brick and mortar.

“I’m not ruling out the possibility of opening some retail stores,” he said. “I think there might be an opportunity down the road, certainly ones that are highly experiential.”