This is the second post in a four-part series, Postcards from America, covering the inaugural class in the MBAs Across America internship program. The first post covered Thistle Farms, a social enterprise set up to help survivors of prostitution and sex trafficking.

As our MBAs Across America group drove out of Detroit, the mood in the car was somber. Elias Majid, founder of Eli Tea, had just taken our team on a tour of the city, and we had quickly realized one of the major challenges facing his business. While vacant buildings and lots are abundant in Detroit, serviceable spaces for cafés – or tea bars, in Eli Tea’s case – are rare.

Fiercely loyal to Detroit, Majid is intent on helping with its revitalization by making it the “tea capital” of the US. In addition to finding outlets for his product and retail locations from which to sell it, he is committed to creating brews that reflect the city’s culture. According to him, part of the reason that tea that has not taken off in America is a lack of connection between potential consumers and the tea-making process. Americans feel little ownership in the tea world.

Tea cultivation in the continental US is almost nonexistent, but Majid has collaborated with University of Hawaii students to encourage cultivation there. Closer to home, he’s working to source many of his additives and flavorings from socially-conscious farms in the US. On our tour of Detroit, Majid showed us the urban farm that grows ingredients for one of his teas in the Eli Tea American Herbals collection.

Changing the way a city views itself ... and tea



Majid’s search for a suitable location for his business has pushed him out to the suburbs, further complicating his quest to create a Detroit-based identity for his business. To help Majid transform how Americans view tea and make Detroit the center of that renaissance, our MBAs Across America team conducted strategic branding and distribution analyses to determine the best time – and best way – for him to scale. We also focused on finding ways that he could build and maintain a strong brand presence in Detroit, even if his retail location was pushed to the suburbs.

Part of building a successful business is building a successful business community. With that in mind, we created a database of over 70 possible partnerships in the Detroit area and suggested that he pursue co-branding opportunities. We also suggested ways in which he could build local color, including naming blends after notable places in Detroit, and featuring other Detroit businesses on his packaging.

Despite Detroit’s myriad well-publicized problems, it has a promising entrepreneurial ecosystem. Our customer surveys and wholesale partner interviews revealed a strong, grassroots community eager to support new businesses and buy local products. We also found entrepreneurs eager to mentor the next-wave community builders.

This local energy could be a strong engine for Eli Tea’s growth. While he helps encourage the emergence of American tea production, Majid could solidify himself as an American brand through his strong connections to Detroit – even if some of his ingredients come from abroad.

When we asked him why he dropped out of graduate school to start a business, Majid told us he knew he could make the biggest difference in the health and wellbeing of this world by starting a tea company in his hometown of Detroit. The future of Detroit and Eli Tea seem uniquely intertwined: the city needs growth, just as Majid’s company needs identity. We are optimistic that by working together, both will prosper.

Sam Wollner recently graduated from Columbia Business School. He has a background in healthcare and public health, and will be joining Deloitte Consulting in the fall.

Annie Koo recently graduated from Columbia Business School. Her background is in housing and urban planning, and she will be joining McKinsey & Company in the fall.

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