I’m often asked, "Tea… how did you get into that?"
To be honest, I grew up drinking standard supermarket tea bags—the kind most Kiwis are familiar with. It was something I shared mainly with my Mum (a minimum 5-cup-a-day-er), and I have fond memories of its place in our home. Tea was always a way of connecting: welcoming guests, every break in the day, between meals (and post), was punctuated by a cup. The kettle was practically at a steady boil! 
More than anything, though, it was a natural timeout—a quiet moment of rest, or a warm conversation around the kitchen table.
Later in life while living in Canada, I ended up working for a tea company in the Rocky Mountains. That was where my passion for tea truly caught fire. But it also sparked a frustrating realisation: Why had low-grade tea bags filled with dust become the accepted norm back home in New Zealand? Especially given how much tea we drink, and how central those moments are to our day.
Surely we should pay attention to the quality of tea we’re drinking. At the very least, you deserve a tea that actually tastes incredible—not bitter, bland, or flat.
Determined to raise the bar for tea lovers, I founded Webster’s Tea in 2016, focusing on premium loose leaf tea and beautifully simple accessories to brew it.
It started as a humble one-man operation in a garage on the outskirts of Tauranga
Eventually, we outgrew the shed and moved to a commercial space on Clark Road, just outside Tauranga. Before long, we outgrew that space, too! We expanded into a much larger premise at the same address, where we operate today.
Today, our space houses:
Our Retail Shop: A welcoming space where locals and visitors can pop in, sample our tea, browse home and pantry items, and connect over a brew.
Our Blending and Packing Warehouse: Where we house our premium organic leaves and ingredients, carefully blend tea, and hand-pack every bag.
Our Wholesale and Online Customer Dispatch: Supplying hundreds of cafes across New Zealand and shipping orders to tea lovers nationwide and internationally.
While the scale has changed over the years, at the centre we remain a small, family-run business. My partner in life and business, Ash, joined the journey officially after working behind the scenes for years. Together, alongside our small team, we manage every single step of the process locally—from sourcing right through to your mug.
A great cup of tea shouldn't be complicated. While learning how to brew the perfect cup of loose leaf tea only takes a minute, understanding what truly goes into each cup of tea requires uncompromising care.
We source certified organic tea leaves and ingredients from around the world—never relying on artificial flavours or low-grade tea leaves. Over the 10 years we’ve been operating, through countless iterations and listening closely to your feedback, we’ve refined our blends to deliver exceptional flavour and aroma, and consistent quality every time you boil the jug.
We're here to help you drink quality tea so you can reclaim those small, meaningful pauses in your daily routine. Because a cup of tea should be something you genuinely look forward to, not just a mindless habit.
Here’s how you can get started:
1. Build Your Starter Bundle Here — Pick three of your favourite organic tea blends, along with our stainless steel infuser and ceramic lid setup. There's 3 free samples on the page too!
2. Be sipping better tasting tea in days — Experience the difference in quality and flavour with an effortless, mess-free brewing setup.
3. Quality guaranteed — If our teas aren’t everything you hoped for, we have a Taste Swap guarantee.
We’re thrilled to be part of your tea journey, even if you’re just getting started, and I can’t wait to share our tea with you. Myself and Ash are always here for a chat too!
Here’s to brewing better,
Mark and Ash
