Daisy St. Pierre wants to start a business in Steamboat Springs and recently opened her Estes Park-based tea business, Rocky Mountain Sereni TEA, with a new location in Steamboat Springs. Expanded.
“We actually have two retail stores now,” St. Pierre said. “Estes Park is basically our first retail store, and we also have a tea room in Estes Park where people can sit and have afternoon tea. The Steamboat store is our second retail store and we sell loose-leaf teas, We mainly sell organic herbs, but also teapots, teacups, and tea infusers.We also have a large selection of gift sets that are hand-packed in-store.”
The Steamboat store, located at 635 Lincoln Avenue, offers more than 80 types of loose-leaf teas, as well as 20 types of wellness and herbal teas.
“Everything we have is pre-packaged (in the store),” St-Pierre said. “We have a lot of unique recipes for medicinal teas that are very tasty. You still get the benefits of the herbal ingredients and the medicine itself.”
She says the wellness section's teas contain blends that strengthen the immune system, boost energy, reduce inflammation, and aid sleep. Of course, there are also relaxing blends that bring peace of mind.
St-Pierre said the store will also offer teas to-go, so people strolling downtown can pick up a cup of their favorite tea or sample a blend before purchasing. He says he can do it. She also hopes to get her tea in other places, including hotels, guesthouses, and local retailers who want to carry her products.
Most of the teas come from the U.S. and Canada, St. Pierre said, and signature blends include Wildflowers Oolong, Rocky Mountain Chai, Rocky Mountain High and Long's Tea, just to name a few. There are varieties such as Peak, Maroon Bells, Lady Gray, etc.
Customers can also find a wide variety of assorted sampler boxes, including SereniTea's popular assorted sampler boxes, herbal and wellness tea sampler boxes, and flavored black and chai tea sampler boxes. St-Pierre said customers can also find gift packages, including packages for the upcoming Mother's Day. We also create gift packs for special people.
St. Pierre, who lives in Estes Park, said he is looking for a manager for the Steamboat Springs store, which is currently run by his cousin, Sammy Paopatuan. Pierre said anyone interested in working at SereniTEA can stop by the store during regular business hours.
The store is open Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Monday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Sunday and Tuesday from noon to 5 p.m. The store is closed on Wednesdays.
“I love going to Steamboat, so every time I've been there over the years, I've said, 'I want to open a store in Steamboat Springs,'” St. Pierre said. “I realized that there were no herbal stores selling loose-leaf tea in this part of Colorado, Hayden and Steamboat. I thought it would be great to be able to offer this tea to people who live on the other side of the mountains. We offer really high quality tea and we have a wide range of varieties, so everyone who visits can find their favorite tea.”
John F. Russell is a business reporter for Steamboat Pilot & Today. Contact him at 970-871-4209, email jrussell@SteamboatPilot.com or follow him on Twitter @Framp1966.
