The Tea Academy was founded by Melanie O'Hara-Salyers, author of The Traveling Tea Ladies Mystery Series and owner of Miss Melanie's Tea Room in Johnson City ,Tennessee where she has served thousands of pots of tea to her afternoon tea guests.
Melanie earned a degree in Public Relations and Marketing from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas as well as a health degree from East Tennessee State University. Her passion for tea was ignited after living abroad in London.
"I remember the challenges of getting started," O'Hara-Salyers said. "There are so many decisions: location for your business, where to purchase teas, developing a menu, kitchen design and dealing with the codes officials. There are so many things that can go wrong and though I thought I had done all my research up front, I wish I could have had someone to guide me through the process!"
"The mission of The Tea Academy is to provide a foundation through education for those seeking their own tea business," she said. "If I can prevent each participant from making costly mistakes that can determine whether their business just survives or thrives, than I have done my job!"
The Tea Academy not only offers a foundation for your tea business, but will assist you once your business has opened. "We continue to offer support to our graduates after they return home and begin the steps of opening their tea businesses. Many tea education courses charge upwards of $200.00 per hour for phone consulations and questions that might arise during the planning stages.
We keep in close contact with all of our graduates, long after the seminar is over. Your success is our success and our hope is to continue to be a source of support and inspiration for any questions or situations that may arise," O'Hara-Salyers said. "Often times, many months after the seminar is over, you many find yourself in a unique situation that only another person in the tea business can understand. We are here for you, no additional charges!" she said.
"We are also in a unique position to assist established tea businesses that may need to restructure their business. We offer menu restructuring, recipe development, costing & inventory training as well as creative ways to increase profit," O'Hara-Salyers said. "This is availabe through our tea business consulting and marketing program."
The Tea Academy Offers Training From Professionals in the Following Areas:
*Business Plans
*Grants and Loans
*Tea Etiquette
*Table Scapes
*Merchandising
*Menu Planning
*Secrets From
the Tea Room
Cooking Class
*Tea Party Recipes
*Tea Tasting
*Tea Preparation
*Gift Shop Vendors
*Afternoon Teas *Themed Tea Events
*Promoting Your
Business for Free
* Advertising
*Kitchen Planning *Finding a Location
*Codes & Zoning
*Health Inspectors
*Licensing