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Henry P. Thomson (HPT) is the nation’s second largest tea broker. RBW began its relationship with HPT after Hurricane Katrina that wiped out HPT’s warehouse just outside of New Orleans. What began as a temporary solution has turned into a thriving tea storage and blending operation. HPT initially needed a receiving point for inbound containers that were being diverted in the gulf. They told RBW they needed space for 10 containers until they could regroup and develop their plan moving forward. Due to RBW’s responsiveness and attention to HPT’s needs, what began as 10 containers is now storage of 4-5 million pounds of tea. As our relationship with HPT developed and through discussions with them as to their goals, they shared with us that their customers sought more variety of tea blends and flavors. They bluntly asked us, “What do you know about blending tea?” The answer was, “Nothing, but let us examine it.” Upon studying the blending requirements, we developed disciplined processes with our customer to ensure that high quality blends were consistently produced. RBW now blends 45,000 pounds of tea per day, and HPT has been able to gain market share through greater offerings to their customers.