We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Kareema Riddick a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Kareema, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Risk taking is something we’re really interested in and we’d love to hear the story of a risk you’ve taken.

In October 2023, I took a big risk by leaving my well-paying job in corporate America. I had worked there for 10 years, climbing the corporate ladder in the logistics field. At the same time, I had started my own tea company in October 2020. For three years, I tried to juggle both jobs. However, I began to lose interest in my corporate job and felt my passion for my business growing.

Even though I was earning a good salary from my corporate job, I was only able to dedicate about 40% of my time to my tea business. This limited time was affecting my business growth. I felt that something was pushing me towards bigger opportunities. Whenever I got comfortable at my job, something would happen that made me question why I was still there.

One incident that stood out was when I was questioned about my tea business during a meeting. I felt harassed by the questioning because it was as if I was doing something wrong, even though there was no conflict of interest between my tea business and my job in logistics. As a loyal employee who worked in the office every day, this experience was particularly upsetting. In addition to this incident, there were other incidents in previous years that were also upsetting. Enough was enough, and I realized that I needed to prioritize my mental health and reevaluate my priorities.

After praying about it, I decided to leave my corporate job. I took some time off to relax, focus on my mental health, and then committed to running my tea company full-time. Since then, I haven’t looked back. I’m now in a much better place mentally, and I love being able to work on my own terms. Running my own business allows me to set my own schedule and income goals, and I’m proud of myself for taking a chance on myself.

I’m grateful for the courage to bet on myself, and I’m excited about the future of my tea business.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

Hello, I’m Kareema Riddick, the proud owner of Yes Darling Tea, an herbal wellness tea company with roots deeply connected to my heritage. Growing up, I cherished moments spent drinking tea with my ancestors, a tradition that fostered a lifelong love for tea and its healing properties. Confronting personal struggles with insomnia, stress, and anxiety, I turned to herbs and spices as natural remedies. Combining my passion for tea and self-taught herbal knowledge led to the creation of Yes Darling Tea.

With 28 years spent in the corporate world, I recently took a leap of faith to pursue my passion for tea and wellness full-time. This transition has been both challenging and rewarding as I pour my heart into every cup of tea I create.

At Yes Darling Tea, we offer a range of herbal wellness teas designed to promote self-care and well-being. What sets Yes Darling Tea apart is our genuine commitment to advocating for self-care. In today’s busy world, we often neglect ourselves while tending to the needs of others. I believe that taking just five minutes a day to breathe and love on ourselves can make a world of difference. That’s why each tea blend is more than just a beverage; it’s a reminder to prioritize self-love and well-being.

While we offer a diverse range of herbal teas, we also go beyond the cup by hosting tea parties for special occasions like birthdays, bridal showers, and corporate events. Additionally, we empower our community through tea blending and self-care workshops, tea etiquette classes, as well as corporate educational speaking engagements on the benefits of herbs for physical and mental health.

I’m most proud of the community we’ve built around Yes Darling Tea and the positive impact we’ve had on people’s lives. Hearing stories from customers about how our teas have helped them find moments of calm and self-care fuels my passion and drive.

For potential clients, followers, and fans, I want you to know that Yes Darling Tea is more than just a tea company; it’s a movement towards wellness and self-love. Whether you’re sipping our teas alone or sharing them with loved ones at one of our tea parties, know that each cup is crafted with love and intention to nourish your mind, body, and soul.

How’d you think through whether to sell directly on your own site or through a platform like Amazon, Etsy, Cratejoy, etc.

I sell our teas directly on our website, using a platform called Shopify. Shopify has been a great choice for Yes Darling Tea because it’s easy to use and helps us run our online store smoothly.

One of the best things about Shopify is its user-friendly interface. Even without a lot of technical know-how, we can manage our products, orders, and customer interactions easily. We can also customize our website to match the unique look and feel of Yes Darling Tea, giving our customers a personalized shopping experience.

Shopify comes with built-in marketing tools that help us promote our teas and connect with our audience. It’s also secure and reliable, which gives us and our customers peace of mind knowing that their information is safe.

As our business grows, Shopify offers options that can handle more traffic, sales, and inventory without causing any major issues.

While there are other platforms to choose from, we chose Shopify because it fits well with our vision for Yes Darling Tea and provides the support we need as a small business.

We’d really appreciate if you could talk to us about how you figured out the manufacturing process.

Yes, I manufacture our tea blends, and the journey to getting started was filled with hours and months of research and hard work. Before even beginning the manufacturing process, I spent a significant amount of time sourcing different herbs and narrowing down suppliers to ensure the highest quality ingredients for Yes Darling Tea.

Formulating the tea blends was a meticulous process, requiring careful attention to detail and experimentation to create the perfect combinations. Once the blends were finalized, the next steps involved packaging, labeling, and shipping, which were all done by hand when we launched in October 2020.

From October 2020 to September 2022, everything was done manually. Each teabag was hand-packed, labeled, and shipped with love and care. It was a labor-intensive process, but it was essential to maintain the quality and integrity of our products.

In September 2022, we celebrated a significant milestone when our first tea packaging machine arrived. However, even before that, there were challenges to overcome. It took five months from the time I placed my order for the tea blending equipment to arrive from overseas.

During those initial two years, I was fortunate to have the support of my mom and family members who jumped in to help from time to time. Their assistance was invaluable in keeping up with the demand and ensuring that each teabag met our standards of excellence.

The journey of manufacturing Yes Darling Tea has taught me many lessons about perseverance, attention to detail, and the importance of quality. It’s been a rewarding experience, filled with ups and downs, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.yesdarlingtea.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yesdarlingtea
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/yesdarlingtea/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kareema-riddick-7479a42a/

Image Credits
@darbydollphotography – Darby Doll Photography for the main photo