We recently connected with Marla Lacey and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Marla, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to go back in time and hear the story of how you came up with the name of your brand?

My business name was actually a result of high school joke. When I was in younger, and still to this day, I have a love for things that help turn our houses into homes, using simple products that everyday people can find. I also love amazing & beautiful food, but didn’t want to spend all my time in the kitchen. During high school, my friends would call me “Martha Stewart” or “Betty Crocker” because of my love and enjoyment of these things.

When I was seeking a name, & determining what would best represent the values, & mission of my company, I went back to my childhood years. I was reminded of this school age joke & thought why not combine the two names? That’s just what I did, I took Martha + Betty and came up with MaraBette (e on the end is silent).

Plus, I thought it sounded kind of French & I do have a fondness for French pastries!

Marla, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I am a tea Artist and Blender, I use tea to help connect people through hospitality, or serving others thru the practice of taking tea. As an artist & blender, I actually create loose leaf tea blends for people to enjoy. All of the blends I create, mimic feelings and emotions that people associate with fun and enjoyable memories or experiences. For instance; a blend called “Smile & Laughter” which is a tropical blend full of tropical like notes of pineapple, mango, & citrus, can bring a fun & enjoyable smile to many people’s faces. Each of our blends, focuses on home, family, friends, & hospitality. While, I love creating these blends for people to enjoy, my primary mission is to help people share in the gift of hospitality to others, by sharing or enjoying a cup of tea with others. A lot of times I meet so many people who are new to the area, or looking for friendships, or looking for their people. Tea is a way to solve this problem. Tea invites us to let others in, to gather, to take time for developing friendships, & meeting new people.
Through tea, I encourage others to set a simple tea table, a plate of cookies & a pot of tea, invite someone over to simply serve and lean into building relationships.
I didn’t always have a solid understanding of this mission, in the first couple years I struggled to define the business & the problem it would solve as well as the people it would reach. It was not until I begin holding Afternoon Teas for the public, that the pieces began to come together. I could see the reach that bringing people together over a time honored, lost art had the potential to do, & it has been amazing!
It’s never about the tea, it’s always about the experience.

Have you ever had to pivot?

I think everyone can say COVID was one of these times, not just for my business, but for many others as well. I am so thankful I live in a community that fosters, encourages, & promotes small business community. During COVID, a lot of businesses had to either close their doors or figure out how to shift or pivot. I was fortunate, as I had already established a presence online, but wanted to find a way to increase sales, & in the process help my fellow business community as much as I could. What did we do? We began a series of “food & drink” artist online auctions, using social media. Not only was this a fun way to drive customer interactions, it helped increase social media presence, and gave other like minded businesses to create a revenue stream, while customers had a blast!
I found that to pivot means you have to not just be creative, but flexible, & willing to try new things quickly. Doing something you’ve not done before in a space & time, that may not be the most optimum.

What’s been the best source of new clients for you?

Hands down, word of mouth! I will forever and always stress the importance of creating a good reputation with your current customers, because those satisfied customers are going to tell others. While growth in this way, may be slow & steady, it remains stable and dependable. Sometimes, that word of mouth comes from satisfied new clients, & of course repeat clients & customers. Word of mouth also comes from ourselves. I think sometimes we forget, that in order for people to know we have a business, what our business does, we have to talk about our business. We have to tell people about our business. We have to be the mouthpiece!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.marabetteteas.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/marabetteandco
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marabette
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIAgmlaVcX7J1ts6M-s-q4A
• Other: Our You Tube channel is rebranding. I encourage you to subscribe now so you don’t miss out on the fun!