Our Mission
To showcase the finest Nepali teas to the world while supporting the artisans who craft them. Through sustainable practices and direct partnerships, we're building bridges between Nepali tea artisans and North American tea enthusiasts.
Our Vision
To become North America's premier destination for premium organic Nepali teas while fostering sustainable farming practices and empowering local communities through organic certification support and fair-trade partnerships.
A Legacy Rooted in Nepal's Hills
In 1990, schoolteacher Dev Kumar discovered small tea plantations dotting the hills of Shri Antu in Illam, Nepal. He witnessed firsthand how this emerging cash crop was transforming local farmers' lives. While commercial tea estates dominated the region, smaller farmers faced challenges without nearby processing facilities, often hand-rolling tea from their garden shrubs or selling raw leaves to factories in neighboring Darjeeling, India.
Inspired by the potential, Dev took a bold step in 1993, converting a portion of his rolling hills(which grew Wheat, ginger, cardamom, potato) into a tea plantation.
Image: Bhaskar (Founder-Nepal Hills Tea) and His brother Bhushit as kids, Their Mother on the right. Wheat Plantation in the background
Together with local villagers, he visited tea estates in Darjeeling and Shri Antu, bringing back cuttings to start their own tea plant nursery. By 1998, the plantation covered four acres, inspiring neighboring villagers to follow suit. By 2002, they began producing loose-leaf teas, selling to factories in both Darjeeling and Illam.
Image: Changing landscape, young Bhaskar alongside young tea plantation
Overcoming Challenges
The period between 1996 and 2006 brought significant challenges during Nepal's Maoist Insurgency. Small farmers faced a double burden: the armed conflict and price exploitation from commercial factory owners. Many farmers suffered substantial losses, sometimes forced to discard their harvested leaves when unable to sell them.
Determined to overcome these challenges, Dev and his farmer partners established their own small factory in 2012, hiring tea makers from Darjeeling to produce black loose-leaf teas. This venture continued until 2018, when they sold the company to a prospector.
The Next Generation
The family's tea legacy continued through Dev's sons. In 2015, Bhushit, the youngest, began training in tea production and artisan tea making, eventually establishing the Chiyabari Bhanjhyang Tea Processing Company in 2020. However, in early 2024, despite producing exceptional teas, Bhushit had to close the factory due to challenges in securing fair market prices for his products. This setback became a catalyst for change, reinforcing the family's commitment to supporting small-scale tea artisans.
Image: Bhushit working in his artisanal tea factory, withering teas
Meanwhile, the elder son Bhaskar moved to Canada in 2015 and founded Nepal Hills Tea in 2020, creating a bridge between Nepal's artisanal tea makers and North American tea enthusiasts. The company began its first small-batch imports in 2021, featuring exceptional black and green artisan teas.
Growing Sustainable Partnerships
In 2022, after careful evaluation of multiple artisan suppliers, Nepal Hills Tea expanded its partnerships to include Norling Specialty Tea as its second supplier. Building on this success, in 2024, we welcomed our newest partner, Farmers Tea Processing Company from Malate Illam, a micro-batch producer specializing in whole leaf teas. These carefully selected partnerships reflect our commitment to working only with producers who share our values of quality, sustainability, and community empowerment.
Supporting Organic Certification
Witnessing the challenges faced by artisanal producers like his brother Bhushit, Bhaskar recognized that organic certification could provide better market opportunities, potentially increasing farmer incomes by 25-30%. This realization led to a significant commitment: starting in 2025, Nepal Hills Tea pledged to donate 5% of its annual revenue to support small tea artisans in obtaining organic certification.
Through these efforts, we're not just selling tea – we're fostering a sustainable future for Nepal's tea artisans while bringing their exceptional products to tea lovers across North America. Our commitment to organic certification support represents a concrete step toward ensuring better livelihoods for farming communities and maintaining the exceptional quality of Nepali teas.
Bhaskar in his teens(A thriving small farmers tea garden in the background)
Image: Nepal Visit 2022, Bhushit (Left), Bibhu and Bhaskar. Kanyam tea garden, Illam, Nepal in the background
