The Mid-Atlantic Tea Business Association (MATBA) Will Hold an Annual Meeting and Seminars on April 8 and Welcomes New Members to Join and Attend.

Ocean, NJ – The Mid-Atlantic Tea Business Association (MATBA) will hold an annual meeting and seminars on Monday, April 8, 2013.  The organization meets quarterly to host a business meeting with networking opportunities and education and an extended annual meeting with more than one seminar topic. Bill Waddington, founder of TeaSource, will be guest speaker at the meeting which is set to take place from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Eden Resort in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

The agenda includes morning and afternoon workshops with Mr. Waddington, morning refreshments, lunch, and a business meeting for members at the end of the day.  Workshop 1, Marketing Your Specialty Tea Business, will go on a journey of industry-specific marketing strategies, techniques, ideas, with real-life examples from the specialty tea business. Workshop II, Helping Customers Select and Buy Teas They Love, will present more than 20 specific ideas, tools, and strategies to help customers select and purchase teas that are just right for them.

MATBA V.P., Marcella Farina, said, “Bill is extremely knowledgeable on all aspects of tea… come to hear; listen and learn from one of the ‘very’ best!”

MATBA was founded in 2005 and is currently welcoming both in region and out-of-region members. All members may reserve and pay for their spot to attend the annual meeting at http://www.matba.org and must do so by April 1.

The MATBA Board arranges quarterly business meetings and offers education and networking, membership drives/meet-ups, and support to member businesses and their expertise.  These efforts facilitate the Association’s mission to advance the knowledge of tea.  Members of the MATBA Board include Kirsten Kristensen (Tea 4 U), President; Marcella Farina (The Tea and Hat Lady), Vice President; Lora Andrews (Gypsy’s Tea Room), Treasurer and Member-to-Member Discounts Committee Chair; Darlene Meyers-Perry (The Tea Enthusiast’s Scrapbook), Secretary; and Gail Gastelu (The Tea House Times), Chief Information Officer, Press Liaison, and Advertising/Promotions Committee Chair. 

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For Media Inquiries, please contact MATBA’s Press Liaison: Gail Gastelu, Click to email

For general questions, please contact MATBA: Click to email or see more details at www.matba.org

Mid Atlantic Tea Business Association

This afternoon found me on a conference call with fellow tea professionals operating tea businesses in the Mid-Atlantic Region. The Mid Atlantic Tea Business Association is a very valuable tool for any tea business operating in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, or Delaware.

We had a very interesting discussion on how to maximize our marketing dollars for the best results. With today's multi-media options available one has to be very careful where to place our limited marketing dollars. The majority of our members are small businesses operating on "shoe-string" budgets so each dollar invested must generate a return. Granted not all returns are in the form of money, some are in the form of new business contacts or customers -- each of which are as valuable as the dollar, if not more so.

One quick decision made by the majority is that the Internet provides many options for "free" marketing. "Free" in terms of dollars but extremely expensive in terms of time and hard work. Although not particularly physical hard work but definitely "hard work" in terms of time, creativity, planning, and the most demanding of them all -- consistency. Web sites and blogs must be continuously updated to be of any value to your business.

So here goes my commitment to being more consistent with my blogs to you regarding "tea."

Until we share our next cuppa,

The Tea And Hat Lady