The entrepreneur and tea lover shares more about turning his love for tea into a multimillion-dollar empire
If there is one thing you need to know about the CEO and co-owner of V3 Gourmet, Taha Bouqdib, it’s that he really loves tea. After all, he describes his first experience with a cup of this caffeinated beverage as “falling head over heels” for it.
“Tea always held a very important place in my life, especially growing up in Morocco where tea is a very significant component of social life,” he explains. In Morocco, where Bouqdib was born, the tradition of brewing and drinking tea signifies hospitality and friendship.
While the self-proclaimed tea enthusiast has always been drinking traditional Moroccan tea (green tea with mint and sugar), it was an aromatic and nutty cup of Lung Ching (Chinese green tea) that first ignited his passion.
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Moroccan memories
He fondly recalls his first encounter with this cup: “During my childhood in Rabat, Morocco, I lived with my family next to the Chinese embassy and the embassy would often offer us calendars and Chinese tea during the Chinese holidays. This was my first discovery of tea after Moroccan green tea, a traditional tea that is usually served to welcome guests.”
A few years later while in Paris, a friend of his gave him the opportunity to dip his toes into the tea industry. There, he discovered more about the various tea harvests which he was introduced to during his youth. “This was when I realised that I will be working in the tea industry,” the French-Moroccan entrepreneur shares.
From then, he fell deeper in love with this hot beverage. Even today, his passion for tea continues stronger than ever. The tea lover enthusiastically shares how he enjoys starting his day with a pot of full-bodied black tea and unwinds by sipping on a comforting cup of Marrakech Mint tea before bed.
He adds that while his tea preferences change throughout the day, his all-time favourite is TWG Tea’s Silver Moon Tea. “It was the first exclusive tea blend which I have created for the TWG Tea Haute Couture Tea Collection … it will always have a special place in my heart,” Bouqdib says.
