If David Segal’s name sounds familiar, it’s because he put the “David” in DavidsTea, the popular chain of heavily curated loose leaf teas and cafes that sprang up across North America in the 2010s. Segal left the company in 2016, and started a salad-based restaurant chain called Mad Radish.

Now the Ottawa-based entrepreneur is getting back into the tea game alongside fellow Jewish Ottawan Harley Finkelstein, the president of Shopify. Segal is bringing the tea knowledge; Finkelstein is bringing the digital platform. Instead of launching hundreds of cafes and appearing on supermarket shelves, this new brand, called Firebelly Tea, will be digital-only, relying exclusively on its Shopify store for sales.

So why does Segal think his formula will work in the middle of a pandemic, in a market hit with rising inflation and consumers hesitant to indulge in nice-to-have luxuries like fancy tea? He joins The CJN Daily podcast to discuss.

Listen and subscribe above.

What we talked about:

• Learn about Firebelly Tea at firebellytea.ca
• Read “Yet another ‘Heil Hitler’ salute—this time targeting a Jewish teacher—is reported at a Toronto middle school, in Flemingdon Park” at thecjn.ca

Credits

The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Victoria Redden is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We’re a member of The CJN Podcast Network; find more great Jewish podcasts at thecjn.ca.