When Seth Goldman co-founded Honest Tea in 1998, he set out to not just develop not-too-sweet, organic beverages, but also a company that exemplifies honesty and integrity throughout its supply chain, product development, packaging and much more. Eighteen years later, the Bethesda, Md.-based TeaEO is using those same principles to ensure that Honest Tea remains a mission-driven company.
Goldman notes that from the start, he has tried to help people understand the bigger impact Honest Tea is trying to make as a company. “When we talk about being a mission-driven business, we really want people to understand that we’re trying to address health issues, we’re trying to address environmental issues, we’re trying to address issues of labor in the developing world, so the first thing is to set that vision and get everybody aligned around it,” he explains. “Then once you get that, then the style is basically to get out of the way.”