Kreeti Modi had a passion for making pure flower and herbal teas, and dreamt of becoming a certified herbalist.

Since 2019, she had been researching and learning more about making pure flower and herbal teas.

Finally in December 2021, working with her cousin sister Stuti Modi, she launched her unique product Tea Amo in the market.

“We started Tea Amo with Rs500,000 of our savings. We received some support from our family too,” said Kreeti Modi.

The unique feature of Tea Amo is that it contains no caffeine.

“It contains only flowers or herbs,” she said. “When we started producing the tea in Nepal, we were the only makers of decaffeinated tea or pure flower tea.”

Demand for pure flower and herbal teas was negligible in those days, but now their popularity has risen sharply.

“Our monthly sales are growing by 20 percent,” she said.

Tea Amo flower tea is made from locally grown hibiscus, chamomile, jasmine, lemon and grass. The product is pure flower tea blended with spices like ginger, turmeric and others.

One of their products Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy is a herbal blend of lemon, orange, kumquat, pineapple, green plus, rose petal and chrysanthemum. A 100-gram jar costs Rs850.

Herbal tea is made using neem, nettle and pure peppermint.

"Tea Amo tea is homemade," said Kreeti Modi. “We use 80 percent locally produced flowers and herbs that are available in the country to make the tea. Lavender, butterfly pea flower and rosebud are imported from India.”

They import lavender as it is not produced on a large scale in Nepal.

“We tried to grow lavender and butterfly pea flowers by working with farmers in Lubhu, Lalitpur from whom we source our flowers, but we were not successful,” she said.

Demand for hibiscus and chamomile teas is higher compared to other varieties of tea.

The price of pure chamomile loose flowers is Rs400 per 30-gram jar and hibiscus loose flowers are priced at Rs650 per 40-gram jar.

Tea Amo costs from Rs90 to a maximum of Rs750 depending on quantity and varieties.

The company has three full-time employees and outsources packaging and logistical tasks.

Tea Amo products are sold at Curio Concept Store, Durbarmarg; Herveda, Jhamsikhel and also on Daraz online.

“We have a niche customer base, especially those who have an interest in flower and herbal teas,” said Kreeti Modi.

Demand is growing from outside the valley like Pokhara, Chitwan, Bharatpur and other parts of the country.

Tea Amo offers two varieties currently–flower and herbal or leaf tea.

The company says they sell a range of flower, fruit and leaf teas that can be consumed in the form of hot or iced tea. They also have Ayurvedic tea which is helpful for symptom management of polycystic ovarian disease and polycystic ovarian syndrome, diabetes management, anxiety care, and sleep and stress management.

“There is also a misunderstood concept that we make teas for symptom treatment as an alternative to pharmaceutical medicines, but these teas are for symptom management in addition to a balanced lifestyle, which includes a healthy diet and movement in the form of exercise,” said Kreeti Modi.

Besides providing a platform to access the herbs and flowers, Tea Amo is also educating customers about herbs and Ayurveda through their Instagram page @betterbrew.nepal.

“We are currently working on documenting herbs and locations where they can be found in Nepal to create more awareness,” said Kreeti Modi.

Recently, the company collaborated with Conscious Impact, a non-governmental organisation, through which it has been providing specific flower and herbal seeds to farmers in Sindhupalchok.

“We are producing pink butterfly PT and lavender flowers by providing seeds to the farmers of Sindhupalchok,” said Kreeti Modi. The flower seeds are imported from India.