Palais des Thés is a tea company founded in Paris in 1987. It has 45 specialty tea shops in France, Japan, Israel, Ireland, Norway, Belgium and Germany. The company specializes in direct tea sourcing and commercialization of more than 200 teas as well as tea gifts and accessories.
History
Origins
François-Xavier Delmas founded Palais des Thés in 1987. His goal was to democratize tea and help the Occident to learn more about its cultural and gastronomical aspects. The first shop opens in the 6th arrondissement of Paris.
Palais des Thés shops
Most of Palais des Thés shops include three spaces: the tea wall where 100+ teas are available in bulk, a gift section and a third section dedicated to the tea accessories. In 1991, Palais des Thés opened its first store outside of France, in Tokyo. Palais des Thés then opened new shops in Brussels, Oslo, Dublin, Ljubljana and Tel-Aviv.
Palais des Thés USA
In 2011, Aurelie Pasquet and Cyrille Bessiere launched Palais des Thés in the USA. In March 2016, they opened "L'Appartement" in the heart of SoHo, NYC where tea enthusiasts can attend tea classes and taste more than 150 teas. Part of "L'Appartement" is used as a showroom to display the brand's latest collections to exclusive retailers. In the US, Palais des Thés partners with retailers such as Saks Fifth Avenue, Macy's and Dean & Deluca, high-end hotels including The Plaza Hotel in New York, The Saint Regis, Viceroy Beverly Hills, The Peninsula and The Surrey Hotel as well as fine dining including Eleven Madison Park and Gabriel Kreuther.
The Tea School was created in 1999, 13 years after the first Palais des Thés shop. François-Xavier Delmas learned the tea business in the gardens and plantations, while talking to farmers and small producers. His travels took him to increasingly remote tea producing regions, providing him with exceptional experiences and discoveries, as well as images and words. Valuable relations were formed with artisan tea producers, and François-Xavier gradually built up a unique and extensive knowledge derived from many different sources. Convinced that Palais des Thés’ role was to share this knowledge with customers, he decided with Mathias Minet to create the Tea School. Initially set up in a small room in the Marais district of Paris, the first classes were attended by around ten students who would taste a variety of teas. There were two objectives: to impart knowledge of what takes place on the plantations, and to teach the art of tasting tea. Today the curriculum which is placing the emphasis on sensorial experience and hands-on tasting is also founded on an original pedagogical method. With The Tea School going from strength to strength and to fulfill the demands of an ever-wider public, Palais des Thés has created a new venue in 2008: a 200m² loft-style flat entirely devoted to tea expertise, in the heart of the 11th arrondissement of Paris. In 2016, Palais des Thés opened a tea school at 107 Spring St. in New York City. Located in one of the oldest buildings in SoHo, the tea school is part of "L'Appartement", a multi-usage concept dedicated to the world of tea.
