<< [Back to Latest News]

BOULDER, Colo., Oct. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- 2005 is a very special year at Celestial Seasonings, marking 35 years of history in Boulder. The Company was incorporated in 1970, after 19-year-old Mo Siegel and his friend, Wyck Hay, discovered a bountiful harvest of wild herbs growing around Boulder, Colorado. They began packaging the herbs in hand-sewn muslin bags, and the first Celestial Seasonings herb teas were sold to a local health food store.

"When our founders packed those first bags of tea, I don't know if they imagined the success their newly formed company would enjoy," said Steve List, President of Celestial Seasonings. "We were the first company to introduce Americans to herb teas with delicious flavor blends brimming with health benefits. Today, Celestial Seasonings is the largest specialty tea manufacturer in North America, with over 90 varieties and serving over 1.6 billion cups of tea in over 50 countries each year. Our reputation for creating distinctive blends is second to none."

Much of the Company's success can be attributed to the knowledge and expertise provided by the many long-term employees and "boomerangs" -- those who left Celestial Seasonings to pursue other careers but later returned. Cecilia Atkinson, General Manager and a boomerang employee herself, explained: "Celestial Seasonings has been ranked as one of the best places to work in Colorado and in our corporate culture, employees feel as much like family as co-workers. Our high number of long-term and boomerang employees speaks to our dynamic and caring environment."

Celestial Seasonings boasts 18 employees who have been with the Company for 25 years or more. Many of these employees hold critical positions: Charlie Baden, Blendmaster; Scott Graham, Director of Product Development; Kay Wright, Director of Botanicals Purchasing; Tim Conway, Inventory Planning Manager; and Steve Spencer, Guest Relations Manager. With nearly 150 combined years of organizational knowledge, the relationships these five long-term employees have developed and the skills they have honed have contributed immeasurably to Celestial Seasonings achievements.

In addition, 27 boomerangs -- 11% of the workforce today -- left the Company only to later bring their skills back home to Celestial Seasonings. "Many employees think the grass might be greener on the other side, only to discover that what we have at Celestial Seasonings is hard to find elsewhere," explained Stephanie Thibault, Director of Human Resources and another boomerang. "They realize that it's not just our fantastic, high-quality products they miss, but the people and culture, too.

Celestial Seasonings will celebrate the last 35 Flavorful Years with an anniversary party on October 19 at the Company's headquarters in Boulder. The party will feature a tea tasting and educational experience, where attendees can sample and learn about the Celestial Seasonings "World of Tea." Irwin Simon, President and Chief Executive Officer of The Hain Celestial Group, and Mo Siegel, Celestial Seasonings founder, will be on hand to welcome current and past employees.

Celestial Seasonings

Celestial Seasonings, a brand of The Hain Celestial Group, creates delicious, all-natural specialty teas that offer a variety of extraordinary tea-drinking experiences. Each of our more than 90 flavors is expertly crafted using only the highest quality 100% natural herbs, teas, spices and fruits to produce fresh, delicious tea. For over 30 years we've blended unique and healthful herb, green, white, black, red, organic, chai and wellness teas, each adorned with beautiful imagery and inspiring words and designed to delight your palate, nourish your body, and feed your mind and soul. For more information, visit http://www.celestialseasonings.com/.

The Hain Celestial Group

The Hain Celestial Group (NASDAQ: HAIN), headquartered in Melville, NY, is a leading natural and organic food and personal care products company in North America and Europe. Hain Celestial participates in almost all natural food categories with well-known brands that include Celestial Seasonings®, Terra Chips®, Garden of Eatin'®, Health Valley®, WestSoy®, Earth's Best®, Arrowhead Mills®, Hain Pure Foods®, Raised Right®, Hollywood®, Walnut Acres Organic®, Imagine Foods®, Rice Dream®, Soy Dream®, Rosetto®, Ethnic Gourmet®, Yves Veggie Cuisine®, Lima®, Biomarche®, Grains Noirs®, Natumi®, JASON® and Zia® Natural Skincare. For more information, visit http://www.hain-celestial.com/.

SOURCE: Celestial Seasonings

Web site: http://www.hain-celestial.com/

Web site: http://www.celestialseasonings.com/