By JAYSON DIMAANO
The COVID-19 pandemic has given an opportunity to bring out the best in people. It also gives people and their businesses an opportunity to help out establishments such as hospitals by sending supplies to them.
That is what area resident Frank Weber, the founder and owner of Tea Squared, has been doing.
Located in the St. Clair Avenue East and O’Connor Drive area, Tea Squared and Weber have delivered his tea to Michael Garron Hospital and the Fred Victor Mission during the pandemic.
“If you want to be involved in the community and support it, you have to give (back) as well,” said Weber, who lives in southwest Scarborough.
“We haven’t been impacted that much and when the pandemic started, this is an idea came up that we should participate in. And this is something that we are going to continue to do and try to be involved in the community in that way.”
Weber said he planning to deliver again in the summer.
Like many businesses, Tea Squared has faced challenges related to the pandemic, but Weber is thankful that the damage done wasn’t huge. While the restaurant part of the business declined, the company’s online sales doubled over the past year.
Tea Squared opened in 2013 after Weber helped open some of Canada’s first tea shops.
Before becoming a tea enthusiast, he was a chef in his home country of Germany. He moved to Switzerland, London and Bermuda before moving to Canada.
“I travel around the world, gather different types of teas, and we create them here in our facility here in East York. We deliver to many businesses, realtors and so forth,” he said.
Tea is a welcoming and comforting drink for many people says Weber. It helps people deal with stress and mental health issues, including the negative impacts of the pandemic. This has led to the success of their sales.
With tea being one of the healthy choices to drink to keep our bodies healthy, Weber also highlights the importance of tea to frontline workers.
“It starts off with the many properties and antioxidants, which is called EGCG or epigallocatechin gallate. It is a very powerful compound that helps us protect our cells free from radical damage,” he explained.
“These antioxidants help with having a stronger immune system. It’s good for your bone density, good for your teeth and can prevent cardiovascular disease.”
Weber added that tea drinkers also have a quicker response and recovery rate when dealing with diseases like the flu.
Tea Squared is currently having a sale on their website. Readers of this article can put in the code “Beachmetro20” at checkout to save 20 per cent off purchases at https://teasquared.ca
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