FREE Matcha Giveaway! 10 cans of our *NEW* KaiMatcha Premium - Ceremonial Matcha Green Tea Powder!
I entered! Thanks for this opportunity, and I’d be happy to leave a tasting note if I receive a can!
NOT entering.
I visited your site and it creeps me out quite a bit because I get this strange “infomercial” vibe from it. You have video testimonials? About tea? Are you kidding me? Reviews, including video reviews, are one thing but this is something else. And this is the first time I’ve seen a tea company sell literally nothing but one type of tea. You’re hawking matcha like it’s a StairMaster.
I noticed you a few days ago, but said nothing because I thought surely someone else would speak up. But you’re now on four pages, and nothing.
Am I the only one who is squicked?
For all I know, you’re an earnest and legit tea company and just marketing yourself in a creepy way, but – FYI – there is literally NO WAY I would pay money for your product with the vibe I get from your site right now. I’d expect my money to vanish into thin air. Or just a crappy product, possibly cut with something illegal. Who knows.
I do agree that the checklist of why KaiMatcha is superior matcha to competitors was less than helpful. Supply is limited because the gyokuro crop is harvested only once per season? That could be the practice of many tea farms and therefore not exclusive. And I wonder if and how the owner/CEO of this company is related to the family-owned tea farm.
*editted to add: by “related”, I meant “connected” which you have explained clearly. I certainly did not expect direct family connections.
You’re not the only one, I just didn’t want to be “that guy” who said something :P
The website does feel slightly spammish, like one of the ones that would be a pop-up. There really is a difference between showing a passion for matcha, and making matcha look like it’s being sold as part of a get rich quick scheme (similar to miracle pill sites, but this time it’s tea). If I were KaiMatcha, I’d change the site to be more intimate/family based than infomercial like. Something like a “from our family to yours”.
Don’t take this the wrong way, but I don’t buy tea from online sites unless they’re well established, or there’s a personal feeling/vibe about them. Take Verdant Tea or 52 Teas for example, I have no real connection to them, but their sites feels homely and welcoming.
@DanielScott:
Hi Daniel, thanks for your feedback on our website!
My wife and I are the founders of KaiMatcha. We have been drinking matcha green tea since 2009. When we embarked on our mission to introduce a new brand of matcha green tea to North America we took a very systematic approach. We first sampled over 50 matcha green teas from Japan to find the highest quality, ceremonial grade matcha in our price range, that was from a supplier who could meet our volume needs.
After settling on the strain of matcha we would be using, we looked at how we could market this product effectively to the masses. Our mission has always been to spread the word about the amazing health benefits of matcha green tea. I’m not just talking about weight loss or the energy boost, I’m talking about the cancer-fighting properties, the immune strengthening, and the antioxidant value. (I will be honest, my family has a long history of cancer. 3 of my 4 grandparents died from cancer. I want to let people know that if they drink matcha daily they can help prevent it. I’ve already got my sister and my parents drinking matcha. Now I have to work on the rest of the world!) We want to introduce matcha green tea to the general public, not just sell to a niche group of tea experts. We first looked at all the other competing websites selling matcha green tea. Most of them were the typical “e-commerce” type websites. These stores had dozens of teas, and matcha was one of them. They often only had a few lines, or a paragraph at most, describing matcha and it’s benefits. We believe this style of website is good when targeting a regular tea-drinker or a tea connoisseur, but not effective when trying to reach and educate a larger market about the benefits of matcha green tea.
That is why we decided to go with a “direct response” type website that focussed solely on educating people on matcha and it’s history. We currently have 5 pages full of matcha content, and are in the process of adding 20 more pages related to matcha benefits (backed by clinical studies), and 10 more pages related to matcha recipes (including videos from my wife who will be making some of the recipes). We believe this type of website will be more effective in engaging the average internet user, and let them know that drinking matcha tea is a potential solution for many problems, issues, and ailments.
We have been continually testing the website to improve it’s conversion rate and value for customers. In some of the original tests we gathered feedback from website visitors and the general consensus was that they wanted to see real testimonials from people who have tried the product. (Remember, most of these people browsing the site have never drank tea before, but are interested in the benefits). They needed further proof that the tea is effective, and rightfully so. That is why we added the text and video testimonials that we received from early testers of KaiMatcha Premium.
As far as only having one product to sell…I can only respond by saying we are a company that is just getting started, and we are in the early/growth phase of our business. Right now we only offer KaiMatcha Premium, but we are already looking into adding an Organic matcha, a cooking grade matcha, as well as a complete “Starter Kit”, that will include all the supplies you need to get started drinking matcha tea. It will include a can of KaiMatcha Premium, a bowl, a whisk, a serving spoon, a strainer, and a whisk holder.
To imply that our product is less than high quality and possibly “cut with something illegal” is simply misguided and unfounded. We have been working hard to get this business started, and I find it hurtful someone is saying that about my product without even trying it first. I would like nothing more than to send you a free can of KaiMatcha Premium and letting you test it out for yourself. I have no hesitation because I know that in terms of price versus quality, we have the best value matcha currently on the market. You would expect to pay $50-$70 per can for a matcha of our calibre. We are charging half that price. Please send me your mailing address if you are interested.
@ChaiMei:
Thanks for taking time to check out our website!
Once again, I have to refer to the initial data feedback we received from website visitors. They were confused with why we were charging $30-$40 for KaiMatcha Premium, when they had seen 120g bags of matcha on sale for less than $10. We needed a spot on our website to let people know the difference between our ceremonial grade matcha, and some of the lower quality matchas they have seen being advertised online. To be completely honest, alot of the lower quality matchas you see online are actually produced in China, and contain the stems and other discarded leaves from Japanese tea farms. These matchas are produced simply for people to add them to baking recipes. They only add the green color, and a slight matcha taste. Most of them contain very little to no nutritional value at all. We need to educate people on the difference. That is why we spent time creating the difference checklist.
Our supply IS limited. Our farm in Uji, Kyoto Japan only harvests a certain amount of high quality leaves per season. Our farm holds most of the tea in Japan as they sell it direct to tea ceremony instructors and others who can afford it. We receive the rest of the supply. We are gaining interest from retail chains who want to stock KaiMatcha Premium, and we honestly do not know how long our supply will last. We are simply stating a fact, and not comparing our supply situation with other matcha companies. We refuse to package a lower quality matcha in our KaiMatcha Premium container when supply of our high quality strain runs out. This is common practice with some tea companies, but we refuse to do it. We encourage customers to buy the 3-pack or the 6-pack since they can save up to 33% doing it that way, and they don’t have to worry about placing an order every month.
As far as being related to the farm owner, I don’t understand where you got this from? On the website we mention we were able to secure a “relationship” with a family-owned farm in Japan. I think you may be confused. The farm itself is owned by a Japanese family, and it has been passed down from generation to generation. The matcha growing and harvesting techniques on this farm have been perfected over time due to experience and innovation. That is another reason why we chose to work with them. When I use the word “relationship” I mean a business relationship, not being related in terms of family. I’m sorry, I thought it was clear how we wrote it, maybe we can re-write it to make it crystal clear.
Phew! That was a long message. I think I’m ready for my pre-workout bowl of matcha!
If either of you have any other questions or concerns at all, please feel free to email me directly at [email protected].
Entered and will definitely review if I win! Thank you!
(I do have to agree the infomercial vibe from the site is a little off-putting but I am still willing to give it a try, hahah~)
ahh i love that i just found another vancouver based teaa company this makes me so happy !! im glad i made a steepster account .. wee _
Thanks so much for the entries so far!
Just a reminder: The contest closes tonight at Midnight PST!
Entered! And of course I will review if I am lucky enough to win. Thanks for offering this contest!
Login or sign up to leave a comment.