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Team Bios
Meet the Teatulia team! We're proud to be a Woman & Minority-Owned Business.
Linda Appel Lipsius
Linda Appel Lipsius is the Co-Founder, Advisor and on the Board of Directors of Teatulia Organic Teas. Since 2006, she's been working with her partners in Bangladesh to bring premium, 100% Organic, direct-sourced teas & herbs to the United States. Teatulia produces innovative, delicious & award-winning hot teas, iced teas & Tea Sodas that are sold throughout the U.S in grocery, foodservice and online. Lipsius has built a universally-respected brand known for doing things better. From the 3,000-acre regenerative tea garden itself, to Teatulia’s stunningly sustainable packaging to the long list of awards Teatulia has received for quality and using business as a force for good. Named one of Food & Wine/ Fortune’s 20 Most Innovative Women in Food & Wine, one of Denver Business Journal’s Outstanding Women in Business and a frequent public speaker, she is a leading voice on topics ranging from entrepreneurship to sustainable business practices to the food & beverage industry in general.
In 2012, Linda also started the mama 'hood,a resource for new & expecting moms & their families, and opened Teatulia Tea & Coffee Bar next door to Teatulia’s Denver Headquarters. Previously, Linda was VP International with Orange Glo International (OGI) - makers of OxiClean, Kaboom, Orange Glo and Orange Clean - and Account Manager for Young & Rubicam. A Denver Native, she earned her Bachelor's Degree in Political Science from Columbia University in New York City and her MBA in Finance from New York University before moving to Washington, DC, London, Los Angeles then back to Denver. She currently lives in downtown Denver with her filmmaker husband and her 14 & 12 year old children. In her spare time, Linda hangs with her kiddos, escapes to the mountains, devours movies & books, runs, and practices yoga and gymnastics to keep her head & heart clear.
Tim Bradley
CEO, Tim Bradley has more than three decades of experience in marketing, sales and general management for consumer packaged goods companies—including Procter and Gamble, SmithKline Beecham Open Road Snacks, and Rich Products. He’s an entrepreneur at heart, who has built a half-dozen businesses, often from the ground up, to significant annual sales levels across multiple industries. Tim grew up on the east coast and earned an economics degree from Hamilton College. When he’s not in the office, Tim is likely playing hockey, or out enjoying the mountain environs (often with his loyal sidekick Bode the black lab) in hiking boots, on one of his bikes, or on skis.
Chris Olsen
Chief Business Development Officer, Chris Olsen, has spent the last decade helping Teatulia Organic Teas grow from a start-up tea company into one of the world’s fastest-growing international tea brands. Olsen is the ultimate tea industry ambassador responsible for Teatulia’s mission of producing, procuring, and selling the world’s finest quality organic teas. Working his way from Director of Marketing and Product Development to Chief Operating Officer to Chief Business Development Officer, Olsen’s contributions have a theme of innovation and expansion. Olsen built Teatulia’s commercial sales channel from the ground up into the successful revenue stream it is today. As head of export and international sales, he has opened markets for Teatulia in Chile, Canada, and Australia. As product innovation lead, Olsen has launched more than 20 different product formats so far in retail and foodservice. He’s even formulated hot and iced tea blends that earned Teatulia coveted North American Tea Championship (NATC) and Specialty Food Association sofi™ awards. Olsen also spearheaded Teatulia’s revolutionary eco-canister packaging, which led to a globally recognized iF Packaging Design Award for innovative product packaging. Under Olsen’s watch, Teatulia was named one of Forbes’ Top 25 Innovative Consumer Brands. Olsen comes from an advertising-rich background, working on Fortune 500 brands such as Miller-Coors and Coca-Cola. Prior to joining Teatulia, he was a Vice-President at Pure Leaf Naturals, where he directed marketing campaigns for Aviva Yerba Mate and the Sweet Earth brand of stevia. Olsen earned his BA from Colorado State University and his MS in Marketing from the University of Colorado at Denver.
Nick Stefiuk
Director of Sales – Foodservice, Nick joins Teatulia with extensive experience in the beverage industry.Nick started his career executing events for large beverage companies like Bacardi Rum, Anheuser Busch and Coca-Cola at Team Enterprises. He then entered into a Regional Sales role with the Redhook Ale Brewery and his love affair with beverage sales began. Leaving the alcohol industry he entered the world of coffee and tea when he spent time with Mars Drinks eventually transitioning to a job at Peet’s Coffee and Tea. His role progressed from Account Manager to eventually Director of Sales for the Foodservice channel where he led a team of 11 Regional Managers. Nick enjoys spending time with his family and his many pets. He currently lives in Southern NH but travels around the US regularly.
Sarah Meyer
Sarah Meyer is an explorer, having traveled the world with her family and through student exchanges from a young age. Her love of travel and adventure has led her on many journeys while building her career. After completing undergraduate studies at Michigan State University and her Masters degree at Wayne State University, Sarah touched down first as a social studies teacher within the wild walls of a local high school in suburban Detroit. She then swam the mighty waters of Lake Michigan to master the dark nights and bright lights of the restaurant industry in Chicago. Now she’s here to conquer Denver and the Rockies and joins Teatulia as our Account Executive. When she’s not zipping around Denver and Colorado introducing new accounts to all of Teatulia's goodness, she is making friends with our outstanding existing accounts and hyping Teatulia’s single garden sourced organic teas for all! Sarah pauses only briefly from her sales endeavors to enjoy a Mint Hibiscus Lemonade Tea Soda or a refreshing glass of Watermelon Black Iced Tea and ponder her next liftoff. “I am loving putting down roots in Denver”, she says, “but my life is also about stretching my limbs tall and enjoying the view.” When asked where her next passport stamp will be, she responds, “Bangladesh, Croatia, Zambia - I want to see it all!”
Macey Howard
Senior Manager of E-Commerce and Digital Marketing, Macey Howard, joined Teatulia 2015 to manage Teatulia's online presence including the Teatulia e-commerce, website, SEO, email marketing, affiliates, SEM, social media and all things digital. Macey joined Teatulia with a background in SEO, looking to help group an amazing social business on a mission to do good. A graduate of Oregon State University, Macey has a BS in Marketing, with an option in International Business from her time spent in the Czech Republic. Macey works remotely in Portland, Oregon but comes back to Denver to frequently for team meetings and happy hours.
Molly Waller
Molly began her journey with Teatulia in 2008 as a Brand Ambassador and has only built her career from there. She continued to thrive while she managed the warehouse for 7 years and then moved into Marketing upon pursuing her Masters at Regis University. After four successful years as a Marketing Manager, she is now taking on her new role as Senior Marketing Manager as we continue to expand our brand across the United States.
Brad McKinzie
Controller, Brad joins the Teatulia team with over 11 years of Accounting and Finance experience. After beginning his career in Restaurant Accounting, he managed the financial statements of over 100 different restaurants around the U.S and gained a strong understanding of how the finance department can significantly impact the success of a business. From there he continued his Finance career moving into the Wine industry with one of the most sought after and notorious brands in the world. He became intrigued with the entire process from vine to bottle. Being a tea drinker and seeing a lot of similarities in Garden to Cup, he found his way to Teatulia. Brad earned his Bachelor's from CU-Denver and shortly after got his MBA. He enjoys being active, enjoying the Colorado sun and all things Football.
Dr. Kazi Anis Ahmed
Co-Founder and President Dr. Kazi Anis Ahmed is the Director of the Kazi and Kazi Tea Estate, Ltd. (KKTE – the single source for Teatulia Tea) as well as the Director and CEO of Organics and Education for Gemcon Group in Dhaka, Bangladesh. At KKTE, Dr. Ahmed has helped establish the guiding organic values and polices that allowed KKTE to emerge as the first successful organic tea estate in Bangladesh. He personally oversaw the international SGS Organic and USDA Organic certification processes. After launching Kazi & Kazi Tea as the first organic brand in the local market, he led plans for Teatulia to become the first branded Bangladeshi tea for international export. Dr. Ahmed is leading the founding of an innovative co-operative affiliate with over 1,000 members. Dr. Ahmed received his BA, MA and Ph.D. in literature from Brown, Washington and New York Universities, respectively. Dr. Ahmed is also a contributing advisor of the Bengal Lights journal published from Dhaka, Bangladesh. For more information, please visit bengallights.com
Heather Brown
Heather joined Teatulia in 2019 as our Customer Relationship Manager. With more than twenty years of experience in the organic food industry, Heather began her career in agriculture at an organic ginger farm on the Hawaiian island of Kauai. She eventually returned to her hometown of Sarasota, Florida to raise her family. This is where she began the next step of her journey by managing a successful organic farm for more than thirteen years. This experience gave Heather her vast knowledge of different types of growing methods, natural pest control, and customer outreach. Heather utilized this knowledge as she expanded her career in Sales and Customer Service at a wholesale organic produce distribution company back east. There she gained insight into the international and national aspects of organic produce sales and the importation of products. Upon moving to Colorado in 2016, she managed an organic dry goods company, focusing on customer service, logistics, purchasing, and quality control. Heather was drawn to Teatulia for their values, amazing tea, and core mission as a B corporation. When Heather is not the office, you can find her enjoying the Colorado outdoors as well as all of the cultural activities that a vibrant city such as Denver has to offer.
Kazi Inam Ahmed
Ambassador Kazi Inam Ahmed is a Director of the Kazi and Kazi Tea Estate, Ltd. (KKTE) in Bangladesh. Inam has worked closely with local farmers to establish the vision of a sustainable organic tea garden. He has been involved in many development projects for the farmers and workers, such as adult education and health initiatives. Inam was integral in the launching of the Kazi & Kazi Tea brand as the first organic tea in Bangladesh. In 2004. He introduced Kazi & Kazi Tea as the first Bangladeshi organic tea brand in Harrods, London. Now he is working to make Teatulia the first branded Bangladeshi tea for international export. Inam received his BA from Wesleyan University.
