Taylors of Harrogate are an old established family business, based in the heart of the beautiful North Yorkshire Dales.
In addition to being one of the country’s leading tea and coffee merchants, we are also famous for our restaurants. Indeed a trip to Yorkshire wouldn’t be complete without a visit to one of our award-winning Bettys Café Tea Rooms. We serve over three million customers a year at Bettys and have won the Tea Council ‘Top Tea Place of the Year’ on three occasions.
Over One Hundred Years’ Experience
Taylors of Harrogate was founded in 1886 by Charles Taylor, who had acquired a wealth of experience whilst he was the northern agent for a London tea company. He had noticed how local variations in the water supply could affect the quality of a brew, and made it his first priority to supply the most suitable blend of tea for each area. His attention to detail was soon reflected in the success of his products, and, as the company grew, it diversified. From being simply a regional wholesaler of teas, Taylors opened a chain of shops known as ‘The Kiosks’. Here customers could meet over a cup of tea in the café.
Taylors and Bettys Join Forces
These cafés were very successful in the years leading up to the Second World War, culminating in the opening of the Café Imperial in the beautiful spa town of Harrogate, which served exotic teas from all over the world to the accompaniment of a string quartet. After the War, however, it became increasingly difficult to keep the larger cafés open, and by the Sixties, Taylors had joined forces with its friendly rival, Bettys Café Tea Rooms.
Like Taylors, Bettys was a family owned tea rooms with a reputation for delicious cakes and excellent service. The company decided that each business would in future focus on its key areas of expertise. With all Bettys experience in running cafés, Bettys would run that part of the business. Taylors would concentrate on what it has always done best – selling the best coffees and teas from around the world, and creating delicious blends. Both parts of the business have continued to thrive, and the same passion for quality present at the start of the business remains at the core of all we do today.
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