The Story

My last mini case study explored the fluffy French power room that is Anthropologie. This time I’m going to concentrate on a slightly-less-feminine company called Tao of Tea. Not many of you have probably visited Tao, since it is a local Portland establishment. However, you may have heard of the tea house, because it has been nationally recognized for its interiors.

Interiors and environmental design are integral to proving one’s brand story. I have a sneaking suspicion that if Tao of Tea looked plain inside, customers wouldn’t be willing to pay $5.00 + dollars for their flavored boiled water. However, the tea house is anything but plain. The minute you step inside, you’re surrounded by plants, unfinished wood, trickling waterfalls, pottery, and the smell of spices. By drinking 500 Mile Chai and munching down Edamame in the exotic, hut-like environment, one gets to feel bohemian and cultivated. In essence, the multi-sensory interior design creates an “authentic experience” that one is willing to pay a significant mark-up for.

We can go a step further and break down the different multi-sensory aspects of Tao’s environment that come together to create this authentic experience.

• Sight: Plants, water features, natural materials (stone and wood), slanted and curving lines, organic looking color scheme (browns, greys, muted tones), mismatched furniture
• Touch: Unfinished woods, uneven surfaces, clay teapots, natural wares, finger foods, classical serving styles
• Smell: Tea, other spices
• Taste: (Other than tea), Asian inspired tea snacks with a heavy Indian influence
• Sound: Trickling water, and I believe last time I visited they had low music playing.

Tao of Tea’s clear brand identity is communicated fully through the company’s impressive environmental experience creation. You’re probably thinking that it’s easier for a tea house to use multi-sensory marketing and experiential branding than it is for a bank. And you’re right, it most likely is. After all, they serve tea. But then again, bank marketers have been taking cues from Starbucks for the past couple years, so I’d say that Tao could be just as relevant of an influence.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, April 16th, 2008 at 4:11 pm and is filed under Bank Branding, Bank Marketing, Touch points, Experiential Marketing, Branding, Experiential Brands, Multisensory Marketing and 5 Senses Branding, Starbucks Branding & Marketing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.