Tea Time: Lipton Unveils Redesign Steeped in the Brand’s Legacy

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This past International Tea Day—May 21st, to be precise—Lipton unveiled its new brand identity. 

Founded by Thomas Lipton in 1890, the brand is one of the most recognizable tea brands in the world. In the late 19th century, tea was still a luxury product in countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom. Looking for products to stock in his shops, Lipton would travel the world, eventually buying a tea garden in Sri Lanka, enabling him to reduce the cost of producing, packaging, and importing tea.

The brand’s early success fueled market dominance. Still, lately, it felt like Lipton had rested on its laurels, with the last major update to its brand identity over a decade ago in 2014, perhaps due in part to being part of Unilever’s vast portfolio. But Unilever sold most of its interests in Lipton to venture capital firm CVC Capital Partners, and the brand is now the flagship of a company focused on tea, with stablemates including PG Tips and TAZO.