April 30, 2012
Ron Rubin, Republic of Tea owner
Ron Rubin bought the Republic of Tea in 1994 from the people who founded the retail store Banana Republic. Rubin was a businessman with a wine and water background - he studied viticulture and enology at UC Davis and founded New Age Beverages, the master licensee for Clearly Canadian Sparkling Water. But tea was new for the entrepreneur, who saw its possibilities in the growing "good-for-you" market.
Ron Rubin bought the Republic of Tea in 1994 from the people who founded the retail store Banana Republic. Rubin was a businessman with a wine and water background - he studied viticulture and enology at UC Davis and founded New Age Beverages, the master licensee for Clearly Canadian Sparkling Water. But tea was new for the entrepreneur, who saw its possibilities in the growing "good-for-you" market.