At first, providing a taste of culture wasn’t easy

BY NANCY LAVIN | Lavin@PBN.com

(Editor’s note: This is the 17th installment in a monthly series speaking with minority business owners and leaders. Each will be asked their views on minority-business conditions in the state and for ways to improve those businesses’ chances for success.) THE EXACTING ARTISTRY of a Chinese tea ceremony comes naturally to Michelle Cheng.

As a young child growing up in China, Cheng watched her grandfather carry out the intricate steps of the cultural tradition each afternoon after she woke up from her daily nap.

That ritual largely disappeared from her life after she moved to Rhode Island with her family when she was 12 years old. Adjusting to a new way of life was all-consuming, and even if they had time to perform the ceremony, the central ingredient was impossible to find.

“You really couldn’t find loose-leaf tea at all then,” Cheng recalled. “If we wanted anything other than tea bags, we would have to ask our family back in China to mail it to us.”

Now 32, Cheng has brought a taste of her homeland tradition to Providence. The aptly named Ceremony opened as a brick-and-mortar homage to Chinese tea culture on Thayer Street in 2019, though the business recently relocated up the street.

Cheng started her company – formally Beyond Teas LLC – as an online store, importing and repacking the loose-leaf teas from local Chinese farms. The venture into a storefront was an opportunity to make not only her product but the culture and education that accompany it more widely available.

And it’s not just tea that visitors can sample when visiting the Brook Street shop. There are seaweed-covered Japanese rice balls, sesame ice cream and round chewy pastries filled with adzuki-bean paste, products Cheng carries made by other local, Asian-owned businesses.

For some of the Brown University students who frequent the shop, these products offer a taste of home. For others, it’s a literal taste of a world rarely available elsewhere in Providence.

Indeed, Asian products and culture were scarce in the East Providence and Barrington communities where Cheng spent her teenage years. She took advantage of traveling to China for her first job as a textile importer to bring back the specialty loose-leaf teas she missed.

“It got to the point where a customs agent told me I was going to have to claim the tea and pay taxes on it,” Cheng said. “He thought I was selling it. But it was all for personal use.”

When Cheng later decided to import the teas for business, paying import taxes was the least of her problems. Her parents wanted their daughter to pursue a more stable career path – perhaps using her accounting degree – rather than the uncertainty of a passion project.

Banks were equally reluctant when Cheng first sought a loan to open the store. Many of the initial emails she sent to prospective lenders were never returned. It was only when she used her American husband’s email address – instead of her own Chinese-sounding one – that she even got a meeting.

Even then, bankers dismissed her ideas as “too niche.” She agreed that the idea is very specific, but all the more reason why it’s needed, in her view. But because no one else was doing it, there was no market data to convince reluctant lenders or landlords.

She eventually secured a loan, putting her house as collateral, and a rent deal from an open-minded landlord. But the challenges underscored what Cheng already recognized as the obstacles faced by minority business owners, particularly those of Asian descent.

“You have all these groups, the Thayer Street Association, the Federal Hill Association, even [groups] for other minority business owners,” Cheng said. “There isn’t one here for Asian business owners.”

But, she added, “I’d like to start one.”

Michelle Cheng

Beyond Teas LLC

TEA ZONE: Michelle Cheng opened her shop, Ceremony, in Providence in 2019.

PBN PHOTO/ELIZABETH GRAHAM

1Do you believe racism is keeping minorities from starting businesses in the Ocean State or succeeding when they do? I think cultural differences such as a language barrier can be difficult for minorities to get things done. Navigating through the right permits and licenses to obtain is hard for anyone, but adding on a language barrier can make things a lot harder.

I also think cultural differences can make it hard for a minority business to get a loan. For example, it was hard for me to explain to people what our business concept was because there’s no existing store doing what we do as an example. We were turned down a lot for loans because it was not something tangible they could relate to.

2How dependent is your business on the support of other minority groups? Is that a sustainable business model? The products we offer are sourced from Asia, from the tea we source directly from small farms we partner with to the imported sake and Japanese ceramics. However, we find that our business model and marketing allow us to engage with different cultures and age groups.

3What one thing could Rhode Island do to boost the odds for minority-owned business success? I would like to see more diversity in state or local board members to better represent the community. For example, when I was getting an alcohol license, I was told I cannot serve sake with a beer and wine license; I had to speak to and educate multiple people who were assigning our license what sake is and how it’s processed like beer and consumed by the glass like wine. If there was more diversity in these boards, licensors, decision-makers, etc., then I would not have to be the one to educate them.

4Have you had to turn somewhere other than a bank for a loan? Do you believe the state’s lending institutions generally treat minorities fairly? I have been turned away from everywhere for a business loan, mostly because, again, the culture difference makes it hard for them to understand what the store concept was, they struggled to understand and envision the vision I had, and therefore, it was hard for them to believe it would be successful.

This is why I wanted to take the risk and open Ceremony. It is my job to preserve and educate others on the culture I came from. Despite the fact that America is made up of immigrants, we are just starting to become more accepting of other cultures’ food and medicine. The success of our store is a great example of that, and I think this is a wonderful thing to see. Acceptance and understanding is the first step we take towards building a more compassionate community.

5If another minority entrepreneur asked you where they could turn to for support for their business, where would you direct them? Seek out a business practice you admire, regardless if they are minority-owned or not, and learn from them. I looked up to Rik Kleinfeldt from New Harvest Coffee Roasters Inc. Other than my father, he was a big inspiration to me, and he was willing to mentor me as a friend and a fellow business owner. If you are willing to learn, you will find wisdom everywhere you look. n

The culture difference makes it hard for [lenders] to understand.