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Tonya Donati & Josh Rumschlag Mother Kumbucha, Co-Founders
BY KAYLA GLEASON Fermentation can be intimidating, if not downright scary for those inexperienced in the process, but one St. Petersburg company has gotten the formula down pat and has become a pioneer in the industry. Since opening in 2014, Mother Kombucha has been brewing up a wide array of tasty fermented teas. Tonya Donati founded the business with her husband (and creative director) Vic Donati and Event Coordinator Josh Rumschlag after experimenting with homebrewing in her garage. “My background is in healthcare,” she said. “I was an occupational therapist and have always been interested in helping people improve their lives and health. I’m a strong proponent of whole-body wellness. I would always find myself recommending meditation, yoga and healthy diets to my patients.” After leaving her role in the medical field to spend time with her two young children, Donati still wanted to explore new ways to engage people with health and wellness and promote awareness of what we put inside our bodies. Rumschlag, on the other hand, had been homebrewing and honing his fermentation skills for years before helping start the living tea company. He even studied traditional Chinese herbology, giving him the extensive knowledge necessary to develop new flavors that are not only unique but good for you. With their combined backgrounds, the founders knew they were onto something groundbreaking.
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StPeteLifeMag.com
May/June 2020
“We wanted to make something with less sugar, something we would want to serve to our kids and, at the time, Florida did not have a regional kombucha brand and we thought it needed one,” Donati said. Thus, Mother Kombucha was born. Initially selling their product at local farmers markets, the brand soon began partnering with nearby Mad Hatters Ethnobotanical Kava Bar before going on to developing relationships with over 350 bars and restaurants in Tampa Bay and surrounding areas. Even upscale eateries like Paul’s Landing at the Renaissance Vinoy feature Mother Kombucha in some of their most popular drinks. Blueberry Fizz, anyone? Despite all of this, the company still sticks to their roots, frequenting local farmers markets, including the widely loved Saturday Morning Market held every weekend next to Al Lang Stadium between October and May. Even for those who aren’t interested in hitting the town for a drink or are just looking to stock their own fridge with a healthy, soda alternative, Mother Kombucha is sold in Publix across the state of Florida, as well as Whole Foods, Winn Dixie and Earth Origins – partnerships that have significantly driven up demand. In fact, the brand outputs so much product that they had to move into a 15,000-square-foot facility in May of 2018, just to make for more room to expand. Donati notes this should be more than enough space to hold them for the next few years. “We have room to about quadruple production in this space, something
