A café favourite becomes a drinks business

Start with something customers already enjoy

Rootsy began with a question inside a café: could tea feel more like a treat than a teabag in a cup? Speaking with HIKOMORE at the Hospitality Tech Expo, Marta and Stuart Downs explain how that question grew into a separate drinks business.

Stuart describes developing a tea infusion with added flavour, then seeing it become popular with customers. The starting point was a drink people were already ordering, rather than an idea developed entirely away from the counter.

The pair also own Strawberry Grove. Its website lists cafés in Marlow and Lane End, alongside afternoon teas and catering. That hospitality background helps explain Rootsy’s focus: a product shaped by the work of serving customers.

Make the recipe easier to repeat

Marta describes another practical problem. Preparing the drinks meant handling several separate ingredients, including dried fruit and petals. Bringing those ingredients together in one bag made preparation simpler. She also explains that the drinks can be served hot or cold, giving venues a way to use them across seasons.

The Rootsy website now presents botanical drink kits for hospitality venues, with recipes and training support. That business offer extends the idea beyond ingredients: another team needs to know how to prepare and serve the drink.

From one counter to other venues

At the time of the interview, Stuart says the business had been trading for just two days. His ambition was to reach cafés and hotels nationwide. It is a launch-stage ambition, with the next challenge being to make a café favourite work in other businesses.

For founders, the useful thread is the move from demand to repeatability. A popular recipe provides a starting point; packaging, preparation and support help turn it into something another operator can use.