Twinings began in 1706 at No. 216 Strand, London, when Thomas Twining opened what Wikipedia describes as Britain’s first known tea room. The shop remains at that address, connecting the brand’s modern business with its London beginnings. Over more than three centuries, the company has changed ownership, broadened its range and moved much of its production overseas. Its story is therefore not only one of continuity, but also of changing commercial structures, manufacturing decisions and the responsibilities involved in sourcing tea.
A tea room on the Strand
Thomas Twining, from Painswick in Gloucestershire, opened the tea room on the Strand in 1706. The original article describes the premises as Tom’s Coffee House, bought by Twining, and says that he introduced tea to its clientele. The supplied Wikipedia account instead identifies the premises as Britain’s first known tea room. Following that account, the shop’s early history is best described through its documented tea-room role and address, rather than the coffee-house purchase story.
The premises continue to operate as a shop and tea room. That gives Twinings a physical link to its beginnings: the company’s history can still be traced to a working London address, rather than only to a name or a product range. The original article calls the site a museum and tea shop, but the supplied reference does not identify it as a museum. Its more colourful description as a pilgrimage destination is promotional, rather than a fact established by the supplied material.
The company’s visual identity has its own long chronology. Twinings created its logo in 1787, and the supplied Wikipedia article identifies it as the world’s oldest logo in continuous use. This is a specific distinction, and a sign of how long the firm’s identity has been attached to its products. The original account describes the logo as featuring a lion and a unicorn; that description is not supported by the supplied reference, so it is not repeated here.
From family business to corporate ownership
Twinings holds a royal warrant, and the original article dates the company’s first warrant to 1837, when Queen Victoria granted it. The supplied Wikipedia account also identifies the company as a holder of a royal warrant, but does not provide the date or describe a continuous succession of warrants under later monarchs. The warrant is part of the supplied account of Twinings’ history, though the broader claim about successive monarchs is not carried forward.
The company’s association with Earl Grey is well known, but the precise history is less certain. Wikipedia describes Earl Grey as a tea infused with bergamot and says it is unclear when Twinings’ association with the blend began, or how important the company’s role was. Jacksons of Piccadilly, another tea company acquired by Twinings during the 1990s, is also associated with the blend. The available account therefore does not establish Twinings as the blend’s originator.
Associated British Foods acquired Twinings in 1964. The brand is now owned by that group and is based in Andover, Hampshire. The London shop remains an important historic address, but the company is no longer simply a small Strand tea room. Its marketed drinks include tea, coffee, hot chocolate and malt drinks. Tea varieties include black and green teas, herbal teas and fruit-based cold infusions.
The original article names Earl Grey and English Breakfast alongside newer-sounding products such as Moroccan Mint and Superblends. Those examples convey something of the range’s variety, but its claim that Twinings offers more than 500 types of tea is not substantiated by the supplied reference. The more secure account is that the range now extends across several kinds of tea and infusion, as well as the company’s other drinks.
Production moves and changing tastes
Twinings’ British history includes significant decisions about where tea is made. In April 2008, the company announced the closure of its Nambarrie plant in Belfast. The plant was associated with a tea business that had traded for more than 140 years. Twinings cited an efficiency drive; in late 2011 it moved most production to China and Poland, while retaining its Andover factory with a reduced workforce. The brand’s British origins and ownership thus coexist with international manufacturing.
The range has also changed in response to supply and cost. In 2023, Twinings ceased production of lapsang souchong and replaced it with a product called Distinctively Smoky. The supplied reference reports that the replacement was widely considered inferior; this is a reported judgement, not an objective measure of quality. Twinings cited difficulty sourcing the blend and rising market prices. The change illustrates how a familiar product can be affected by conditions beyond the company’s control, as well as by decisions about what to sell.
Tea itself is not a single, unchanging tradition within the brand. Twinings markets black and green teas, herbal varieties and fruit-based cold infusions, alongside named blends and other drinks. The original article’s invitation to enjoy a classic cuppa or explore newer flavours captures the consumer-facing side of that range. A cup of tea may be an everyday purchase, but in Twinings’ case it also connects a current product with the long history attached to the Strand name.
Sourcing and responsibility
Twinings’ ethical tea programme is called Sourced with Care. The company is also a founding member of the Ethical Tea Partnership, a not-for-profit membership organisation whose members monitor and seek to improve conditions on tea estates in major tea-growing regions. Twinings has an Ethical Code of Conduct and works with packaging and raw-material suppliers on working conditions in its supply chain. These are stated programmes and aims; they should not be mistaken for proof that every difficulty in tea production has been resolved.
In August 2018, Twinings published a list of its tea suppliers in India on its Sourced with Care website. The disclosure followed a call from Traidcraft Exchange for major UK tea brands to identify the plantations they used and address modern slavery in their supply chains. Traidcraft Exchange welcomed the move. Its policy adviser, Fiona Gooch, said that it could put pressure on other large tea brands to follow suit. This episode gives the company’s sourcing commitments a concrete context: public scrutiny of supply chains and a specific step towards greater visibility.
Why Twinings deserves a place in British Legacy
Twinings’ place in British history rests on a documented London address and a tea business founded there, not on any claim that one brand represents the whole of British identity. The Strand tea room opened in 1706 and continues at the same premises. Its enduring presence, together with the logo created in 1787 and still in continuous use, makes Twinings a distinctive example of a business whose history remains visible in the city where it began. The company’s products have since reached beyond that original shop, but the Strand remains a tangible connection between its early history and its present-day name.
The fuller record makes that legacy more than a celebration of longevity. Twinings became part of Associated British Foods, moved most production to China and Poland, and retained a smaller workforce at its Andover factory. Its sourcing programme and the 2018 publication of Indian suppliers show how the company has responded to questions about working conditions and transparency; the 2023 change to lapsang souchong demonstrates the pressures that sourcing and cost can place on a familiar product. Together, these details make Twinings a useful case study in the changing life of a British brand: rooted in a London shop, shaped by international trade and manufacturing, and accountable for decisions behind what reaches the cup. For customers, whether choosing a classic tea or trying a newer blend, that long history is part of the experience the brand offers.
Sources
Twinings — Wikipedia revision 1379721165
Adapted in part from Twinings by Wikipedia contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0. Text has been edited and combined with the existing article; this adapted text is shared under the same licence. Contributor history.