Good morning, & happy Sunday!
What a few weeks. This was going to be an email about tariffs, but instead, we’ll talk about more enjoyable things like community & packaging, and then discuss tariffs at the end. (Like, at the end of this letter… not at, you know… the end of the world. That’s at least another week away!)
Community — who would you like to meet? Let us know for a chance to win $25.
In my last Flavor Note, I mentioned that we’re working on an online community space for you to learn & share ways to cook & brew with our spices & teas. It’ll be an opportunity to get tips & tricks from each other and our staff about this vast spice library, ask questions, and show off any favorites you have.
We’re also recruiting culinary experts. Maybe they’re famous. Maybe you think they should be. Maybe there’s a type of food or a technique you want to learn about, and we can find someone to teach us all that thing.
Please tell me: I would love to know if you have a few favorite culinary influencers or authors or personalities you think others would like to know. OR, if you have a certain cuisine or technique you’d love to learn more about and how our spices can help.
If you contribute a few ideas, you’ll be entered into a chance to win $25 of spice cash — on us! We’ll pick one winner from these suggestions.
Stacking Packaging
This is just a teaser. I cannot wait to tell you more about what we’re working on, our new “flagship packaging” to sit or stack in your kitchen, protect your spices, and still be easy-to-open. Stay tuned for a future Flavor Note.
How Tariffic
We’re getting asked a lot — how are the tariffs affecting your business? It’s hard to say. Some of our importers raised costs in anticipation of tariffs. Some have not. Some might still. Then direct suppliers from overseas… same story in that there’s no consistent story. (Just like the tariffs themselves.)
We last really raised prices in 2023 when we took the baton from the previous owner, our old boss. Just in the past 3 months, we’ve seen several costs jump (like cumin, +42%). A few things skyrocketed (cardamom seed doubled).
In all, most of our spices & teas are up since 2023 in the 10-25% range, some much more, and a precious few have somehow dropped.
Right now, with tariffs, I think this will be a slow boil. Just an opinion, but that’s guiding our approach.
How We’re Beating Tariffs (and Whatever Else)
You. You’ve supported World Spice for 30 years, through financial crises, a pandemic, and no doubt a few recipes gone awry. Hopefully, you’ve felt the love back, with aromas and flavors that light up your senses.
Each other. Our team cares a lot about each other and our products.
Being smart. We try to run lean. We do our own everything! We renovated the store ourselves, we handle our own technology & design, you name it, we get our hands dirty.
The #1 thing you can do right now? Try something new, enjoy a warm cup of tea, or tell a friend about us. It means the world.
Yes, Some Price Changes
This is part of us trying to be smart. There are some prices changes happening…some up, some down.
We recently unified our blend pricing, which meant most blends went up a touch, while some prices dropped (Cascade Mushroom for one!). We did this the week of Liberation Day the tariff increase, but we’d already decided on the pricing plan.
We’re about to tweak our pure spice & tea prices, and as a rule you’ll see some of the larger quantities actually decrease in price. We don’t expect major shifts to single spice/tea right now.
Thank you.
It’s a real treat to get to spend time in your inbox on a Sunday morning.
