Milo's Tea Company
Milo's Tea Company produces Milo's Famous Tea, which is sold in several southeastern states. It was originally named Milo's Restaurant Services and is currently located in Bessemer.
History
Ronnie Carlton founded Milo's Restaurant Services as an outgrowth of the Milo's Hamburgers restaurant chain. The company began selling Milo's Famous Tea to Birmingham grocery stores in one gallon jugs in April 1989. It also produced the tea and hamburger sauce used by Milo's Hamburgers restaurants. Carlton sold the restaurant business to Dean Chitwood in January 2002, but continued providing the chain with sauce and tea.
The company's original plant was located behind Barber's Dairies, just off West Oxmoor Road in Homewood. In 2002, the company moved to the Morgan Industrial Park in Bessemer. The original location, which had grown to 21,000 square feet, no longer had room for needed expansion. When originally constructed, the Bessemer facility was 28,000 square feet. In 2004, the company made plans to expand to 43,000 square feet.
The company's current slogan, introduced on May 23, 2007, is "Taste the Milo's Difference." It replaced the slogan, "The Great Southern Tea Company Since 1946," which had been in use for over a decade.
Products
The tea the company produces only lists three ingredients: water, sugar, and custom blended teas. However, the exact recipe, including the brewing, sweetening, and cooling processes, are kept secret. The company began with a single product: sweet tea in one gallon jugs. As of 2006, the company sells the tea as follows:
- Milo's Famous Sweet Tea, one gallon jugs and 8 ounce bottles, introduced in 1997.
- Milo's Famous Tea Unsweetened, one gallon jugs, introduced in 1999.
- Milo's Famous Tea with Splenda, one gallon jugs and 8 ounce bottles, introduced in 2006.
Distribution
Milo's Tea Company has signed deals with several dairies to distribute their products.
- Barber's Dairy (Alabama)
- Brown’s Dairy (Louisiana)
- LuVel Dairy (Mississippi)
- Mayfield Dairy (Georgia and East Tennessee)
- Purity Dairy (Tennessee)
References
- Milo's - History. Milo's Tea Company. Accessed August 18, 2006.
- Nicholson, Gilbert. (February 1, 2002.) "Milo's serves up a warehouse in Bessemer" [1]. Birmingham Business Journal
- Brooks, Staci Brown. (February 24, 2004.) "Milo's Tea brews big plan for its plant, distribution" [2]. The Birmingham News. p. 1C.
- Williams, Roy L. (May 23, 2007.) "Fresh idea brewing." The Birmingham News.